CPREEC - EIACP Programme Centre, Resource Partner on Ecological Heritage and Sacred Sites of India

Place of Origin     

Dumboor Lake, Tripura (The river is formed by the confluence of two small rivers, the Raima and the Sarma, the former flowing out the Longtharai range and the latter originating from the Atharamura range at the dumbur lake.)

Length

285 km

Confluence 

River Meghna, Bangladesh 

Religious significance

Gumti is considered to be a sacred river in Tripura. It has got special significance, especially among the tribals and the Bengali settlers. Every winter during the ‘ Pous Sankranti' , people take a dip in the holy waters of the river at Tirthamukh and worship Goddess Tuiboma. It is believed that a holy dip in the river during ‘Makar Sankranti' purges all sins. The local people also perform ‘ pind dan' for their ancestors on the river banks. Pind dan on the banks of Gumti is considered next only to the pind dan offered at Bodh Gaya in Bihar. It is said that Vish­nu's footprints are seen at Tirthamukh. 

Ecological significance 

River Gumti is the largest, longest and the most important river in the state of Tripura. Some of the most fertile agricultural lands in the state are part of the alluvial deposits laid down by the river. A hydroelectric power plant has been set up by harnessing this river at Dumboor falls. Thousands of tribal people were displaced due to the project that also the disturbed the fragile ecology of the region. 

The Gumti River and the reservoir created by the Dumboor dam are surrounded by lush landscape. They attract a large number of resident as well as migratory birds. The river is a rich reservoir of natural and culture fishes.