Purulia is a city situated north of the Kasai River in the district of Purulia in West Bengal. It is surrounded by the districts of Bankura, Burdwan and Midnapore of West Bengal and some portions of the Jharkhand state. The municipality of Purulia was constituted in 1876 and the cultural history of the region goes back as far as 5th century A.D. Jaina Bhagwati Sutra mentions Purulia region as one of the 16 Mahajanapadas and was included in the kingdom of Vajra Bhumi, in the ancient era. Purulia is strategically located on the northern side of Kasai River, Purulia acts as a gateway between the suburban hinterlands of Jharkhand, Orissa and Madhya Pradesh and the well established industrial regions of West Bengal. Its location on the map of India proves beneficial to its tourism industry. Exotic locations, glorious historical monuments and a unique culture of Purulia entice tourists here.
The tourism of Purulia centers round the archaeological excavations and the relics of the ancient buildings and the temples. Purulia, as a tourist place shares a significant place in the vicinity of the tourism industry in West Bengal. Purulia is recorded as the oldest place in West Bengal, existed even in the 5th century A.D and used to be an important center of the 16 Mahajanapadas. Hence the tourism industry of Purulia has more to offer to the lovers of ancient culture and the historians.
The village Banda is a famous name as a tourist spot in Purulia. The prime attraction of the village is the solitary temple build in the “rekha” style, with broken amalaka. The base moldings and the exquisite floral fabrications throughout the outer and the inner sections of the temple walls cast a spell to the tourists.
The big village Cheliama has a profitable contribution to the tourism industry of Purulia. The remnants of the contemporary civilization of 17th century have endowed the village with rich historical interest. The terracotta figurines and the exclusive carvings around the temples of Cheliama, murmurs the prosperity of the terracotta architecture in Purulia in the 17th Century. The famous temple, which attracts a mass of tourist to it, is the Radha-Govinda Temple, which is the plaque of the Bengali Culture prevalent in the contemporary era.
Deulghat, as its name suggests is the land of temples. It has the ruins of 15 temples near the Kansai River. The stucco decoration is the notable 
architecture made on the temple. The entrance of those temples is entangled with the branches of trees, casting an eerie. However these temples are the representations of the age, when they were built. Moreover the temples adorned with the graceful carve, attracts visitors, and hence are important in the tourism of Purulia.
The temples are usually stone-made which indicates that the sculpture on the stones was the traditional culture of the contemporary people. Although the buildings of the temples of Pakbirra have ruined and nothing but the relics is left, it still continued to be an important tourist center. According to the surviving remnants, those temples are built following the Jaina tradition, once prevalent in Purulia.
A number of ironic images are found in the eroded temples of Suissa and in the adjoining regions. The ironic images mainly include the mythological gods and the goddesses in an unusual pose.
Muslim relics are found in the village called Para. However the archaeological relics and the eroded temples have a beauty of their own kind, which helps the tourism industry of Purulia to a large extent.
