Jagdalpur

Jagdalpur
—  city  —
Jagdalpur Location of Jagdalpur in Chhattisgarh and India
Coordinates	19°04′N 82°02′E
Country	India
State	Chhattisgarh
District(s)	Bastar District
Population	103,123 (2011)
Time zone	IST (UTC+05:30)
Area • Elevation	• 552 metres (1,811 ft)
Codes • Pincode • 494001 • Telephone • +07782 • UN/LOCODE • I • Vehicle • CG-17

Jagdalpur is a city and a municipality in Bastar district in the Indian state of Chhattisgarh. It is the administrative headquarters of Bastar District and Bastar Division, and was the capital of the erstwhile princely state of Bastar. Jagdalpur and its surrounding area comprise a major part of the Bastar District. The area is famous for age old wooden handicrafts. These are in high demand among both local as well as foreign tourists.

Demographics

As of 2011 India census, Jagdalpur had a population of 103,123. Males constitute 51% of the population and females 49%. Jagdalpur has an average literacy rate of 74%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 79%, and female literacy is 68%. In Jagdalpur, 12% of the population is under 6 years of age.

History

The history of Jagdalpur (Bastar) takes us as deep into the past as Valmiki's Ramayana. It was the famous Dandakaranya through which Lord Rama is supposed to have passed. Scholars have also identified Valmiki's ashram here.

The Bastar rulers trace their ancestry not just to the moon, but also to Prithviraj Chauhan, the last Hindu king to rule from Delhi in the 12th century. Bastar has seen the rule of number of kingdoms like the Nals, Chalukyas and the Kakatiyas. The great Kakatiya king Pratap Rudra's brother, Annam Deo, left Warangal and established his kingdom at Bastar, around AD 1424.

Bastar has seen several hundred years of royal rule, wars of succession, conquering of kingdoms, battles, conspiracies etc. After Annam Deo it witnessed the rule of Hamir Deo, Pratap Raj Deo, Rajpal Deo, Dalpat Deo and others. It was during the reign of Dalpat Deo that the capital of their kingdom was shifted to Jagdalpur.

After the death of Dalpat Deo, his son Daryao Deo over threw his elder brother Ajmer Singh from the throne, and became the ruler. Ajmer Singh was successful in securing the throne back, but after two years Daryao Deo once again succeeded in overthrowing Ajmer Singh and became the ruler.

After the death of Daryao Deo, his eldest son Mahipal Deo succeeded to the throne of Bastar. He was latter succeeded by Bhopal Deo. Bhairam Deo was the next successor.

Bhairam Deo died in 1891, leaving a minor son, Rudrapratap Deo. During his minority the state was managed by the government until January 1908 when the young Raja was installed as Feudatory Chief of Bastar. In 1910 a tribal revolt occurred against the Diwan and the British government who ruled over the state. Raja Rudrapratap Deo died in 1921 and his daughter Praphul Kumari Devi ascended the throne in 1922. She married the prince of Mayurbhanj, a prince from the State of Orissa.

Praphul Kumari Devi died in 1936 in London and her elder son Maharaja Pravir Chandra Bhanj Deo, first Oriya ruler of Bastar and the 20th Maharaja of Bastar, ascended the throne in 1936 as a minor. The famous Maharani hospital at Jagdalur was built in memory of Maharani Praphul Kumari Devi in 1937.

Later in 1941, an airstrip was made at Jagdalpur. One bridge was also constructed during this time over the River Indravati. In 1948, Bastar state was merged in the Indian Union.

Maharaja Pravir Chandra Bhanj Deo got killed in a "police action" on 25 March 1966 when he revolted against the Union Of India for the rights of tribals in his erstwhile principality. Scores, if not hundreds, of tribals got killed in that police action defending their former ruler,^{[citation needed]} who ultimately succumbed to 13 bullet injuries in Baster Palace. The current Maharaja Kamal Chandra Bhanj Deo is his grand son.

Jagdalpur is famous for the Desserahara festival. Here the festival is not based on the Ramayan, it is based on the Rath Yatra of the king. Here the duration of the Desserahara festival is 75 days.

Dussehra

Dussehra starts with worship at the temple of Kachhingudi, a local goddess. A seven-year-old girl of the weaver caste is chosen and ceremonially married to the priest of the shrine. This girl symbolizes the goddess. After a while she goes into a trance and is asked to grant the safe conduct of the celebration.

Another important feature of this festival is that an underlying spirit of participation, cutting across caste and creed, prevails. During the celebrations, along with Danteshwari Mai, representing the Hindu Goddess Durga or Kali, a number of lesser powers and tribal deities, some indigenous and others borrowed from Hinduism, are also worshipped.

Another custom that is followed is that Halba family belonging to the subdivision, is enthroned in the Darbar Hall for the Navratri period. The Dussehra rath, chariot, is always pulled by Maria and Dhruva tribal. On the nineth day of Navratri, there is a puja in which nine unmarried girls are worshipped, fed and clothed; Brahmins are also fed. On this very day the chief also celebrates the Navakhani, new eating, ceremony, which is essentially a tribal ceremony. In Bastar and surrounding tribal areas the new crops cannot be eaten till the tribes, in particular amongst Marias, there is a Navakhani for almost each crop.

There is an interesting local version of the mythological episode of the sanyas, banishment to exile, of Rama, and his victory over the King Ravana. On the tenth day of the celebration the chief of Bastar is symbolically kidnapped, while asleep, by Murias to the Muria settlement of the village Kunharbokra. In the evening the kidnapped chief, seated on a huge rath is slowly taken towards the town. Bhatra tribals have a special role in this ceremony. Armed with bows and arrows they make way for the rath. The construction of the rath is always exclusively done by the Saoras every year. The iron nails used in the construction of the wooden rath are always made by Lohars, blacksmiths. The ropes for dragging the rath are prepared and supplied by the member of the Parja tribe. The construction of the rath is supervised by the Dhakada. Before using the rath for the ceremony it is always worshipped by the members of the Khaki caste. The girl who gets possessed in the temple of Kachhingudi Devi always comes from a weaver family. The musical band at the Kachhingudi Devi ceremony is always played by the same caste. In this way, the Bastar Dussehra is a Hindu festival deeply influenced by the local myths and religious beliefs as well as the customs of the tribals.

Geography

Climate

Climate data for Jagadalpur
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Average high °C (°F)	90.30 (194.54)	31.1 (88.0)	35.5 (95.9)	39.6 (103.3)	42.0 (107.6)	37.4 (99.3)	30.8 (87.4)	30.2 (86.4)	31.3 (88.3)	31.6 (88.9)	29.6 (85.3)	27.3 (81.1)	32.8 (91.0)
Average low °C (°F)	13.3 (55.9)	30 (86)	20.8 (69.4)	25.3 (77.5)	28.3 (82.9)	26.5 (79.7)	24.0 (75.2)	23.9 (75.0)	23.9 (75.0)	21.5 (70.7)	16.5 (61.7)	13.2 (55.8)	21.1 (70.0)
Rainfall mm (inches)	6.5 (0.256)	12.3 (0.484)	24.6 (0.969)	15.7 (0.618)	18.8 (0.74)	189.8 (7.472)	381.0 (15)	344.7 (13.571)	230.2 (9.063)	53.9 (2.122)	7.4 (0.291)	3.7 (0.146)	1,288.6 (50.732)
Avg. rainy days	0.8	1.0	1.7	1.6	1.9	9.3	16.0	15.7	9.7	3.6	0.6	0.4	62.3
Source: IMD

Industries

Nagarnar Steel Plant

National Mineral Development Corporation (NMDC) is setting up a 3 MTPA capacity greenfield Integrated Steel Plant in Nagarnar, located 16 Kms from Jagdalpur, with an estimated outlay of Rs 13,000 crore. The land for the plant has already been acquired as of August 2010 and, as of February 2012, 5 major packages of the steel plant have already been awarded to internationally acclaimed companies at a cost of around Rs.6,500 crore.

Tata Steel Plant

Tata Steel had inked the deal with the Chhattisgarh Government in June 2005 to set up a green field integrated steel plant at Lohandiguda, about 20 km from Jagdalpur. The proposed 5.5-million-tonne per annum plant has an estimated outlay of Rs 19,500 crore.

Transport

Road transport

In view of the poor rail and practically non-existent air connectivity, road based transport has emerged as the sole mode of transport for almost all the goods as well as people originating from or destined to Jagdalpur.

Jagdalpur is well connected by road with the Chhattisgarh state capital Raipur, Visakhapatnam, Vizianagaram and other nearby National Highways providing onward connectivity to other major towns and cities of India.

The National Highways passing through Jagdalpur are NH 43 (connecting Raipur to Vizianagaram in Andhra Pradesh), NH 221 (connecting Jagdalpur to Vijayawada in Andhra Pradesh) and NH 16 (connecting Jagdalpur to Nizamabad in Andhra Pradesh).

NH 43 at Raipur connects Jagdalpur to NH 6 leading to Nagpur and Kolkata.

NH 221 near Vijayawada connects Jagdalpur to NH 9 leading to Hyderabad and Pune.

NH 16 at Bhopalpatnam connects Jagdalpur to NH 202 leading to Warangal and Hyderabad.

Rail transport

Jagdalpur is not particularly well connected by trains to other cities.

There are daily trains connecting Jagdalpur to Visakhapatnam (passenger train 58501/58502), Bhubaneswar (Hirakhand Express 18447/18448) and Kirandul (passenger train 58501/58502). The details of these trains, their frequency and their timings are available at Indian Railways website.

Jagdalpur - Raipur Rail Connectivity

One can go to Raipur from Jagdalpur by train for which one has to take the Jagdalpur–Bhubaneswar train and get down at Rayagada and there board the Visakhapatnam-Korba train which will go to Raipur and beyond.

The above however is a roundabout way to reach Raipur from Jagdalpur as it is a much longer route (622 Kms compared to 300 Kms by road) and takes much longer time (about 16 Hrs as compared to 5-6 Hrs by road).

Proposed Dalli Rajhara-Jagdalpur Rail Line

Dalli Rajhara-Jagdalpur Rail Line has been proposed with a view to support the transport needs of people, trade and industries of the region. Construction of the section from Dalli Rajhara to Rowghat of the Dalli Rajhara-Jagdalpur Rail Line is currently underway amid threat from Naxalites and other challenges.

Air transport

There is an airport at Jagdalpur but no scheduled services are currently run to or from here. The airport is predominantly used by political leaders and insurgency operation related activities by army and the police.

Missing links

Jagdalpur has no bus services to Maharashtra because of missing bridge on river Pranahita at Bhopalpatnam in Bijapur district. One has to cross the river through boat ferry to go to Sironcha taluq of Maharashtra. Road condition is better only between Jagdalpur and Bijapur on Jagdalpur - Bhopalpatnam road and the road becomes worsen after crossing Bijapur.

Places to visit in and around Jagdalpur

Danteshwari Temple located around 84 km (52 mi) from Jagdalpur city is the famous and sacred temple of Ma (Hindi for mother) Danteshwari, a local goddess, worshipped as an incarnation of Shakti. This temple is believed to possess several divine powers. Every year during Dushera thousands of tribals from surrounding villages and jungles gather here to pay homage to the goddess.

Situated in Dantewada, south-west of Jagdalpur, at the confluence of the holy rivers Shankini & Dhankini, this six hundred year old temple is one of the ancient heritage sites of India and is a representation of the religio-socio-cultural history of the Bastar region. Little is known about this shrine to much of India. The vast temple complex today is truly a standing monument to centuries of history and tradition. With its rich architectural and sculptural wealth and its vibrant festival traditions, Danteshwari Mai temple serves as the most important spiritual center for the people of this region.

It is believed that a tooth of Sati had fallen here and Danteshwari Shakti Pith was established. According to the ancient legend, Goddess Sati committed self-immolation in the fire pit of yagna kund, due to an insult committed by her father Daksha towards her consort Lord Shiva during the Yaga. Raged by the death of Sati, Lord Shiva destroyed the Yaga of Daksha and with the body of Sati in his hands started to do 'Taandav'.Lord Vishnu cut the dead body of Goddess Sati with his Sudarshan to free Lord Shiva from the grief caused by her death. Parts of the dead body of Goddess Sati were scattered to fifty-two different places, which were consecrated as Shakti Pithas.

The Danteshwari temple was built in the 14th Century by the Chalukya kings in South Indian style of temple architecture. The idol of Danteshwari Mai is chiseled out of black stone. The temple is divided into four parts such as Garbh Griha, Maha Mandap, Mukhya Mandap and Sabha Mandap. Garbha Griha and Maha Mandap were constructed with stone pieces. There is a Garud Pillar in front of the entrance of the temple. The temple itself is located in a spacious courtyard surrounded by massive walls. The shikhara is adorned with sculptural finery.

Chitrakot Waterfall

Chitrakoot Falls is supposed to be the Niagara Falls of India. It is the broadest water fall in India. During Monsoon one can see its might. The River Indravati falls from a height of 29 m (96 ft) to form this waterfall. It is located 38 km (24 mi) from Jagdalpur and is accessible by road only. There is a helipad but it is used by government only. A few small hotels and restaurants are located near the falls.

Kailash and Kotumsar Caves are the caves which are about 2 km (1 mi) deep. They are situated at a distance of about 40 km (25 mi) from Jagdalpur. There is lack of oxygen when going deep into the cave. So, they have been restricted to a fixed point.

Tirathgarh Waterfalls are situated at a distance of 29 km. from Jagdalpur in south west direction and can be approached through the state highway of Jagdalpur to Sukma. People should alight at village Darbha, on Jagdalpur-Sukma road and take jeep to go to Teerathgarh. The waterfall is actually situated in Kanger Valley National Park and the height is approximately 300 ft in stages. This place is a favorite picnic spot, especially for large groups looking for a day-long picnic in a forest. The good season for visiting these waterfalls is from October to February.

The Sri Venkateshwara Swamy Temple in Jagdalpur is a result of dedicated, loving and tireless efforts of members of Andhra Association. The temple reaches out to serve spiritual, cultural and social dimensions of the society. The construction of the Balaji temple in Jagdalpur has been a dream come true to many of the devotees who can now have a hassle free darshan of the Lord nearer home. Every day devotees throng this sacred shrine of Lord Balaji also known as Sri Venkateswara Swamy, the all-pervading Lord of the Universe.

Danteshwari Temple at Jagdalpur is an ancient temple built by the kings of Bastar for inhabiting their family Goddess, Devi Danteshwari. Devi Danteshwari is the Goddess of entire Bastar division, equally worshipped by Hindus as well as tribals. This temple is located beside Bastar palace and near to Gole Bazar.

It is worth seeing and pleasant to watch the temple during the famous Bustar Dusshera festival season, decorated in color lights and lambs, where the main traditional functions of the festivals are being carried out.

Bastar Palace is another historical remain that is seen in Jagdalpur. It was the head quarters of Bastar Kingdom. It was built by the rulers of Bastar State when the capital of Bastar kingdom had been shifted from Barsur to Jagdalpur. At present The royal Family of bastar state is residing there.

Anthropological Museum is located in the office of the Anthropological Survey of India situated at Dharampura. It provides a perfect window-view of the life-styles of various adivasi tribes in Bastar to a tourist hard-pressed for time.

Lakes There are two lakes namely Ganga Munda and Dalpat Sagar within the boundary of Jagdalpur town. These lakes could become a great attraction for tourists coming to Bastar in the future.

Kanger Valley National Park This National Park is located near the Kolab River in the district of Bastar, Chhattisgarh, India. The rare mouse deer makes its home in this national park.

Other Places Of Attraction There are a chain of waterfalls and many other tourist places in Bastar. The MANDAWA waterfalls is located 12 km away from Tokapal of Jagdalpur Tehsil. It is also a natural place of tourism. Another waterfall in Bastar district is CHITRADHARA, which is just 19 km away from Jagdalpur and is in Potanar village of Lohandiguda block of Jagdalpur Tehsil. THAMADA GHUMAR water fall is another recently discovered waterfall which is also in Lohandiguda block. Its height is more than 100 feet and is generally formed from the water in rainy season. There are green fields on both sides of this waterfall . Indravati National Park situated in Narainpur Tehsil is famous for tigers and wild buffaloes. It is situated 200 km. west of Jagdalpur. Also about 40 km. north west of Narainpur is the virgin Kurschel Valley, with its gigantic trees.

Educational Institutions

Main Colleges

• Surya College, Jagdalpur
• Christ College, Jagdalpur
• Post graduate (P.G.) College,Jagdalpur
• Danteshwari College
• Government Engineering College, Jagdalpur
• Government Medical College, Maharani Hospital, Jagdalpur.
• Bastar Medical College of Alternative Medicines, Jagdalpur.

Main Schools

• Deepti Convent School, Jagdalpur
• Nirmal Vidyalaya
• saraswati shishu mandir,kangoli
• Kendriya Vidyalaya
• St Xavier's High School
• National English medium School
• Sharda Convent
• Balvihar high School
• Bastar High School
• Kali Badi Vidyalaya, Jagdalpur
• Maharani Laxmi Bai School
• Maharishi Vidya Mandir
• Mission School
• Aadeshwar Academy, Jagdalpur
• Vidya Jyoti School
• MGM school, Jagdalpur

External links

• Chitrakoot Waterfalls - Heaven on Chhattisgarh
• The Business Line - Best of Bastar
• Chitrakote Waterfall at pbase.com
• Bastar District Website
• Chhattisgarh Tourism Board Website
• Official Website Govt. of Chhattisgarh