Bastar

The Land of Tribals and Natural Resources , is also enriched with natural beauty and pleasant atmosphere. It is surrounded with dense forests ,hilly mountains , streams, waterfalls , natural caves , natural parks etc. It is firmly a tribal area, where the natural beauty can easily attract the tourists at first sight itself. Here the art & culture is the valuable ancient property of the Bastariyas. From the view point of tourists and tourism , Bastar is called the 'Kashmir of Chhattisgarh'. If we place Bastar in the map of tourism , no doubt it definitely attracts the foreign tourists too.

The deep forest area ,between bushes and bamboos where one always felt the absence of sunlight , wide and thick forests , costly woods such as Sal , Teak , Sheesam ,Bija etc., between high mountains cool flowing stream , mountain valleys , caves , high waterfalls , sky-touching valleys and in the valleys the spread of greenary and in between this , the huts made by bamboo sticks, the fearless life style of the tribals and their culture, our heart and mind can be fill with new wonders and pleasure.

There are so many places which are worth seeing ,not only in Bastar district, but also in the neighbouring districts Dantewada and Kanker, which are in Bastar division.. Its often heard that there are many places worth seeing which are still unexplored .Bastar imprints an unerasable memory in the mind of a tourist.

The important tourist places in Bastar district are Chitrakot and Tiratgarh , Kotamsar and Kailash caves, Kanger Valley National Park etc.Indravati National Park, known for tigers and wild buffaloes is situated at a distance of 200 Kms, west of Jagdalpur, is another place worth seeing. Another virgin tourist spot is Kurschel Valley, with its gigantics trees, situated at 40 Kms. north west of Narainpur.

Excursion
Jagdalpur Town
Jagdalpur, the headquarters of Bastar district and entire Bastar division , is a small and developing town with all facilities. The area of the town is 8.50 sq.km. and the area of the Jagdalpur urban including the jagdalpur town is 23.75 sq.km. The Jagdalpur urban area not only includes Jagdalpur town but also includes the areas Frijarpur, Hotakachor, Sargipal and Dharampura which are the outgrowth areas of Jagdalpur town.All the higher education institutions such as Arts & Science Colleges, P.G College, Engineering & Polytechnic Colleges, Hostels etc and Anthropological Museum are located in Dharampura.

Jagdalpur is one of most beautiful towns of the country. Jagdalpur is rich in greenary, with big trees everywhere, and plantations surrounding the town providing a pleasant and healthy atmosphere and free from pollution.Because of this the temperature even in peak summer is moderate which is a key attraction of Jagdalpur.

It has a mixed culture of people pertaining to different states such as Orissa, Andhra Pradesh, Bengal, Punjab and etc. Most of them are settled as business men and as government servants.Jagdalpur is one of the few towns in India where people of different religion, caste and culture are living in peace and harmony.The places worth seeing in the town are Gole Bazar during night hours and during Dusshera and Diwali festival seasons & Kumhara Para area where all types of handicraft items made by the skilled hands of Bastar tribes are available.

Jagdalpur is well connected with road from the State capital Raipur and other parts of neighbouring state Orissa.In addition to this a railway station is also there and a passenger train with sleeper coach is running daily to Vishakhapatnam and vice-versa. The railway station is located in a naturally beautiful area ,where sometimes film shootings are carried out.More over an Air Strip is also situated in Jagdalpur; but presently no passenger services are rendering from here.

Bastar Palace
It is another historical remain that is seen in Jagdalpur.It was the head quarters of Bastar Kigdom. It was built by the rulers of Bastar State when the capital of Bastar kingdom had been shifted from Barsur to Jagdalpur.At present this is keeping as a monument by the government.

Chitrakot Waterfalls
Chitrakot, the gorgeous waterfall is on the river Indravati, situated at a distance of 38 Km. in the west of Jagdalpur. Height of this waterfall is approximately 100ft.The Chitrakot waterfalls can be called as the smaller form of the world famous Nayagra waterfalls.

The rainbow colors of the falls attracts the tourists at the first sight itself. This is the prime atttaction for all tourists and worth seeing in rainly season, between July and October. These waterfalls are in a horse-shoe shape and often compared to the great Niagara.

Tiratgarh Waterfalls
These waterfalls are situated at a distance of 35 Km. from Jagdalpur in south west direction and can be approached through the state highway of Jagdalpur to Sukma. The waterfall is actually situated in Kanger Valley National Park and the height is approximately 300 ft. 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.

Kutumsar Caves and Kailash Gufa
This is a biggest tourist attraction, and are close to Tiratgarh waterfalls. Both Kutumsar Caves and Kailash Gufa are located in Kanger Valley National Park and situated at a distances of 38 Km. and 40 Km. from Jagdalpur respectively. The kutumsar caves are pitch-dark caves, which has Stalactites and Stalagmites in fantastic formations. A forest guard equipped with a torchlight will be provided for necessary guidance. Kailash gufa is also similar to the Kutumsar caves.

Kanger Valley National Park
The park is Paradise for the nature lovers. The Moist Peninsular valley Sal forests and the South Indian Tropical Moist Deciduous forests are seen in their finest form here.The park is situated in a transitionzone where southern limit of sal forests and northern limit of teak forests overlap.Hence both sal and teak are seen together in this valley.

The Park consists of tiger ,panther wildcat, cheetal,samber,barking deer,wild pig, jackal, langur,rhesus macaque,sloth bear,flying squirrel, python, hyena, rabbit, crocodile, otter,and civet.The avian fauna includes birds of prey ,scavenging birds, waterbirds, pheasants etc.The reptiles include snakes, lizards and the insects include butterflies,moths.dragonflies,grasshoppers etc.Lower forms of plants such as fungi, algae, bryophytes and pteridophytes are also quite common.All these put together with the virgin forests make the park a unique ecosystem.

The Park derives its name from the Kanger river which flows throughout its length .There are many scenic spots along this perennial stream.Rather bigger tourist attraction are the Kotamsar Caves, Kailash Caves, limestone Caves etc.The gorgeous waterfall Tirthgarh is also here.Kanger Dhara and Bhaimsa Dharha are two good picnic resorts and especially Bhaimsa Dharha is a crocodile park.

The valley is infact one of the last pockets of almost virgin forests still left in the Peninsular region.To protect this unique eco-system ,it has been proposed as a Biosphere Reserve under the MAB Programme.The valley is nearly 34 kms. long with average width of about 6 kms.The terrain is hilly mostly.

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