Secret India : The Region : Gateways

WILDLIFE AND TRIBAL DESTINATIONS in Central India have for years been quite difficult to reach, involving long slow train journeys and interminable backbreaking overland rides.

Today Raipur, Chattisgarh, is an efficient, time-saving gateway to once remote destinations such as Kanha National Park (via Kawardha - 2 hours) and Tribal Bastar (via Kanker - 2 hours).

And Raipur is the home base of GreenGondwana, dedicated to providing discerning Secret India travellers with our ecologically conscious and unusual Green Carpet Service (Click for details).

GreenGondwana's luxury transport, under the skilled management of Surinder Singh 'Fauji' and family (right), follows our strict road philosophy Safety before Speed, Comfort before Competition.

With daily Boeing or Airbus flights from Delhi and Airbus flights from Mumbai, Raipur is now well connected. Click for the latest air and rail connections at GreenGondwana Timetables.

Pench National Park is reached via Nagpur airport or by fast train on the Howrah-Raipur-Mumbai line. To the east is Bhubaneswar, 40 minutes away by Airbus, gateway to Orissa's Puri and Konark Temples. South is tribal Andhra Pradesh, with a spectacular train journey across the Eastern Ghats to Visakhapatnam.

Strategically located on the main Mumbai-Howrah railway line, Raipur has a good selection of superfast trains. Kolkata (Calcutta), with its pleasantly hassle-free international airport, is only an air-conditioned night's sleep away. The former Imperial Capital has many attractions of its own, including the magnificent Indian Museum, and Royal Bengal Tigers of the unique Sunderbans wetlands in the nearby Ganges Delta.

And, apart from recommended Wildlife Lodges and a very special collection of Palaces, a Raipur stopover can be made as comfortable and painless as possible through GreenGondwana’s exclusive relationship with Raipur's professionally run Hotel Celebration. Click Checking Out Chattisgarh for the GreenGondwana Guide (below) to Raipur's best facilities and Things to Do and See in the surrounding region of the Chattisgarh Plain.

Hotel Celebration

A Cool Oasis in the Heart of Raipur City

For travellers arriving or departing Raipur by air or rail - you can freshen up, rest in air-conditioned comfort, dine on an extensive multicuisine menu - even plug in your laptop direct from your room. Or you can stay a day or two and explore the fascinating history and culture of Chattisgarh itself.

Checking out Chattisgarh

Things to Do within (relatively) Easy Reach of Raipur

Raipur City, while a useful hub for air and rail connections, suffers from a common complaint: it is ruled by the speed of the slowest cycle rickshaw. Despite a huge new tree-planting programme, this, with the ensuing traffic snarls, heat and pollution, makes it a place to endure mainly in transit.

Viewed from the air-conditioned comfort of Hotel Celebration, the central Chattisgarh Plain, however, offers far more enticing possibilities for the inquisitive traveller. From here you have access to four little-known Wildlife Sanctuaries (WLS) and historical and religious sites covering nearly two millennia of history.

NORTH OF RAIPUR:

RATANPUR - ACHANAKMAR WLS- AMARKANTAK SOURCE OF THE NARMADA

Bilaspur, second city of the state and seat of the Chattisgarh High Court is 111 kms north-north-east of Raipur. Beyond Bilaspur, at a distance of 25 kms, is the ruined site of Ratanpur, capital of the region from the turn of the last millennium until Maratha power overwhelmed the Haihaiya dynasty in the 18th century. The still popular Mahamaya Temple can still be seen, thought to have been built by Ratan Deo, who moved the capital from nearby Tuman to his new city. (Raipur was founded in about 1402 CE by Rai Brahma Deo, a younger brother of the same dynasty, as a 'junior' capital of the region). The remains of a moated fort rebuilt by the Marathas testifies to the strategic importance of the place. Other ancient temples and sculptures still dot the landscape in a poor state of disrepair.

Farther north, 185 km from Raipur on the Pendra-Amarkantak Road is the unusual Achanakmar Wildlife Sanctuary, set in the beautiful Sal forests of the Maikal Hills. This little-known and totally unspoilt Sanctuary is home to small numbers of tiger, leopard, bison, sambar, spotted deer, blue bull, sloth bear and python. A Forest Rest House is available with basic facilities.

Amarkantak, source of the holy Narmada, is located about 45 km from Pendra Road or 123 km from Bilaspur, just over the Chattisgarh border in Madhya Pradesh. A major pilgrimage centre set in majestic Maikal Hill scenery at over 1000m (3,500 ft), Amarkantak marks the beginning of the Narmada's 1312 km westward journey to the Arabian Sea near the ancient port of Bharuch in Gujarat. No other major river in India flows west. Amarkantak is also the source of the Son (Sone) River, which flows north to join holy Ganga (The Ganges) which meets the sea in the Bay of Bengal.

Legend has it that Narmada and Son (a male river) were engaged to be married. Jilted by Son's dalliance with another rivulet, Narmada swept off to the west in pique, resolving to remain for ever a virgin. Her virgin status is enhanced by the fact that she does not flow directly into the sea, but emerges offshore through a subterranean tunnel. As a Virgin River, Narmada is considered particularly holy by pilgrims who walk her full length up one bank and down the other. Strict devotees will not bathe in her for this reason, preferring to worship from the riverbank. According to ancient Hindu texts it is necessary to bathe once in Ganga, three times in long-lost Saraswati, seven in Yamuna, but the mere sight of Narmada, the "Giver of Joy", is enough to wash away all sins and ensure eternal bliss. Ganga herself is said to come to Narmada once a year at Dassehra in the form of a blackened cow which, after bathing, returns to the north white and purified again. Narmada, which is geologically far older than Ganga, is thought to be the 'Rewa' river of ancient mythology.

Narmada Udgam marks the actual source, with a temple containing a black basalt statue of the goddess. Close by, in thick jungle, are the Kapildhara Falls named for the sage Kapil who performed long meditations here, where the trickle of the source plunges 24m into a dramatic gorge, rapidly accelerating its transformation into a mighty continental river. Sonmuda, on the same plateau, is the source of the Son.

EAST AND SOUTH OF RAIPUR:

SIRPUR - BAR NAWAPARA, SITANADI AND UDANTI WILDLIFE SANCTUARIES

Sirpur, once called Sripur (city of wealth), was the capital of central Dakshin (South) Koshal between the 5th and 8th centuries CE. Located 78 km from Raipur, 17 km on a tarred road from Village Kohari 61 km on National Highway NH6 running towards Sambalpur, Orissa, Sirpur was a major religious and cultural centre of coexisting Hindu, Jain and Buddhist tradition.

The adventurous Chinese Buddhist traveller and pilgrim Xuan Zang (Hsuen Tsang) included Sirpur in his 16-year tour of India between 629 and 645 CE. Remains of important Buddhist monastic structures can still be seen. Also of note is the 8th century brick Laxman temple dedicated to Lord Vishnu, the only brick temple of its size and antiquity still standing in the state. A large three-day religious fair is still held here on the occasion of Shivratri in March.

WILDLIFE SANCTUARIES

Barnawapara, at 130 kms to the east, is the closest Wildlife Sanctuary to Raipur City. Its mixed forests are home to a wide variety of fauna including a few rare tiger, but it is particularly well-known for leopard sightings. Sitanadi, 180 kms south-south-east of Raipur in Dhamtari District, offers the closest example of typical Sal forested jungle containing leopard, sambar, spotted deer, barking deer, chausingha, sloth bear, blue bull, wolf, hyena and wild boar as well as extensive bird life. Sitanadi is being prepared to host the presently very rare tiger. Udanti, 175 kms south-east at the southern end of Raipur District, is famous for its extremely endangered wild buffalo population, now chosen as the State Animal of Chattisgarh as well as a variety of fauna similar to neighbouring Sitanadi.

For more information on all three Sanctuaries, visit Secret India's Wildlife Pages with a clickable map of all the region's Parks and Sanctuaries.

WEST OF RAIPUR:

On National Highway 6 running towards Maharashtra, beyond the Steel City of Bhilai and the district headquarters of Durg and Rajnandgaon lies the famous pilgrimage centre of Dongargarh, 110 kms west of Raipur Airport. Here the hilltop temple of Ma (Mata - or mother) Bambleshwari 1,600 ft above the town attracts vast numbers of devotees, particularly at Dashehra (in October) when huge 24-hour melas or fairs take place. In the same district is the former princely state of Khairagarh, also endowed with numerous popular temples and a famous University of Arts and Music.

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