Rain Drive to the Indian Niagara

Before starting my blog I want to introduce some teaser pictures about the destination.

Breakfast at Tirathgarh Falls

Somewhere near Chilka

On The Way To Jagdalpur

The Indian Niagara

Introduction:

One cloudy morning ,  Kolkata is in some good shower for couple of days, My 

princess asked me can we go for a monsoon drive. It’s a lubricant offer to me 

and within a few hours we set a plan for a nice monsoon drive.

Our next destination was Chitrakoot Falls , which is a natural waterfall located 

to the west of Jagdalpur, in Bastar district in the Indian state of Chhattisgarh 

on the Indravati River.  Very often touted as "The Niagara falls of India", 

perhaps due to its horse shoeshape, Chitrakoot waterfalls are the most 

popular tourist attractions of Chhattisgarh and indeed a paragon of waterfalls in 

India. Situated around 38 km in the west of Jagdalpur,Chitrakoot are the 

broadest waterfall in India and turn vivacious (up to 150 meters in width) 

during monsoon when IndravatiRiver flows in full swing flooding till both of its 

bank. Flowing through lush green range of Vindhya hills, Indravati River 

plunges into deep chasm of about 95 feet high and forms one of the 

spectacular natural wonders of country. Indravati River was at its full swing 

soon after the monsoon. These falls are quite similar to the falls on Narmada 

river in Karnataka/Tamilnandu however much broader.

As per planning , I left Kolkata with my family in my  ‪‎MahindraScorpio on 16th 

July 2015 post midnight at 12.30am for a 3 days drive to ‪‎Jagdalpur & 

‪Chitrakoot 

    

Entrance of Tirathgarh Falls

Route Plan: 

Though there are plenty of options but After discussing some friends I decide  

to took NH6 upto Kharagpur, NH60 upto Balasore and NH5 upto Bhubaneswar 

then past Khurda, Barkul, Ganjam, Brahmapur, Ichapuram, Elluru, Srikakulam 

and a further 12 kms south upto Chilakapalem, before turning right to exit NH5 

and enter Andhra Pradesh SH36. AP SH36 which merged into NH43 at the 

Ramabhadrapuram junction.From Ramabhadrapuram  I Took NH43 via 

Sunabeda, Koraput, Jeypore and right upto Jagdalpur. 

Another view of Tirathgarh Falls.

Day Wise Plan :

Day 1 : Kolkata to Jagdalpur . Night stay at Jagdalpur. Approx 1120 km.

Day 2: Sightseeing At jagdalpur which included Chitrakote Falls, Tirathgarh 

Waterfalls, Bastar Palace etc. Night stay at Dandami Luxary Resort ,Charisgarh 

tourism ,Chitrakoot Falls.

Day 3: Back to Kolkata via Chilka lake.

Road Condition :

Upto Bhubaneswar I encounter a four lane road with a well maintain surface 

except some diversion between Cuttack to Bhubaneswar.After that we get a 

butter smooth road  upto Ichapuram, border of Orissa and Andhra. I faced a 

huge truck jam at that point of are and lost approx 1.30 hrs. After a careful 

driving opposite side of road we overcome that problem and drove upto 

Chilakapalem.At this point the four lane convert into double lane road. From 

Chilakapalem to Ramabhadhrapuram , barely 75 km, except 30 km of bad 

patch ,most of the surface are good. Ramabhadrapuram - Koraput = 100 kms, 

koraput - Jeypore = 25 kms, Jeypore - Jagdalpur = 85 kms. I drove approx 40 

km of ghat road on NH43.

Sight Seeing At Jagdalpur :

Kanger Valley National Park: 

Near to Jagdalpur, the kanger Valley National Park is located. It is also named 

as Kanger Ghati National Park. The name of the place has been derived from 

the name of the river named Kanger River. In the year 1982’s 22nd July, the 

construction of the park took place. In order to protect the region’s bio-

diversity and the rich assortment of animals and plants of the area, this park 

was created.The length of the park is 33.5 kilometers and 6 Kms is the general 

breadth of the place. The beginning point of the park is the Tirathgarh 

Waterfalls and ends at the river named Kolab. Kotumsar and Koleng are the 

name of the two parts, into which the park has been separated. One can 

observe some luxurious and intriguing species of animals such as the red 

jungle fowl, the rocket tailed drongo, striped hyena, barking deer, cheetal, 

samhar, wild boar, sloth bear, porcupine, mouse deer, civet, rabbits, tiger, 

leopard, crocodiles, wild dog, hyena, mongoose, wolf, leopard cat, Indian false 

vampire bat and several types of fishes in the Kanger Valley National Park.

On the way to Kangra Valley

Indravati National Park: 

The district of Dantewada of the Indian state of Chhattisgarh contains the spectacular 

Indravati National Park, which is considered to be one of the most excellent and top class 

wildlife parks of this state. The area of the park is a vast 1258 square kilometers. The 

name of the park has been derived from the name of the river, Indravati. In the year of

1981, the status of a National Park was bestowed upon this park and in the year of 1983, 

the status of a Tiger Reserve was given to this same park, under the renowned Project 

Tiger of India. The endangered wild buffalo and the swamp deer are the principal 

features of the park. Barking Deers,Nilgai,Barasinghas, Gaurs, Sambars, Wild Dogs, Sloth 

Bear, Hyenas, Crocodiles, Indian Chamelons, Cobras, Russell’s viper, Indian Rock 

Pythons and a huge variety of birds can be seen in this famous wildlife park.


Kotumsar Caves: 

The distance of the Kotumsar Caves and Jagdalpur is 40 Kms. These caves are located at 

a distance of 35 meters in the downward direction. The length of the caves is 1371 

meters. In the entire India these caves ranks first in the list of the longest natural caves 

and it ranks second in the entire world in the same category. Due to the reason of the 

location a dense darkness prevail in the caves. Creation of stalactites and stalagmites can 

be seen in these caves. Numerous blind wells are present in the five numbers of 

chambers of the caves. These caves are also known by the names of Gupanpal Caves or 

Kutamsar Caves. When one goes a long way inside the place, then there is a scarcity of 

oxygen. Thus one cannot go beyond some locations due to the obvious security reasons.

Kailash Caves: 

The Kailash Gufa is an underground cave. It is located at a distance of 40 Kms from 

Jagdalpur, near Mikulwada in the Kanger Valley National Park. One can get mesmerized 

by the development of stalactites. Stalactites are nothing but pillar made of limestone, 

which remains in a hanging position from the roof. Proofs can be found that several of 

the limestone pillars were once worshipped in the form of shivalingams.The Kailash Caves 

have been found in the year 1993. The length of the caves measure to be 250 meters 

and the height of the caves is 40 meters. 

Sri Venkateshwara Swamy Temple: 

The members of the Andhra Association are the reason of the existence of the Sri 

Venkateshwara Swamy Temple. This temple dedicated to Balaji is an aspiration of the 

many followers, since they can worship and pay a visit to this place, which is located 

close to their dwelling place.Anthropological Museum: In the year of 1972, the 

construction of this Zonal Anthropological Museum took place in Jagdalpur. The intention 

of establishing the museum is to shed some light into the lifestyle of the tribal groups of 

the Bastar region. Several items related to ethnographic concern is showcased in the 

collection of the museum. In the whole of the Central India, this Anthropological Museum 

is considered to be one of the most finest and important museums. The tasks carried out 

by this museum are the collection of important and valuable artifacts, their research, 

preservation and exhibition. Headgears, footwear, ornaments, musical instruments, 

dresses, paintings, wood carvings, weapons, masks, art work, sculptures and a huge 

assortment of objects that serves in the daily life can be seen in the display of the 

museum.

Chitrakoot Falls:

 The title of the Niagara Falls of India is given to this waterfall named Chitrakoot Falls. It 

is also known to be the widest waterfall in the entire country. The distance between 

Jagdalpur and this waterfall is 38 Kms. The thick luxurious forests encircle the waterfall. 

On the river named Indravati, this waterfall is located. The water gushes down from an 

altitude of 95 feet and this view is a feast for the eyes.

Tirathgarh Waterfalls:

The distance between the Tirathgarh Waterfalls and Jagdalpur is 38 Kms. In the entire 

state of Chhattisgarh, this waterfall is considered to be one of the magnificent 

waterfalls. The natural beauty encircling the waterfalls is enchanting and is definitely 

worth seeing. Apart from the prevalent beauty of the place, this place is also considered a

 significant location in religious sense. It contains a temple of Shiva Parvati.

Bastar Palace:

One can observe the archaic remnants of the Bastar Palace in the town of Jagdalpur. The 

palace served as the Bastar Kingdom’s headquarters. The monarchs of the Bastar State 

constructed this structure. During the present time, this palace is the dwelling place for 

the royal family members.


Accommodation Facilities:

We checked into “Atithi Inn” Hotel at Jagldalpur near Railway Station & New Bus Stand 

(Tariff: Rs.800 for AC rooms & Rs.600 for non-AC Deluxe rooms) and Dandami Luxary 

Resort Charisgarh tourism at Chitrakoot Falls. (tariff 1500 to 3500 ). Anyone can get 

several option of hotels at Jagdalpur .

    

Dandami Luxury Resort

How to reach Chitrakoot Falls:

Situated 38 km in the northwest of Jagadalpur, Chitrakoot falls is ironically

scantly connected with public buses. Shabby Buses to Chitrakoot falls depart

from Agrasen trisquare (Opposite to AnupamaCinema).There are only 3-4

buses in a day and journey time is nearly 2 hours as bus will stop at all

the Village haats en route. For return journey, the last bus from Chitrakoot falls

to Jagdalpur departs at 5:00 PM in the evening. Alternatively, there are shared

autos to other villages (Potanar, Badanji) those fall on Jagdalpur-chitrakoot

road.Impromptus travelers can rely on hitch-hiking. Amiable land of Bastar is

blessed with generous people always ready to offer you a ride. If you like

convenient travel then hire a private car from Jagdalpur.


Stay and Food around Chitrakoot Falls:


Being the key attraction of Chhattisgarh, Chitrakoot falls has got

high end resort from Chhattisgarh tourism. Resort is built on the ridge opposite

to waterfall offering spectacular views from the balconies of most of the rooms.

Besides resort, there are also bamboo huts overlooking the

waterfalls. Chitrakoot does not have wide-range of accommodation options.

Government resort has got its own restaurants which prepares decent regular

meals. There is also handful of roadsidedabbas busy in boiling tea, selling

biscuits and cold drinks. You would not find regular restaurants/Dabbas near

and enroute chitrakoot falls.Most of the travelers prefer to stay

in Jagdalpur and visit Chitrakoot falls at day trip.

Travel Tips:

Barsoor and Chitrakoot falls can be clubbed in a day trip from Jagdalpur if

traveling by private vehicle.

Do visit Chitradhara waterfalls and Tamra Ghoomar waterfalls. Both of these

falls are on the way to Chitrakoot.

Water-level drops down drastically post winters hence best time to visit

Chitrakote falls is post monsoon from September to December when river is at

full swing and ferocious. Chitrakoot falls look magnificent at Sunset and full

moon nights.

   

Your's Truely