Kanker Bastar Chhattisgarh
The journey of Bastar begins from the place called Kanker when arrived from Raipur side. Kanker is an important tourist attraction with waterfalls, mountains and rivers. It is an accumulation of five rivers, the river Doodh, Mahanadi, Hatkul, Sindur and Taru.
The Kanker town, the district headquarters is on the NH 30 and is midway between Raipur and Jagdalpur.
The district is full of attractive locations which can be viewed below,
Shivani temple
This is an important place of visit as the statue located here is considered to be unique and a combination of two Goddesses. Half part of the idol id Goddess Kali and the other half part is Goddess Durga. It is believed that there are only two such idols in the world, and one is located here.
Jagannath temple
The temple is dedicated to Lord Jagannath near Kanker post office of Rajpara area is an important place of visit.
Kankalini temple
Besides the Goddess, many historical statues like Feet of Mother Goddess, the slain heads of Jay and Vijay, Discuss or Sudarshan Chakra, etc. are seen.
Kankeswari Temple
This was the living place of Kank Rishi. Hence the place was known as Kanker.
Churipagar cave
The cave is in the southern part with a narrow entry. The space inside can accommodate 500 people with an exit door towards the west direction.
Jogi Cave
The cave is in the South East part with a length of 50 meters. There is a small pong nearby. The water in the pond flows back into the rocks like a waterfall. After entering the cave, 300 people can accommodate at a time.
Malanjhkudum waterfall
There is a small mountain about 15kms away towards south of Kanker. It can be reached after crossing villages. Doodh River originates from a spot known as Neel Gondi in this mountain. After crossing 10kms there is a place known as Malanjhkudum from where three waterfalls originates. The heights of the falls are 10 meters, 15 meters and 9 meters.
Charre – Marre waterfall
The waterfall is situated 17kms from Antagarh block on the way from Antagarh to Aamabera. It is in the Panjadin valley and one has to cross sharp U and V turns. Due to many turns and depressions the local people call it is Kadadhi Khodra.
Kanker Palace
The possession is with the royal family. The palace was constructed in the 12th century AD. The family of late Uday Pratap Deo is residing here since 2002. Some portions of the palace is converted into a hotel and staying at the palace adds value. The palace is open to the public from 1st September to 30th April.
Keshkal
South of Kanker in the dense forest is the hills of Kanker. Apart the thick forest, the roads climbs up with amazing ghat roads in 12 loops. It starts 22kms ahead of Kanker town.
The Keshkal has two tourist spots the Kanker valley and the Kanker Panchavati.
Dargha
Opposite the Jama Masjid in Keshal is a Dargha. People go to the Dargha and pray being an important part of the state.
Dudhawa dam
Although it is in the Dhamteri district, it is only 29kms from Kanker. The height of the dam is 24.53m and length is 2906.43m. It is built across the Mahanadi River.
Pakhanjore dam
The dam is situated at Pakhanjore, 130kms west of Kanker city and 12kms from Pakhanjore. This was constructed in an area 1300 acres on Matholi River. This is also known as the Kherkatta reservoir. Haldi pahari temple, Tak pahar and chota ashram are the nearby scenic spots.
Rock paintings in Charama
In the caves of Gotitula and Chandeli, there are roc paintings. The pictures of aliens are depicted which are more than ten thousand years old. According to archaeologists J.R.Bhagat, these paintings show aliens. The different paintings of different human race and prehistoric human shelters are worth visting. Even after thousands of years the paintings are as it is and scares people out.
There are other different paintings as well but the astonishing ones are the alien figures which looks exactly like a UFO or a spaceship.
A place so creepy is worth watching and visiting.
