Jagdalpur

Jagdalpur is a city in Bastar district in the Indian state of Chhattisgarh.

Indravati River at Jagdalpur

Get in

By train

From Visakhapatnam, catch the 1 Vishakapatnam - Kirandul Passenger (1VK) departing Vishakapatnam at around 6:45AM and reaching Jagdalpur by around 5:30PM. It has reserved First Class & Sleeper Class accommodation.

By car

From Hyderabad, you have to reach Bhadrachalam first and then drive down close to 251 km on the single-laned NH 212, via Konta & Sukma to reach Jagdalpur. Road conditions are bad, and be prepared for frequent checks by law enforcement authorities. Your vehicle of choice for a trip to Jagdalpur should ideally be a vehicle having a high ground clearance, and SUVs like the TATA Safari & Ford Endeavour fit the bill perfectly. From Hyderabad, Jagdalpur is around 600 km.

By bus

From Raipur, the road to Jagdalpur is good enough. You have regular overnight non-a/c sleeper buses running between Raipur/Bilaspur and Jagdalpur. From Raipur, Jagdalpur is around 300 km.

Get around

There is no public transport, but you can take a cycle-rickshaw.

See

• The 'USP' of Bastar district - Chitrakote Waterfalls, situated about 38 km from Jagdalpur.
• Chitrakot Falls (about 38 km to the west of Jagdalpur - a one hour drive on an excellent road.). The third largest waterfall in India, justly known as the "Indian Niagara Falls", will not disappoint you. This spectacular horseshoe-shaped fall is formed where the river Indravati abruptly collapses into a 100 feet deep cavern. The mouth of the fall, when in full profusion, is over 1,000 feet wide. Chitrakot is best seen during and after the monsoon, between July and October. If you want to take photographs, the light is best in the afternoons. Accommodation available, a couple of hundred metres away from the falls. Chhattisgarh Tourism Board (CTB) offers Log Huts (on stilts) with a tariff of ₹1000/- + Luxury Tax of ₹50/- (As on July 2007 - check up with Chhattisgarh Tourism Board for the latest tariff). 
• Teerathgarh Waterfall. This 300 ft high waterfall is actually situated in the Kanger Valley National Park (about 15 minutes from the park entrance), about 35 km south of Jagdalpur (You need to take a detour from NH 212 - the road to Bhadrachalam). The fall here splits into multiple falls, creating a stunning vista. While the Teerathgarh falls are not as wide as Chitrakot, you may stand almost under them, or walk across the top to sit on a rock rising up out of the middle. Well maintained steps lead down to the bottom. There is a small temple on a large rock opposite the falls. All around are the ruins of a 1,000 year old, advanced, Hindu civilization. Teerathgarh makes a lovely picnic spot. Get down to the base of the falls, and spend time observing the falls in their full glory. Directions - Boards to the falls are virtually non-existent, so be prepared to ask around a bit - locals are co-operative though! The best time to visit is from October to February.  
• There is a weekly 'Haat' every Sunday at Narayanpur, about 120 or so km from Jagdalpur, on the road to Raipur. Worth a visit if you want to see live Bastar in action.
• There is huge Ganesh Temple at Barsur - enquire at Jagdalpur for driving directions to Barsur
• There is another temple (dedicated to Goddess Danteshwari) located at Dantewada, about 60 km from Jagdalpur, on the way to Bailadila.
• There are lots of fascinating caves close to Jagdalpur (nearly 35 km from city) called kotamsar caves and dandak caves, the caves are a mush watch as you would not see things like this generally.

Do

• Check out the Anthropological museum (Located about 3 km from the city centre - closed on Sundays)

• there is also a big lake within Jagdalpur, with boating facilities.
• Take a walk down the Sanjay market area.

• Check out the ancient palace built by Kaktiya Dynasty Rulers, around one and half kilometers away from the city centre(Chandni square, now called as Luniya Square).
• Check out the new archeological museum made on the front of Sirhasaar Square(around one and half kilometers away from the city centre), where you can enjoy the conserved ancient idols and statues showing rich architecture and sculpture of Nagwanshi rulers of early 11 century.
• Enjoy a hangout with your friends at 'Dalpatsagar' which is nearly around 300 acres of lake, most suitable for youngsters , youth, and joggers.It is nearly half a kilometer from Palace.
• Check out a beautiful park called Shahid Park, nearly half a kilometer right from the city centre(Chandni square, now called as Luniya Square).

Buy

Jagdalpur attracts a lot of tourists who are interested in wooden art because it is famous for the Bastar wooden art, in which the wooden furniture is carved with the depiction of culture, tradition and custom of tradition of Bastar.

One unique and ancient style of metal art that exists in Jagdalpur (Bastar) is called "bell metal art". It uses an alloy with a combination of more than two metals (mostly brass, nickel and zinc), crafted into beautiful idols of different designs. Bell metal or dkokra is one of the earliest known method of metal casting. This craft dates back to the Harappa and Mohenjodaro period of Indus Valley Civilization.

Eat

Drink

• Mandiya Page - The word "Mandiya page" simply means a kind of drink made from the boiling of grinded powder of the rice and a special seed rurally called as 'Mandiya'(resembles more or less like mustard, but the taste is very refreshing), here by the word 'page', it means 'drink'.
• Mahua - the traditional Bastar drink. Have it strong or mix it with water or soft drinks.
• Some other drinks such as sulphi and chhindras are also available which are sweet natural liquid extracts of sulphi tree and chhind tree(a kind of Palm tree). No need to mix water, it will taste as coconut tree drink. with time it will have more vigour you should drink it the same day other it will become sour and impossible to drink the next day.

Sleep

Stay safe

While the government may downplay the issue, the state of Chhattsgarh is experiencing an ongoing armed conflict between government forces and "Naxlites" (organised communist/Maoist forces) that has claimed more than three thousand lives and has involved bombings, though tourists do not appear to be targets.

Discussion of politics, especially communism and the Modi government, should be avoided and will draw very strong reactions from locals. Feign disinterest and keep your personal opinions to yourself.

Venturing into rural areas and national parks, especially unaccompanied, is not advisable as Naxalite forces have been known to move into national parks.

Go next

Raipur: catch one of the numerous sleeper non-a/c buses to Raipur.

Vishakapatnam: catch the return 2VK passenger that arrives at Jagdalpur at around 9:30AM (Daily service).

Hyderabad/Vijayawada: start early, catch the NH 221 to Bhadrachalam, and onwards to Hyderabad/Vijayawada.

Beware of NH-16 towards Nizamabad - Never even think of going west, towards Nizamabad (In Andhra Pradesh). Maps show the existence of NH16, linking Jagdalpur & Nizamabad via Gidam, Bijapur, Madded & Bhopalapatnam, but in reality, the road (NH-16) starts getting bad to worse from Bijapur onwards, and abruptly comes to a halt at Bhopalapatnam. Lack of a bridge across the Indrawati near Bhopalapatnam is the main culprit. So do not makes plans to go to Hyderabad via Bhopalapatnam & Warangal (NH - 202)!