A century old beauty

Bangalore has many relics of the past but some of them largely remain unknown. These relics form an important bridge to the past and they need to be preserved and protected and of course popularized among the people.

One such relic is the small but beautiful railway station of Nandi which is located on the Chikaballapur-Dharmapuri Railway line.  The Railways have played an important part in shaping our nation and the credit for outing India on the Railway map of the world should go to the British. Unfortunately, much of the nostalgia about Indian Railways even today centres around the steam engines and other things such as railway stations, railway bridges, railway equipments and buildings have been given short shrift.

Karnataka too has a long and distinguished Railway history but few are aware of it. Bangalore and Mysore State, in pre-Independence days, were lucky to have both the British and the Mysore State laying railway lines and building up railway infrastructure. The Mysore State, under the Wodeyar Maharaja, even had a separate railway department.

The British built the first railway line in the State from Cantonment to Jolarpet and it was in 1864 that the first train, Bangalore Mail, chugged past amazed Indians and fearful women and children. The train was initially operated by the Madras Railway, one of the dozen companies incorporated and developed by the British.

Next came the lines from Bangalore to Mysore and from Mysore to other destinations. The Bangalore-Dharmapuri line was also laid out several decades ago and the Nandi railway station was built in 1915 by the British.
The building is small but beautiful. Though it needs urgent upkeep, it still stands tall-a testimony to British Engineering and Indian work ethos.
Trains from Chikaballapur to Dharmapuri via Bangalore halt at Nandi station for two minutes. Even as the passengers take in the beauty of the building, the train chugs away. Both the morning and evening trains stop for two minutes each.

Though small, the station is the lifeline of several villages including Nandi itself, Kuppahalli, Deveshettihalli and other surrounding villages. These people makes use of the station to board trains to Chikaballapur or Bangalore.
The station is surrounded by several huge trees, including a  massive Banyan tree. The Railways had constructed staff quarters near the station and these buildings too are dilapidated. There is a small well near the quarters which the Railway staff dug to meet their water needs. 
Initially, this station formed part of the narrow guage line between Bangalore and Chikaballapur. The distance was 51.71 kms and the line was subsequently extended to  Kolar (102.30 kms).

A village that Sahadeva founded

Once a prosperous town, today it is little more than a small town. Though it is about 110 kilometres from Bangalore, it is still relatively unknown and very few tourists come here and fewer also know the ancient history of the place.

This town has an interesting link with the Mahabharata and Puranas say that it was founded by Sahadeva, the youngest of the Pandavas.

The locals refuse to this day to cultivate jowar or maize as they still recall a curse about it. They also point to a small hillock nearby which they say is the remnant of the old town. Even to this day, you can still see mounds of ash all over the place and this the locals say is the original town founded by Sahadeva.

The town was initially called Sahadevapura or Sahadevapattana and centuries later it came to be abbreviated as Sahadevapalli and subsequently Sadahalli Today, it is better known as Sadali, a small town in the newly carved district of Chikaballapur.

Sadali has mythological and historical links and it is located in Sidlagatta Taluk. It is small town north of Sidlagatta on the road to Bagepalli.

The village is surrounded by small hillocks. It has two big tanks built by the erstwhile  Wodeyar Kings of Mysore. Tradition has it that it was founded by Sahadeva when he was on his visit to the place here.

During the Vijayanagar period, Sadali province included Chikkaballapur and the adjoining areas and it was under the ambit of  Naganna Odeyar from 1370 and 1385. Their exact relation with the ruling family of Vijayanagara is not known. Subsequently, the village changed hands several times and Khasim Khan, a Mughal Commander, conquered this area and annexed to the Sira.

He then bestowed it as a Jagir on two Muslim chiefs and one of them was Fateh Mohamad, father of  Hyder Ali and grandfather of Tipu. When the Nawab of Cuddapah, Abdul Hakim Khan Saheb (1752-1792) decided to attack Sadali, the two Muslim Jagirdars  privately disposed  it in 1759 to Dodda Baire Gauda of Chikaballapur.  Subsequently, it was seized by Hyder Ali in 1762.

There is an interesting story about why the locals do not cultivate maize. There area was once ruled by Thirumalayya, a Palegar.He had one hundred wives and he was known for his administrative skills and strict adherence to rules and regulations.

One day, the palegar received a complaint about some thieves having stolen maize from a house in Sadali. When he sent his soldiers to investigate, they found some remnants of the grain in front of the house of an old woman who did not have any cultivable field.

The soldiers assumed that the old woman and her sons had stolen the grain and took them to the Palegar. The sons told the Palegar that they had found the grains on the banks of a tank and they had taken it home. They said they had no hand in the theft. Nor did they know that the grains had been stolen.

The Palegar, however, ordered the execution of the old woman’s two sons. Soon after the cremation of the bodies of her sons, the old woman cursed the Palegar that his village would be destroyed by a rain of fire. She then ended her life jumping into the tank. She also cursed that henceforth any jowar crop sown by any farmers would be destroyed without a trace and that the farmer would be subjected to the fury of the village deity, Sadalamma.

A day after the curse, the original Sadali was destroyed by a rain of fire and the present town had been built to the east of the old town after this event. Until recently, the farmers of the town were afraid of sowing Jowar in their fields.

Though there are no records available as to when and why exactly these events happened, ashes of a potters' lane can still be found at the foot of the north side of Thirumalayyana Gudda near Sadali.  

Sadali is also home to the Chennakeshava temple, which is also known as Peddagudi or the Big Temple. The temple is in a dilapidated and neglected condition. Villagers say the temple was an eyewitness to the entire incident, including the rain of fire.

The architecture of the beautiful temple resembles the Vijayanagar style of the temples at Hampi.

Locals say that the temple was constructed during the rule of Naganna Odeyar and Depanna Odeyar. The idol of Lord Chennakeshava was removed from Peddagudi and re-installed in the present town.

The Sadalamma temple is another structure worth visiting. Locals consider Sadalamma to be a very powerful deity.

The Grand Canyon of Bangalore

A few days ago, one of my colleague’s children were watching television when they came across a narration of the Grand Canyon of the Unite States.

The children listened spellbound to the narration and sat glued to the idiot box till the programme on one of the seven natural wonders of the world concluded. A little later, the children sighed and said how they wished that India too had such a destination to visit.

They then turned to me and asked me if there is any other place which is comparable to the Grand Canyon, size and shape excluded. All we want is such a canyon for us to explore and enjoy, they said.

I then told them that Bangalore too had its own canyon but it has been forgotten in the mad rush of urbanization that has overtaken this part of Karnataka.

I pointed out that the road from Bangalore to Chikaballapur has some exquisite canyons, which though cannot be in any way compared to the Grand Canyon, are also marvels of Nature.

If the Grand Canyon of the United States is located thousands of miles away in the state of Arizona, “Namma Canyon” is barely a hour away from Bangalore.

While pages of print and multitude of reels have been shot to film the Grand Canyon of the United States, I can barely recall a few articles and none worth mentioning on the Internet about our own Canyon. So much for our pride in preserving India’s rich history and culture.

The canyon or rather the stretch of ravines that exists in Chikballapur district is barely 50 kilometres from Bangalore. Yet, it is practically unheard of and very few visitors come here.

These ravines are located on the outskirts of Jangamakote, a small  town just off Hoskote which is on the outskirts of Bangalore.
You could not be more wrong if you think that the name Jangamkote means a fort. There is no fort here and nearby. The name, Jangamakote, is of a town that was built centuries ago by a ruler of Sugatur family, Thimme Gowda.

The Gowda wanted to build an exclusive place for the Jangamas, a sect of Veerashaivas, and he choose this spot. Hence, the name.
Jangamakote has several deep ravines, gorges, narrow gullies, hollows and pits with the course of a dried-up stream running through it.

What gives the landscape the impression of a gorge is the  sometimes sharp and huge drops on either side of the  depression. No wonder, locals call it the mini Grand Canyon.

True, the size and extent of this ravine are no patch to the Grand Canyon. But, this is a natural rock and soil formation which is worth a visit and moreover, it is so close to Bangalore that it boggles imagination on why it has never been put on the tourist map.  
The ravines here can be compared to the Chambal valley of Madhya Pradesh-Rajasthan but the Chambal is a huge forest which once sheltered dacoits such as Man Singh and Phoolan Devi. There are no such dacoits here nor is there any thick forests. There is also no river but only a seasonal stream which runs at the bottom of the ravines during the rainy season.  

The ravines can be climbed down during summer but in rainy season it is dangerous as the soil is loose and clay like. The ravines here are geological formations called Badlands and they were caused due to a combination of natural factors like erosion by water, wind and weathering of rocks over several centuries.

A badlands, also badland is a type of dry  terrain where softer sedimentary rocks and clay-rich soils have been extensively eroded by wind and water. These geological formations resemble malpais, a terrain of volcanic rock. Canyons, ravines, gullies, hoodoos and other such forms are part of badlands. They are often difficult to navigate by foot. Badlands often have a spectacular color display that alternates from dark black/blue coal stria to bright clays to red scoria.
The soil of the ravines in Jangamkote too appear red and yellow and they give a surreal golden tinge to the surrounding landscape. As there is no Government agency involved in protecting this natural wonder, the ravines are overgrown with thorns, shrubs and weeds.

There is also no marked trail and visitors have to fend for themselves.  
Jangamkote is near Hoskote which is 28 kms from Bangalore. Take the road to  Hoskote on Old Madras road and continue on the Vijayapura-Sidlaghatta road for a further 21 kms to reach Jangamkote.

The Jallianwala Bagh of the South

Ninty four years after the Jallianwala Bagh massacre in Amritsar, David Cameron, the British Prime Minister, visited the site and expressed his sorrow. The massacre, perhaps the most horrific in British India, drew worldwide revulsion.

The massacre took place in the a public garden called Jallianwalla Bagh on April 13, 1919. The shooting, which the British themselves claimed led to 379 deaths and 1100 injured, was ordered by Brigadier-General Reginald E H Dyer.

The then Indian National Congress claimed that the massacre left more than 1,500 dead with approximately 1,000 dead and 1,500 injured.

What people do not know is that there was another incident of a similar kind in Karnataka and it took place nineteen years after the Jallianwala Bagh tragedy. This is popularly called the south Jallianwala Bagh and more than 32 persons, all of them from Karnataka, lost their lives in the firing by ordered by the British.

This deeply despicable incident occurred in the small village of 

Viduraswatha, six kms from Gauribidanur of Chikaballapur district.

This is how the horrifying incident happened.

The Congress had called for the hoisting of the Indian national flag on April 25, 1938. A large number of  people had gathered at the sprawling open grounds near the Ashwatha tree in Viduraswatha. Though the British had imposed prohibitory orders, people had gathered at the grounds.

The police opened fire on the unsuspecting crowd killing 32 people and leaving scores injured. Only ten bodies could be recovered and identified. Of them one was of a woman who had nothing to do with the protest. She had just come to the Naga temple and the Ashwatha Katte to pray. Her name Gowramma.

The names of Gowramma and nine others are on a plaque at the site of the brutal massacre. The others who died are: Bhajantri Bheemappa, Naama Ashwathanarayana Sreshti, Narasappa, G T Hanumantappa, Venkatagiriappa, Sulagitti Narasappa, Gacchannagaru Narasappa, Naagam and Mallaiah.

Even today, s handful of people in their 80s and 90s still can recall the incident. Almost all of them say that the firing was unprovoked and it began when they started shouting Vande Mataram.       

As news of the massacre filtered out, it shocked the nation. A deeply grieving Sardar Patel and Acharya Kriplani visited the place on the advice of Mahatma Gandhi.

Today, a plaque marks the spot of the massacre. There is not mush written material about the event. This is really unfortunate.

Apart from this gory incident, Vidurashwata is known for the Ashwatha tree planted by Vidura during the Mahabharata period. The Naga shrine nearby too is supposed to be as old as the tree.

Vidurashwata is just a few kms within the Andhra border and Hindupur is nearby amd it is 18 kms away. The name Vidurashwatha is derived from a big Ashwatha (Ficus religiosa) tree located in this village.

In 2001, this tree fell to the ground and there is only an offshoot of the original tree.

There is a Raghavendra Swamy temple nearby.

Bangalore is just 100 kms from Vidurashwatha. The Lepakshi temple is 30 kms from Vidurashwatha. This place can be easily reached by bus or train.

The twin peaks of Chikaballapur

Trekking and Weekend Getaways

If there is one hill or rather twin hills that is so near Bangalore and yet so virgin and so isolated this has to be it. It is just 75 kilometres away from Bangalore and yet it has largely remained away from public eye.

The name of the two hills too are rather unusual. There is not much wildlife here but there are plenty of birds to be seen. The climb to the hills too is rather not that steep and the trek up to the top can be a pleasant experience.

However, once you reach the top, you will be buffeted by strong winds and when you look around, you see the outlines of several other hills.

The hills are named after the Pandavas and the Kauravas and they are near Chikaballpur in Chikaballapur district. Both the hills are easily approachable from a village called Hariharapura (There is another Hariharapura near Sringeri which is a pilgrim centre on the banks of Tungabhadra ).

Hariharapura is a small hamlet in Chikaballapur village and it is known for these two twin peaks. The peaks are about 75 kms from Bangalore and about four kms from Chikaballapur.

The grassy hilltop of Kaurava Hill or Kaurava Kunda rises to nearly 250 meters and a flight of steps lead to the top. There is a Shiva temple here.

Nearby the hills are the Jarmagadu water falls. There is no water here during summer but you can have a good time exploring the rocks.

The hills are a little more than two hours drive by road from Bangalore. Kaurava Kunda is well-known for night trekking. Since the trek is moderately difficult, many people, including amateur trekkers, prefer this peak.

If you are lucky, you can make out several species of birds and butterflies. During monsoon, the trek can get tricky as the boulders become slippery and the trail soggy.       
Chikabalapur is 56 km north of  Bangalore and it is located in the center of the Nandi Hills region. It is often called Panchagiri as the town is surrounded by five picturesque hills, including Nandi.

The other hills are  Chandra Giri, Skandagiri, Brahma Giri, and Hema Giri. Chikabalapur is well-connected by road.

The Indian Robin Hood and his fort

Trekking and Weekend Getaways

Situated less tan a hundred kilometers from Bangalore, this fort is more known for its water harvesting techniques than its history. The fort was built by a local Palegar who is popularly known as the Robin Hood of India.

This Robin Hood robbed the rich to help the poor and his generosity was legendary. Though he ruled for a very short time, he is credited with having built the fort and also a tank. He also contributed to the water harvesting techniques and mind you this was way back in the 16th century.

The Robin Hood became so notorious over a period of time that he came to be known among the rich as “Havali” or menace. Today, the fort and the town stand a mute witness to the bygone era when the fort as a citadel of  impregnable symbol.

If the fort has such an interesting history, the town too has an equally interesting story. It gets its name from a cave temple hewn out a huge rock. The rock in Kannada is called Bande and the temple is known as Gudi. Combine both the word and you get the fort town of Gudibande.

The fort and the town of Gudibande is in Chikaballapur district and it is just 92 kms from Bangalore. This town has everything you could wish for. It is hikers paradise and a trekker’s challenge. It has a fort and temples apart from caves. What is more it would interest an engineer on how men four hundred years ago designed water harvesting structures.        

The fort was built by Byre Gowda, the Robin Hood of Gudibande. The fort lies on a conical hill which rises to more than 1100 feet  and there is huge lake below which looks like a map of India when seen from above. There are temples carved from rocks and boulders.

Byre Gowda ruled over Gudibande and surrounding areas for three years from 1645 AD to 1648 AD but he left his mark behind. He became such a terror to the rich that they called him “Havali”  Byre Gowda.  

Gudibande is famous not only for the fort but also several boulders and rocks. There is a cave temple within one such boulder and this has given the town its name of Gudibande. The cave is atop the Narasimhaswamy Temple. Move a little away from the cave and you come to the hill with the fort.

The big granite hill is steep and its slopes are slippery. The steps to the hill are wide and well cut in the beginning but they narrow down as you go up and become very shallow.

The imposing fort which is more than 400 years old blends with the hill and appears massive. When constructed the fort had seven gates but today most of them are missing or in ruins. The first gate that you see was originally the fourth. This gate leads to a small field with a ruined hall-like structure. The is entrance leads to a small field with a dilapidated mantap. The second gate is star-shaped and it has openings for guns on  its walls. There is a cave formed between two massive boulders.

There fort is full of natural ponds and water bodies. There is an escape route for the Palegar and soldiers to take in case of enemy attack. The route s through boulders and rough paths.

The next gate leads to rooms which at one time were occupied by guards. The penultimate gate leads to a large area with bastions at its corners. Beware, this is the favourite haut of monkeys Steer clear of them.

A trail between two colossal rocks leads to the top. There is a  large rectangular mantapa here which is where prisoners were kept. The temple dedicated to Shiva here is one of the 108 Jyotirlingas. This temple has been recently renovated. This is also called the Rameshwara temple, Nearby is the temple of Parvati Devi.

A majority of the visitors to the temple are from Gudibande as it is not known to outsiders.

Look around you and you can see the Byrasagara lake at the base of the hill. This was built by Byre Gowda and from the hill top it looks like the map of India. The water body is also called Amani Byrasagara. 

However, the water channel system devised by Byre Gowda and his successors was unique. It linking nineteen water bodies and tanks called dhones and they could in all hold nearly 3 lakhs litres of rain water.
Unfortunately, many of the channels and ponds have eroded over time. An NGO, Vivekananda Yuvaka Sangha, has taken up a project to restore the system.
The historic Surasadmagiri hill is situated nearby. Gudibande has two temples built by the Cholas. One is the temple of  Lakshmi Venkataramana Swamy and another is of Adinarayanaswamy.  The Gayatri Mandira here is said t be the first ever established. Gayatri is the second wife of Brahma.

The hills near Ellodu village in Gudibande taluk is famous for its “Queen Rose” granite rocks which is mined by the State Government.

Gudibande is so well-known I do not think it is necessary to give directions.

The hill with a view

Trekking and Weekend Getaways

If Nandi Hills is 57 kilometers from Bangalore, this Hill is a little father. It is 90 kms from the Silicon City. If Nandi Hills has temples and a climb to the top offers a breathtaking view of the surroundings, this hill too has temples and such a view.

The only difference that I could make out between them was the Nandi Hills is to  well known while this hill remains relatively unknown.

Incidentally both the Hills are in Chikaballapur district and you have to pass by the majestic Nandi Hills on way to this hill called Avala Betta.

Avala Betta is the Nandi Hills without its crowds, backpackers and litter. There is no pollution or long line of vehicles. The climb itself to the top of the hill offers us an enchanting view of the country side, the rolling hillocks, the large swathes of green sand the hazy outline of distant landscape.

I remember that the hill was a very difficult proposition to climb a few years ago, It had no road to the top and the motorable road, or rather a mud road with potholes big enough to sink your two-wheelers led to the base of the hill.

However, there is a motorable road today which will lead you to the to the summit of the hill. The road snakes round the hill and the drive is a pleasure. The top of the hill becomes so narrow that it is actually only a huge single boulder. 

Take care while climbing the boulder. If there are children, avoid climbing with them. However, if you are a brave heart and make the climb, you will be met with as stunning a view as you have seen elsewhere.

The hill side is a green treat. As far as your eye can see, you can view the beautiful countryside with hills, valleys, lakes, trees and winding roads. This is a photographer’s delight.

The Forest Department has built a paragola for tourists to sit back and enjoy. The guest house here too belongs to the Forest Department. For reservations and other issues, please contact the Forest Department at Chikaballapur.

Well, coming to the temples, Avala Betta is home to a small but beautiful temple of Lakshmi Narasimha and a cave temple dedicated to a seer called Avala Kondaraya. There is a small shrine dedicated to Hanuman.

The stream and the pond is vested with a lot of religious significance. During Shravana, a special jatre is organised  every Saturday during which devotees from nearby villages and Chickaballapur come to fulfill their vows. The pond is called as Annammadonaha. There is a belief that if married women who are childless bathe here, they will get children.

Many women come here for bathing at the pond and then praying to Lakshmnarasimha. Nowadays, daily prayers are offered at the temple.

There are a series of steps behind the cave that lead to the peak. The climb offers a good view of the bush forest and small animals that scamper about. Of course, the view around the Hill is breathtaking.

Villagers say the name Avala Betta is in honour of the seer who lived here and meditated for several years before attaining samadhi.

Avalabetta has another religious significance. There are hoof marks of a cow on rock here. These hoof marks were believed to have been made during  Samudra Manthana (churning of the Great Ocean) by gods and demons.

According to a local legend, the holy cow-Kamadhenu-came to this place first. When it landed, its hoof marks came to be etched on a rock.

After the first cow came to the Betta, other cows followed suit. Villagers, who saw this spectacle, called the place Denu Giri or Hill of Cows. Since that day, the villagers began offering milk of the cow to the god first and only later either sold it or used it.

This tradition of offering milk to the Gods first continues to this day.

Chickaballapur is just around the corner. A beautiful road flanked by trees and shrubs leads to the district headquarters. Bring your lunch packet or go don to Chikaballapur for a bite.

Avala Betta is generally deserted most of the tine. During weekends and holidays, there is some crowd but this is not even a small percentage of the people visiting Nandi Hills.

Avala Betta is also known as Avalakonda which is a Telugu word.
Take the Bangalore-Hyderabad (Yelahanka) road and continue upto Peresandra. (The chakkuli of Peresandra is very famous. Taste it and then write back). Here, turn left where the sign board says Mandikal. Avala Betta is about 12 kms from here.

There are regular bus services to Avala Betta from Chikaballapur and Mandikal. You can also hire private transport at Mandikal. 
Distance: 90km.Travel to Peresandra (via Chikballapur bypass).At Peresandra turn left to Mandikal.Avalabetta is about 11km from this point.