PENCH

PENCH

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Pench national park is situated in the area of 542.66 Square km. The Park is famous for the elusive tiger, Indian bison, leopard, wild dog and a host of other wildlife and avian species like Chital, Sambar, Nilgai, Deer and Wild Boar.  

How to Reach:

Nearest Airports:
                 Pench National Park is conveniently located 
                 on a National Highway (92 kms. from Nagpur
                 on Nagpur- Jabalpur highway) Nearest 
                Convenient Railhead:   Nagpur (92 Km).

By Road:   
         The Park Can be reached from  Nagpur and Jabalpur.

Best Season:

February to June although cool season (October to February)  is much more comfortable and still very good for wildlife. The park is closed from July 1 to October 31 because of the monsoon.  

To plan and customize a complete tour for you as per your interest and budget send us a Tour Enquiry. The tour will be organized right from New Delhi/Mumbai  or any other place where you will be landing from your country.

Contact Us:

For hotel booking at Kanha, Jeep and Elephant Hire, Pickup from Jabalpur or any other information please E-mail us. Rohit.aerosoft@rediffmail.com

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BANDHAVGARH

BANDHAVGARH

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As per today there are 56 Tigers in Bandhavgarh National Park

Bandhavgarh National Park:   Known as white tiger country, this is a small National park, compact yet full of    game. The forests of Bandhavgarh is most deciduous. The density of tiger population at Bandhavgarh is the highest known   in India.It is equally rich in bird life, boasting of over 200 species. The flowering and fruit trees attract woodland birds,  which  include green pigeon, Jerdon’s leaf bird, crested serpent eagle, and variable hawk eagle.   

About Bandhavgarh National Park: Prior to becoming a National Park, the    forests around Bandhavgarh have been maintained as Shilagarh or game preserve,of   the Maharaja of Rewa in 1947. Rewa State was merged with M.P (Madhya   Pradesh) Bandhavgarh came under the regulation of M.P.

Covering 448 Sqm, Bandhavgarh is situated in Shadhol district among the outlying   hills of Vindhya Range. At the center of the park in Bandhavgarh hill, rising 811   meters above MSL surrounding it a large number of smaller hills separated by   gently sloping valleys.

Flora In Bandhavgarh

Bandhavgarh is densely populated with other species the great Gaur, or Indian Bison ca be seen with ease as they come onto the meadows to graze at dusk. 

Sambas, Chital, Chinkara, Muntjac, wild pigs and Barking Deer are a common sight and Nilgai and Chinkara are to be seen in the more open areas in the park.

Bandhavgarh Tour Packages

 # Heritage India Tour & Tiger

 # The Wild Expedition

 # All India Wildlife Tour

 # Indian Tigers and the Taj Tour

 # Temples & Tigers Tours

 # Call of the Wild and The Taj

 

Attractions in Bandhavgarh National Park:

Bandhavgarh Fort  Over the Bandhavgarh hills, dominating the park stands Bandhavgarh Fort on the highest point, thought to be some  2000 years old. Scattered through out park and particularly around the fort are numerous prehistoric caves              rich with shrines and ancient Sanskrit inscriptions. 

Kalchuri Archeological Remains:

Apart from the rich wildlife, Bandhavgarh is also famous for the archaeological remains of the Kalchuri period that had been found here.

NOTICE :

The park is closed from July 01 to October 01.

Information Center for Bandhavgarh National Park:

How to Reach Bandhavgarh National Park:

 By Air: Jabalpur airport is the nearest airport to Bandhavgarh 
              National Park  which is connected to New Delhi  Daily
              flight and from where it is 04 hours drive to 
              Bandhavgarh.
              Khajuraho airport is another option from where it is a
              seven hours drive (237Km). Though long, the driver is
              interesting; the road crosses the  Ken river, some 
              stretches of which have been declared a crocodile
              sanctuary famous for the ghariyal, a  rare fish 
              eating crocodile; and goes past

            
              Panna town, famous for its diamond mines, 
              to Satna, the  midway-point, from where 
              it branches off on a subsidiary road across
              ridges of Vindhyachal to Bandhavgarh.

By Rail: The nearest railway station near Bandhavgarh are  
                Jabalpur (164 Km), Katni (102 Km) and 
                Satna (120 Km) on the central railway and
                Umaria (35 Km) on the South Eastern Railway.

By Road: The Park Can be reached from Jabalpur (175 km), 
                  Satna (120 km), Katni,

                  Umeria(35 Km), and  Khajuraho (237 km).

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Best Season to visit Bandhavgarh National Park:

November to June. The Park is closed from 1st  July to 01st October.

 Ask Us to tailor your tour to Bandhavgarh National Park!

To plan and customize a complete tour for you as per your interest and budget send us a Tour  Enquiry. The tour will be organized right from New Delhi/Mumbai  or any other place where you will be landing from your country.

Contact Us: For hotel bookings at Bandhavgarh National Park, Jeep and Elephant Safaris &  Pickup from Khajuraho, Jabalpur, Katni and other places. For any other information please E-mail us.

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NATIONAL PARK

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KANHA

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Kanha is Mowgli’s Sweet Home  As per today there are 131 Tigers in Kanha National Park  And, Kipling uncle  gave me a human shape in my own nature and ecosystem. He named me, Mowgli-- I was lucky that in the most natural habitats of Kanha, with the innocent creatures. I was brought up in the laps of mother Wolves, the avuncular Bhaloo-the bear; my wise mentor Bagheera- the panther;

Kaa- the Python; and those rowdy monkeys, the bunder log and Sher Kahn- The tiger.  

Rudyard Kipling:-  British author and Nobel Laureate, set his tales of the boy brought up by wolves in the Jungle of KanhaNational Park in  'The Jungle Book'.

 Kanha National Park: Kanha National park is located in the Mandla district of Madhya Pradesh and it extends over an  area  of over 1,940-sq-kms. The major feature of this region's interesting topography is the horseshoe shape valley and the whole park area is surrounded by the spurs of the Mekal. By a special statue in 1955, Kanha national park came into being since then, a series of stringent conservation programmes for the protection of the park’s flora and fauna has given Kanha its deserved reputation for being one of the finest and best  administered national parks in Asia, an irresistible attraction for all wild life  lovers a true haven for  its animal and avian  population. Kanha  national park has 22 species of  mammals. Those most  easily spotted are TIGER, Indian hare, Indian  wild dog, the Stripped Palm  Squirrel, Common  langur, Jackal, Wild Pig, Chital or Spotless deer, Barasingha or Swamp deer,  Sambar and black  Buck.

 Patient watching should reward the visitor, with a sight of Indian Fox, Sloth bear, Striped  hyena, Jungle cut, Lepord, Mouse Deer, Chausingha or four horned antelope, Nilgai, Ratel and  Porcupine.

Avian Species: Kanha National Park has some 200 species of birds. Watchers should station  themselves in the hills, where the mixed and bamboo forests harbour many  species and in the grassy forest clearings. Water birds can be seen near the                          park’s many rivulets and at Sarvantal, a pool that is frequented by water birds and the area in front of the museum.

Kanha Tour Packages

#Rhythm Of Jungle!

#The Wild Expedition!

#Call of the Wild and the Taj!

# Indian Tiger Tours with Kanha

#All India Wildlife Tour!

#Indian Tigers & Taj Mahal Tour!

#Temples & Tiger Tour!

Kanha’s Sal and Bamboo forest ,rolling grasslands and meandering stream stretch over the 940 km. The abundance and wild life species in Kanha national park, forms the core of the Kanha tiger reserve created in1974 under project tiger. The park is only habitat of the rare hard grounder Barasingha.

Hotels/Resorts at Kanha (Cervus Duvaceli Branderi). In 1930s, the Kanha area was divided into two santuaries; Hallon and Banjar of 250kms to 300kms each. Though one of these was subsequently disbanded .The area remained a protected one until 1947. Depletion of the tiger population in the year that followed led to the area being made an absolute sanctuary in 1952.

Information Center:

How to Reach Kanha National Park:

By Air:

                Jabalpur at 200 -kms is the nearest airport connected 
                directly with New Delhi airport to visit Kanha National 
                Park and Nagpur at 266-kms is Connected by various 
                domestic airline services with Mumbai.

Rail: 

               Jabalpur at 175-kms is the convenient rail head to 
               visit Kanha.

Road:

              Kanha National Park is connected by road with Jabalpur
              175-kms, Khajuraho  445-kms, Nagpur 266-kms,                                                                                                                                            

              Raipur 219-kms. Within the park: Koshi - Kanha (9-kms),
              Kishi - Katia (4-kms),   Kishi - Mukki (32-kms).

             There are regular to and fro bus service available from 
              Jabalpur to Kanha.    

Best Season to Visit Kanha National Park:

February to June although cool season (October to February)  is much more comfortable and still very good for  wildlife. The park is closed from July 01 to October 01 because of the monsoon. 

Park Visit Timings

1. 15 November to 15 February - Sunrise to 12.00 noon and 3.00 pm to Sunset.                     2. 16 February to 30 April - Sunrise to 1200 noon and 4.00 pm to Sunset.                        3. 1 May to 30 June - Sunrise to 11.00 am and 5.00 pm to Sunset.

   

Ask Us to tailor your tour to Kanha National Park!

To plan and customize a complete tour for you as per your interest and budget send us a Tour Enquiry. 

 The tour will be organized right from New Delhi/Mumbai  or any other place where you will be landing from your country.

Contact Us:

For hotel booking at Kanha National ark, Jeep and Elephant safaris at Kanha National Park, Pickup from  Jabalpur, Nagpur, Khajuraho etc or any other information please E-mail us. Rohit.aerosoft@rediffmail.com

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BHIMBETKAR CAVES

BHIMBETKAR CAVES

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Bhimbetkar  130 rock shelters….Biggest repository of prehistoric art in India. Continuous habitation from the Early Stone Age…." One of the earliest dwellings of human beings, Bhimbetka will take you back to the history 35000 years old. In fact, the place has witnessed a cultural sequences right from the late stone age to the early historic period. The pre historic caves which are in true sense "the portal to the ancient gallery of Bhimbetka" preserves some fascinating   paintings dating back to Paleolithic times.

They had lived here for one hundred millennium and had created their own stone floors, left behind hand-axes, cleavers, scrapers to remove flesh and fat from the skin of slaughter animals and tiny needles made from hard quartz in all its sharp and colorful forms. Also stone hand mills for grinding grain and nuts and the colourred earth called "Ochers". 

Stone age artists painted their fears and hopes on rocks, weaving an enchantment that still ensnares us.

Over these caves the Stone Age artists painted their hopes and fears, weaving an enchantment that still ensnares us. These specimen, display great vitality and narrative skill. One sees on the weather worn walls, rhinoceros, elephants, horses, as well as domestic animals. There are scenes of domestic bliss-a women with a child or performing household chores, and documentation of a hunt, raid during warfare. One cannot remain immune to the excitement that slowly builds up- a memorable moment in time when our ancestors were taking the leap from animal to human existence-groping cautiously to achieve social organization. Experimenting with community life. 

To really experience the journey back to Stone Age Man one should move around the place gently and examine minutely the whole surroundings because each boulder and every overhanging rock speaks of the magical history.

Barkhera 7 km from Bhimbetka, One of the richest open air Stone Age sites in South Asia. There are thousands of Acheulian tools scattered in the thick teak forest, and fields on the other side of the road. Barkhera was a large camp site of the final Acheulian hunter-gathers.

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SACHI SUTPA

SANCHI STUPA

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SANCHI -A symbol of great victory of peace over war. More than 20 centuries ago, young prince Ashoka had married a Vidisha merchant’s daughter when his royal carven on its way to an other town had camped here. Princes and merchant princes in those days had a great need to live in harmony. 

Eight years after Ashoka ascended the throne, he went to war with and conquered the state of Kalinga. It was a terrible war in which one hundred and fifty thousand persons



were carried away captive, one hundred thousand were slain and many times that the number perished. It was at this point of history that the peace began to win over mind and heart of the warriors. Walking across the bloodied field, Ashoka’s ears were assailed with the bellows of wounded horses, the moans of dying men and orphans searching hopelessly in the carnage. 

The miracle had happened then is inscribed in rock Edit X111  " Thus arose his sacred majesty’s remorse for having conquered the Kalingas. Of all the people who were then slain, done to death or carried away captive in Kalinga ,if the hundredth of the thousandth part were to suffer the same fate, it would now be a matter of regret to his Majesty"

Emperor Ashoka, in a historical dramatic change of heart, renounced war, turned his back on conquest and embraced that most gentle of religions: Buddhism. From digvijaya, a conqueror of territories, he became a dhamma-vijaya, a conqueror of men’s hearts. And in his quest to proclaim his new faith for the entire world to see, he returned to Vidisha, the town of his loved wife. There, on a wooded knoll, at a short riding distance from the metropolis, he established a spiritual center that was to last for 1300 years. Never before and never since, has peace scored such a great victory over war as in the triumph we know as Sanchi.

The Grand Stupa built by shoka at Sanchi is focal point of a 91 –meter-high turf covered and tree-dotted hill and marks an important stage in the evolution of Indian architecture.
The great Stupa is 36.5 meters in diameter  and rises almost 16.5 meters high.A balustrade encircles the entire structure and provides  incarnations as Bodhisattva have provided the principal inspiration for the artistes.

The intricately carved gateways hold the greatest fascination for visitors. Gateways, the four ornamented (torans) built at the cardinal points in front of the entrances were erected around 3.5 B.C by the Satvahana ruler, Satkarni. Each torans consists of two upright pillars nearly 34 feet high. The two richly carved pillars, rise to be crowned by carved lions-the famous Ashoka Lions, now the official seal of India –elephants and dwarfs.

The eastern gateway depicts Buddha’s journey towards enlightenment. It shows the young prince Siddhartha Gautama , leaving his father’s Palace and setting off on his journey to enlightenment.

The western gateway depicts the seven incarnation of the Buddha.

The northern gateway, crowned by a wheel of law, illustrates the miracles associated with the Buddha as told in the Jatakas.

The southern gateway is the oldest and reveals the birth of Gautama in series of dramatically rich carvings. It also depicts the wheel of forth, the first sermon given by the Buddha at Sarnath.

Ashokan Pillar Just to the right of the southern gateway lie the remains of Ashokan pillar erected by Ashoka in the 3rd century, displaying all the characteristics of such monoliths – exquisite proportion, brilliant polish, succinct instructions. Centuries of exposure to weather has not diminished its metallc glow.

Excursions from Sanchi In the area around Sanchi there are a number of site, some of which are Buddhist .

Vidisha In the 5th-6th centuries BC Videsha was an important trade center of the Sunga dynasty where Ashoka was governor in the 3rd century BC. He married a local princess, establishing his contact with Sanchi. The ruins of Bijamandal Mosque and Gumbaz- Ka Makbara, both dating from the Muslim period with remains of votive pillars nearby. The museum at Vidisha contains some of Bbesnagar’s earliest antiquities.

Udaygiri caves (13 km) Udaygiri caves were produced during the regime of Chandraguta II (382-401). The caves have all distinct features that gave Gupta art its unique vitality, vigour and richness of expression. The beautifully molded capitals, the design of the entrance gateway and the system of continuing the architrave as a string course around 
the structure. 

Besnagar 3 km after crossing the Betwa river. The Heliodorus Pillar, A monolithic free standing column, similar to Asokan pillars but much smaller in size has been dated to 140BC. The inscription states that it was a Garuda pillar erected in owner of Vasudeva by Heliodorus, a resident of Taxila (now in Pak) who had been sent as an envoy to the court of Bhagabhadra . This is a part of the evidence, which shows that relations existed between the Greeks in the Punjab and the kings of this area and that Heliodorus had become a follower of lord Vishnu.

Udaypur 60 km from Udaygari. The colossal Neelkantheswara temple is the center- piece , an outstanding example of 11th century Paramara architecture.Its beauty lies in its well proportionate and gracefully designed Shikhar (spire) and the delicate carving adorning its sites. Some regard the spire as being unequalled. Built of red stand stone and standing on a high platform the temple consists of garbha-griha (shrine room) . A sabha mandap (Hall) and three parvesh mandaps (entrance porches)

Gyaraspur (40 km North East of Sanchi) :-Important place of the medieval period, now lies in ruins, where one can see temples called Athkhambha (Eight Pillars) and Chaukhamba (four pillars) belonging to the 9th and 10th centuries A.D. The 10th century MAHADEV temple on the hill above the village, is the most striking of the remains with the ruins of stupa. The ruins of an 8-pillared temple,"Athakhambe" and a 4 pillared "Chaukhamba" date fro m 9th and 10th centuries.

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WORLD HERITAGE SITES

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KHAJRAHO TEMPLE

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Khajuraho, the exuberance of Indian spirit represents a paean to life, love, to joy-perfect in execution and sublime in expression. The Khajuraho temples are internationally famous for the erotic sculptures that adorn the walls. Life in every form and mood, has been captured in stone, testifying not only to the craftsman’s artistry but also to the extraordinary breadth of vision of the Chandela Rajputs under whose rule the temples were conceived and constructed.





Western Group of Temples

 The most prominent structure at Khajuraho is the Kandariya Mahadeo temple, which is the largest soars 31 km high, dedicated to Lord Shiva, the sanctum enshrines a lingam
( a phallic symbol, a symbol of energy, fertility and potency).    
                                                                   

 The amorous couples are most sensuously depicted in the Chaunsath Yogini temple, the only granite temple and the earliest surviving shrine of the group (900 A.D), is dedicated to goddess Kali.

Facing eastwards to the rising sum , Chitragupta temple is dedicated to the Sun God Surya . The image of the deity in the inner sanctum is particularly imposing; five feet high and driving a horse drawn chariot.

A three headed image of Brahma is enshrined in Vishwanath Temple. The approach is equally impressive, with lions flaking the northern and elephants the southern steps that lead up to it.

The lintel over the entrance of beautiful Lakshman
Temple shows the trinity of Lords Brahma, Vishnu        
and Shiva, with Lakshmi, Vishnu’s consort.
The finely carved sanctum has a three-headed idol
of Vishnu’s incarnations, Narasimha and Varaha.

One of the oldest temple, Matengeswara temple, 
is dedicated to Lord Shiva and has an eight feet
 high lingam.

Eastern Group of Temples

The temples in this group can be subdivided into two one being a cluster of Jain temples and another scattered through the small village

Parsvanath Temple is the largest in this group. The temple was initially dedicated to Adinath but the statue was replaced by that of 
Parsavanath in 1860 A.D.

The Jain temple, Gantai temple, has a frieze, which depicts the 16 dreams of Mahavira’s  mother and a Jain goddess on a winged Garuda.

Dedicated to the Jain saint Adinath, Adinath Temple is lavishly embellished with sculpted figures, including Yakshis. The three Hindu temples of the group are the Brahma containing a four-faced linga; the Vamana, which is adorned on its outer walls with carvings of Apsaras in a variety of sensuous attitudes; and the Javari, with a richly carved gateway and exterior sculptors.

Southern Group

 This comprises only two temples. A track running  south from Jain enclosures reaches the first called Duladeo Temple. It is among the latest built temples at Khajuraho, more accurate, finer and equally graceful, with figures of Mithuna (sexual intercourse) and women in various poses. The other temple is Chaturbhuj Temple which has a three meter image of Vishnu.

 General Information     

How to Reach:

By Air: Regular services link Khajuraho with Delhi, Agra, and Varanasi.                                


By Rail: The nearest railheads are Harpalpur (94 Km) and Mahoba (61 Km). Jhansi (172 Km) is a convenient railhead for those traveling from Delhi and Chennai;

Satna (117 Km), on the Mumbai-Allahabad line of the Central Railway for those coming from Mumbai, Kolkata and Varanasi.                                                                                                 


By Road: Khajuraho is connected by regular buses with Satna, Harpalpur, Jhansi and Mahoba.

Best Season: July to March.  Nostalgia