Nature has different dimensions to enhance the beauty of various places. Somewhere it is in form of flowing streams, static lakes, somewhere hills & somewhere forests.
Our state is full of natural beauty and resources. Most of them are explored & maintained by OTDC and associated districts administration. Still few unexplored or uncovered places are full of natural beauty which needs to be highlighted.
Nature has never neglected our state. It has gifted a lot of forests, rivers, waterfalls as a complete package. Pradhanpat in Deogarh is one of its noble gift. Located at 90 km away from Sambalpur & 260 km from the state capital, Deogarh is full of natural beauty, historical evidences & serenity.
Small history:
Initially ruled by Hon’le king Basudev Sudhaldev, Deogarh was the capital of Bamanda. The kings of ganga dynasty were very much concerned about social upliftment, literature, Education and art. One can get few evidence after visiting the old palaces, monuments at Deogarh. These monuments and old buildings reflect the perfection of the kingdom and their strategies. Deogarh was in Sambalpur district till 1993. It was declared as a district on 1/1/1994
Major attraction
Being surrounded by hills, forests and waterfall at its three sides, Deogarh has created its own identity today for its valley type existence. The hills are of average range of 750-800m above Mean sea level. Pradhanpat is the main attraction for locals as well as tourists. It is adding perfect ornamental value to the location. Calm, quiet, and full of natural beauty have established its own supremacy. Several stream, tall trees, dense forests and old monuments have enriched its value.
Being situated at only 2 km away from the town, Pradhanpat has now become a favorite destination for the morning and evening walkers of the town. Everybody wants to come closer to0 the nature and enjoy its natural treasury. Apart from Pradhanpat , few other destinations can be covered during this visit. Kurudkut waterfall, King palace, Kailash palace may be considered as few additional attractions.
When to go!
Pradhanpat & Kurudkut are almost open throughout the year. But the nature gets perfectly ornamented during monsoon & winter. July to February is the perfect time to visit. Pradhanpat Utsav’ is a mega event organized during Jan-Feb, where a lot of people gather to celebrate & enjoy. During this time the town seems bright with lighting, cultural programme.
How to go!
Deogarh doesnot have railway connectivity till date. Only way to reach this town is by cars and buses. It takes 2 hours to reach Deogarh from Sambalpur through NH-6. Bhubaneswar to Deogarh has 2 scenic routes. One is via Angul, Chhendipada and Chiknee Ghat.
Second one is via Dhenkanal, kamakhya nagar and Khamar.This route crosses many scenic points, roads, and forests. One can stop several times for photography. Normally it takes 5-6 hours to cross 260 km stretch.
Tourism development
District administration is giving outstanding effort to develop this place at regular intervals. Still very few people of our state have explored this natural destination. Let us expect OTDC would develop this place as a nice tourism circuit by establishing tourist lodges, ecotourism trekking activities. This will help the tourists to explore this place in detail. Pradhanpat is a must see waterfall.
PROFILE/ BIO
Soumyajit Mishra is an Architect by profession, currently practicing in Bhubaneswar and involved in many healthcare & hospitality projects. He has travelled a lot of places in India, both because of his passion as well as profession. He has been working hard to visit remote places in Odisha state and gather various information to promote rural tourism. He has been a true admirer of beauty of forest, integrity of big towns, adventure, ecotourism & sustainable habitat development.
The brief write up on ‘ Deogarh’ will give a little bit idea about the blend of calmness and serenity of forest, waterfall and mythological movement.
Also Read:
A list of Waterfalls in Odisha by Manjit Jena – how many of this have you visited?