Purulia Ayodhya Hills – Land of Red blooming Palash

At the onset of Spring, the Plateau region of West Bengal, comprising the Western parts of Purulia and Bankura districts, bears an unique look, with the blooming red Palash and Shimul flowers. Our destination this time was Ayodhya Hills of the Purulia district, an area interspersed by small hillocks locally known as “tila”.

Reaching Barabhum:

There are several trains towards Purulia, Barabhum and Adra that one can board. But most of them are day-trains. We chose the Adra-Chakradharpur Passenger as it would run through the night and we can utilize the entire next day.

To approach the Ayodhya Hills, travelers can alight at either Purulia Junction or at Barabhum (which is 30 mins from Purulia Junction). The distance and time to travel to Ayodhya Hills from both these  stations are more or less the same. But each has its own advantage. The availability of cars at Purulia is more (if you haven’t pre-booked one). Also, the drivers offer a “package” for round trip to Purulia with the major sight-seeing included. But, if you have done your homework, want to customize the journey and have pre-booked your car, then you should choose Barabhum as your starting point.

The train was late by an hour, and we reached Barabhum around 8 AM. Our driver cum guide for the trip, Manoj, was waiting outside the station. The check-in time at the WBCADC lodge “Malabika” was at 12 noon. So, in order to kill the time, I had planned to visit some of the places en-route to the Ayodhya Hilltop.

Day 1 morning: On the way to Ayodhya Hills; Palash Trees on the way

As we started in Manoj’s Baloro, Sal trees on both sides of the road greeted us. And soon afterwards, we got the first sight the red blooming of Palash trees. Though a bit scarce at that place, the Palash flowers in the backdrop of the hillocks gave it a majestic look.

Soon we reached Pakhi Pahar, or the “Bird Hill”. It gets its name from the numerous sculptures of birds created by artist Chitta Dey and his team on the surface of the hill. Our car stopped at the base of the hill. And we got down and took a walk along the small meandering village roads and were dwarfed by the tall trees around. A baby goat was grazing around, and our kids enjoyed playing with it.

After Pakhi Pahar, we slowly started climbing uphill towards our next stop Lahoria. The place is famous for a temple of Lord Shiva. Adjacent to the temple complex is the Lahoria Dam. We took a walk around the temple complex and the dam. It is from here that I made a quick call to Mr. Sujay Singha, the manager of the CADC lodge, to order our lunch. In most of the lodges and hotels in the Ayodhya, the food is “made to order”, and so it is important that you order your meals in advance.

Our next stops were the Lower Dam and Upper Dam of the Purulia Pumped Storage Project (PPSP).We were mesmerized by the turquoise blue water of the Lower Dam. The Upper Dam was equally beautiful. A small strip of road goes through the middle of the Upper Dam. You can get down from car at the entrance, walk the entire strip and then board your car at the end.

We reached the CADC lodge around 11 AM. Luckily for us, the room was ready and we checked-in immediately.

About CADC Lodge on Ayodhya Hills

Let me now tell you few things about the CADC Lodge. The complex consists of 3 buildings – the Niharika, the Malabika and the Bibhabori.

Niharika is the main building that houses the Reception, Kitchen and Dining Room. But, the rooms in this building are mainly for VIP guests, and not for general public. You can make the reservation on the spot, based on the availability (i.e. if not occupied by the VIPs), and also if you have some contact in the CADC office in Purulia town.

You can book the rooms of Malabika from the CADC offices in Kolkata and Purulia. Regarding the booking process, please refer here.

The Bibhabori is at the end of the complex, and bookings also have to be done from the CADC Purulia.

The entire complex is huge, where authorities farm organic vegetables and also rear swan, chicken, rabbit, koyel etc. All the vegetable dishes cooked at the kitchen are from the organic farm. Also, there is a small garden area where kids can play and guests can relax.

In case you are in short of cash, there is an ATM just outside the complex. There is also an Army barrack just adjacent to the complex, which adds to the safety of the place.

Day 1 afternoon: Murugama Dam

After a lunch of rice, vegetables and fish curry, we took a quick nap to compensate the lack of sleep of last night. Our plan for the afternoon was to enjoy the sunset at the Murugama Dam. Manoj reported at 3.30 PM and we started soon after. En-route we passed by some tribal villages and greeted by Palash trees in their full bloom.

After travelling around 45 minutes, our car came to halt. From here, we had to walk through a forest area to reach the Suicide Point. It is a hilltop, with big boulders, where you can sit for hours and enjoy the beauty of the nature. A small rivulet makes a meandering move down the hill on one side, and on the other side is the majestic Murugama Dam. Some tourists had visited the dam before and then were sitting there for the sunset. But, I felt that the Murugama Dam (which we visited next) is a better place to enjoy the sunset.

After around half an hour, we came back to our car and started our journey downhill towards Murugama Dam. Manoj took the car to the end of the road that runs through the periphery of the dam. The golden glows of the setting Sun and the silhouette of the hillocks on the water of the dam made us spellbound. We strolled leisurely for some more time. As darkness started engrossing the place, we started our journey back towards our lodge.

There is small market area on the Hilltop, were we enjoyed handful of hot pakodas and piping hot tea. Back in our lodge we had an early dinner at 9 PM and retired for the day.

Day 2 morning: Marble Lake, Bamni Falls

After having a breakfast of Poori and sabzi, we started around 9.30 AM.

Our first stop of the day was at the Sita Kund. Small children from the nearby village guided us to the place where cold water bubbles out of the fine white sand. According to the Hindu mythology, Lord Ram and Sita came here and stayed during their exile. Sita was thirsty and Ram pierced an arrow through the Earth’s crust to bring out fresh water springs that quenched her thirst. There are a few small water bodies around the place, where you can take a leisurely walk.

Next we visited the Marble Lake. It is a man-made lake bordered by small hills on all the sides. The rugged terrain of the hills and waterbody in between would induce a sense of romanticism in every human being. It was a warm sunny day, and we dipped our toes in the cool water.

Next we went to the Bamni Falls. If you want to buy local handicrafts, this is the place to be. There are lots of stalls where you can make a quick purchase of gifts.

To get a full view of the falls, you need to trek downhill for around 20-25 minutes. For the medically fit, it is worth the effort, as you can enjoy the view of the water gushing down among the lush greenery. But, if you have ailments like heart or knee problems, then you should rest at the top. There is also a resting area midway, where you can reach near the waterfall.

Day 2 afternoon: Khairabera, Charida

By the time we were back to the top, we were fully exhausted as well as hungry. We started our journey downhill towards the Baghmundi town, where we had planned for our lunch. On the way, we passed by the Turga Falls. We didn’t go down, but took some snaps from the road. We stopped for a few minutes at the Turga Dam, which is also a pleasant place to be.

While we were having lunch, the weather changed dramatically – from a sunny day to one with hovering black clouds. We finished our lunch quickly, and started off for the Khairabera Dam.

The Dam area is picturesque, where you can spend an eternity enjoying the beauty of the surroundings. Unfortunate for us, as soon as we got down from our car, lightnings started. We had a brisk walk on the dam, and came back to our car. The sky opened up soon and it started raining cats and dogs.

Manoj maneuvered the car through the heavy rain as we started our journey back. We had planned to stop at the Charida village. Here, artisans of the village are involved in the craft of making masks for the internationally acclaimed “Chhau” dance. They have converted the front part of their home that faces the main road into workshops cum shops to sells the masks.

Luckily for us, the intensity of the rain reduced by the time we reached Charida, and we visited some shops and purchased a few masks.

I had planned to enjoy the sunset from Mayur Pahar. The rain had stopped by the time we reached Mayur Pahar. But it was cloudy and the walk-able path toward the view point was very slushy. So we turned our car and came back to the lodge.

Day 3: The most exquisite Palash bloom on the way to Purulia

I woke up early in the morning, and went out for a walk. I inquired with Manoj the previous evening about nearby villages, and he suggested a couple of them.

Due to the rain the last night, the temperature reduced a couple of degrees and a cool breeze was blowing. At the gate of our lodge, I took a right turn and started my leisurely walk. After a couple of hundred meters, there is a bifurcation – the left one goes towards Sirkabad/ Purulia town and the right one towards Usuldungri Sunrise Point. I chose the right one.

After walking around 2-3 kilometers, I reached the tribal village of Kalapulia. The village consists of not more than 15-20 homes. I kept walking through the narrow village roads. The villagers, busy with their morning chores, greeted me with their simple smile. I roamed around for a while, inhaling the fresh air that I miss so much in the concrete jungles of the city. As I started walking back, I felt sad that we would have to leave such a serene place today and go back to the hustle-bustle of the city.

We checked out of our lodge around 11 AM and started our journey downhill. Once down in the plain land, as we moved towards Purulia from Sirkabad, we passed by arrays of Palash trees in their full bloom. During our stay in the Hilltop we didn’t find so many Palash trees as we found here on this highway. We stopped a few times and took photos of the Palash flowers.

Once in Purulia, I instructed Manoj to take us to the Saheb Bandh area. Saheb Bandh is a large waterbody that supplies water to the Purulia town. There are many hotels and residential houses around the place. Manoj took us around the circumference of the Saheb Bandh, and then dropped us in front of the Hotel Akash Sarovar, where we had our lunch. After that, we took a Toto to reach the Purulia Junction station to board the Rupasi Bangla Exp. at 3.35 PM.

Useful Information and Tips:

Review of CADC Complex and Malabika:

• The CADC complex is huge. You can roam around the organic farm, around the enclosures of swan, rabbit & chicken and also enjoy gossiping in the garden area and also have a leisurely swing.
• The AC Room which we booked in Malabika was huge enough to accommodate 3 ceiling fans, and the bathroom was big enough to accommodate a bath tub. But, the rooms clearly lack proper maintenance – the plaster of the rooms were peeling off, the bath tub was very dirty etc. The manager of the lodge and other stuff are helpful and friendly.
• The food was simple and tasty. But, you need to wait for long to get your food at the Dining room, especially in the peak season.
• The manager of the CADC lodge, Mr. Sujay Singha, is a very helpful person. You can contact him at: 80019-34058 if you have any query.

Details of the car and our driver:

Manoj Singh Sardar (Contact – +91-74782-69478) is polite and well behaved. He drives a Bolero, and I would definitely recommend him. The total cost of car, that includes the pickup from Barabhum, all the sight-seeing that I mentioned and drop-off at Purulia had cost us Rs. 5500.

Process of reservation of CADC Lodges:

• The Malabika Lodge is in high demand, especially during the peak season of Palash blooming and winter months.
• As of March 2019, there is no facility of online booking.
• The booking (offline) opens on the first working day of the month that is 2 months prior to the date of reservation.
• If you are planning to make a reservation for any of the peak seasons, make sure that you reach as early in the morning. I reached around 9 AM, and was 22^nd in the queue. And all the rooms for entire March were booked within a couple of hours.
• For the latest details, please refer to the official website of CADC: https://wbcadc.com/tourism/

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