Bhubaneswar, Feb. 9: Keonjhar is well known for its rich mineral resources, but its backyard is full of lush green forests, hills, rivers, waterfalls, wildlife, tribal life and famous shrines that still remain unexplored.

Maa Gadachandi temple in Hatadihi block under Anandpur sub-division is a beautiful place, which is away from the hustle bustle of the urban life near a beautiful mountain stream. While historians relate the place to Jain monuments, archaeologists have also unearthed statues of Mahavir Jain near the place.

On the other hand, Buddhist historical remnants were also found at many places near Maa Gadachandi temple. Name of a village Baidakhia might have been originated from Buddha Akshya (tale of Buddha). However, lack of detailed research in the area perhaps is a major handicap in unveiling many interesting historical facts.

Resident of Ambagadia village Madhabananda Rout says: “The tourism department gave Maa Gadachandi a status of a tourist place in 1998, but no step was taken in order to carry out detailed excavation of any historical site here to explore more facts. Infrastructure development for the site is also not progressing adequately as planned.’’

A part of the Eastern Ghat range, the place is on the foothills of the famous Baula range and about 97 km away from Keonjhar town. While moving on the NH-215 from Bhubaneswar to Keonjhar one has to take the road to Hadagada Elephant Reserve from Anandpur and after moving about 10km from Chhenapadi square comes the Gadachandi shrine.

One can also take the NH-5 route from Bhadrak through Agarpada. From the western side of Agarpada on the Hadagada route one has to move about 10 km to reach Sadha Chhak. Towards the left from Sadha Chhak and after 3km journey one will reach the Gadachandi shrine.

The Gadachandi shrine is surrounded by many famous tourist destinations such as Hadagada Elephant Reserve, Hadagada dam, Baula mines and dense forest range on the north. Similarly, on the east there is Bidyadharpur barrage and Maa Chakariasuni shrine.

While in the west there is a beautiful shrine named Chakratirtha, an ‘ashram’ has come up with fruit bearing plants where visitors can pluck those of their choice and eat. The place is called Chakratirtha as there was a large wheel made of steel, which was severely damaged during the 1999 super cyclone.

The cooler atmosphere near the Gadachandi shrine is due to the dense forests and a beautiful stream that flows downstream. A visitor has to climb 50 steps to reach the shrine. Towards the middle of the hill one can find an ancient cave where Maa Gadachandi is worshipped. While round the year visitors go to the temple during Makar Sankranti and Durga Puja the shrine gets a new look with beautiful decorations to attract the devotees.

From the shrine inside the cave it is believed that the path goes further down behind the goddess’s seat. The unexplored path in the cave has now become a shelter place for the bats. One can go towards the top of the hill where, according to the local legend, the actual shrine of the Goddess was placed in the past. As the wild animals attacked the visitors the shrine was later shifted towards the middle of the hill.

Historians had said that there were traces of Jain and Buddhist history associated with Gadachandi. A place named Sailapur was a prominent place in Jain mythology, which was surrounded by mountains.

Perhaps both the Jain and Buddhist holy places were there near Sailapur, which is close to the Gadachandi shrine. It was a fort and the remnants of the ancient structure were also seen near the site. Three hills were surrounding the fort and there was only one opening as per the prevailing practice at that time as the hills were considered as part of the protecting mechanism for the fort-based settlements. Singh dynasty ruled the fort for many years.

A ruler of Bjanja dynasty from Keonjhar attacked the Singh rulers and the later was defeated, but to escape death, the Singh dynasty rulers fled the battleground. However, later some guerrilla attackers killed the king. The other members of the family were later shifted to nearby Agarpada. Former chief minister Harekrushna Mahatab was a descendant of the Singh dynasty. After the Singh dynasty shifted to Agarpada, the Bjanja rulers of Keonjhar took over the administration of Gadachandi shrine.

Ratnakar Pati, a local resident says, that the tourism department should take immediate steps to develop the locality as the Panthanivas’ has no facility for drinking water and food.