Rajnandgaon is the primary town of Rajnandgaon District

Rajnandgaon District

Rajnandgaon District is a district of in the state of Chattisgarh in India. The administrative headquarters the district is Rajnandgaon town.-History:The district was carved out from the erstwhile Durg district on 26 January 1973...

, in the state of Chhattisgarh

Chhattisgarh

Chhattisgarh is a state in Central India, formed when the 16 Chhattisgarhi-speaking South-Eastern districts of Madhya Pradesh gained separate statehood on 1 November 2000....

, India

India

India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

. The population of the city is 143,727 (2001 census). It came into existence on 26th Jan' 1973, by way of division of district Durg

Durg

Durg is a city located in Chhattisgarh state, Central India. It is located just east of the Seonath River and is part of the Durg-Bhilai urban agglomeration. The city is an agricultural market and is heavily engaged in milling rice and pigeon peas. Durg gained importance as an industrial centre...

. The District headquarters of Rajnandgaon is on the Bombay - Howrah line of southeastern railways. The town is surrounded by ponds and rivers and is known for its small-scale industries and traders. Another name used for the city is Shanskardhani, representing the peacefulness of how the residents live together in religious harmony. National Highway 6 (Great Eastern Road) also passes through the town of Rajnandgaon. The nearest airport

Airport

An airport is a location where aircraft such as fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters, and blimps take off and land. Aircraft may be stored or maintained at an airport...

 to the District is at Mana(Raipur), about 80 km away.

Rajnandgaon experiences a boom with day tourists, owing to the clear air, town character with rich culture, high quality of life and history. The picturesque scenery, the majesty of nature, the slow pace of life, and the welcoming nature of its people also combine to make this region one of the most popular tourist attractions in India.

History

The Rajnandgaon was originally named Nandgram. The Rajnandgaon state was ruled by Somvanshis, Kalchuris and Marathas. The palaces in the town of Rajnandgaon reveal their own tale of the rulers, their society and culture, and the splendid traditions of those times.
Rajnandgaon is a major road and rail junction. The city was ruled by a dynasty of Hindu caretakers (mahants) and Gond rajas (chiefs). Succession was by adoption. Its foundation is traced to a religious celibate, who came from the Punjab towards the end of the 18th century. From the founder it passed through a succession of chosen disciples until 1879, when the British government recognized the ruler as an hereditary chief and afterwards conferred upon his son the title of Raja Bahadur. Founded in 1865. Rulers were...

Mahant Ghasi Das 1865/1883, married and had issue.

Raja Mahant Balram Das Bahadur - 1883/1897, born 1866, succeeded 4 November 1883 (#1), title of Raja Bahadur granted on 2 January 1893 as a personal distinction, died 1897.

Mahant Rajendra Das 1897/1912

Mahant Sarveshwar Das

The last ruler, [Ghasi Das], was recognized as a feudal chief by the British government in 1865 and was granted a sanad, or right of adoption. Later the British conferred the title of raja to the ruling mahant. One member of the Rajnandgaon royal family,Mr. Kamleshwar Das who was educated at the Rajkumar College,Raipur and Cambridge University, England served at the U.N.O. and was a prominent Human rights activist in 60's. Rajnandgaon was the capital of the former Raj Nandgaon princely state, which merged with Durg district in 1948.
Rajnandgaon is famous for its political leaders like Dr. Raman Singh

Raman Singh

Raman Singh is the current Chief Minister of Chhatisgarh, from the Bharatiya Janata Party. He has been chief minister since December 7, 2003.-Political career:Dr. Raman Singh holds a degree in Ayurvedic Medicine...

 of Chhattisgarh

Chhattisgarh

Chhattisgarh is a state in Central India, formed when the 16 Chhattisgarhi-speaking South-Eastern districts of Madhya Pradesh gained separate statehood on 1 November 2000....

, Shiverdra Bahadur Singh, Motilal Vora

Motilal Vora

Motilal Vora is a former chief minister of Madhya Pradesh and a former governor of Uttar Pradesh . He is a senior leader of Indian National Congress ....

, and Kishorilal Shukla.

Population

India census

Census

A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...

, Rajnandgaon had a population of 143,727. Males constitute 51% of the population and females 49%. Rajnandgaon has an average literacy rate of 73%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 80%, and female literacy is 65%. In Rajnandgaon, 13% of the population is under 6 years of age.
Now it has more than 3 lakh population.

Education

The rich cultural heritage of the district is highlighted with Indira Sangeet and Kala Vishwavidyalay at Khairagarh

Khairagarh

Khairagarh is a town and a nagar palika in Rajnandgaon District in the Indian state of Chhattisgarh. Administered by a nagar panchayat, Khairagarh city is facilitated by primary health centers, schools and a wide network of roads and railway tracks...

, a tehsil head quarter. The university has the distinction of being the only university in music and fine arts in India. The university offer various diploma, graduate and post graduate courses in vocal and instrumental music, dance forms, fine arts and folk dances. Many colleges offering courses in music and fine arts are affiliated to this university. Chhattisgarh's first private dental college is located here. For Engineering studies there is Chhattishgarh Institute of Technology, where courses in Computer science, Electronics and telecommunication, and Mechanical Engineering stream are offered. There is the Ashoka Institute of Technology and Management, where students can get engineering in Mechanical, Electronics and Telecommunications, Computer Science and Information Technology branch. Rajnandgaon also has an Ayurvedic

Ayurveda

Ayurveda or ayurvedic medicine is a system of traditional medicine native to India and a form of alternative medicine. In Sanskrit, words , meaning "longevity", and , meaning "knowledge" or "science". The earliest literature on Indian medical practice appeared during the Vedic period in India,...

 college. Other than these special fields, Rajnandgaon has many colleges for studies of Science, Arts, Commerce etc. One such renown college is Digvijay college. There are English medium schools here such as Yugantar Public School, Neeraj Public School, Gayatri Vidya mandir, Weidner Memorial Senior Secondary School

Weidner Memorial Senior Secondary School

Weidner Memorial Senior Secondary School is a school in the city of Rajnandgaon, Chhattisgarh, India. It was established in 1975 in memory of the late Monseigneur John Weidner SAC, Bishop of Raipur...

 and Weseleyan English Medium School

Weseleyan English Medium School

Wesleyan English Medium School is the first co-educational institution of high repute and Fame in Rajnandgaon and was established in 1974. Wesleyan is run and administered by a Minority Christian Society, Wesleyan Board of Christian Institution Reg. No. 22402...

 & a ICSE board school- Royal Kids Convent and highly acclaimed Sanskar City International school up to XII is being headed by an eminent educationist Sujit Kumar Jana.

Govt. Multipurpose Higher Secondary School (State School) is oldest school in Chhattisgarh. Which was established in 1886.

Digvijay College is in the historical building of the palace of the king of Nandgram, Mahant Raja Digvijay Das. The college was established in 1957: this is one of the oldest college in Chhattisgarh.

Tourist destinations

A tehsil headquarter, Dongargarh, is the main tourist as well as pilgrimage site of the district. The famous temple of Goddess Bamleshwari

Bambleshwari Temple

Bambleshwari Temple is at Dongargarh in Rajnandgaon district, Chhattisgarh, India. It is on a hilltop of 1600 feet. This temple is referred as Badi Bambleshwari. Another temple at ground level, the Chhotti Bambleshwari is situated about 1/2 km from the main temple complex...

, on a hilltop of 1600 feet (487.7 m) in the town of Dongargarh, is referred to as Badi Bamleshwari. Another temple, at ground level, is situated about 1/2 km from the main temple complex. This temple is referred to as Chhoti Bamleshwari. Many hundreds of thousands of people from, in and around Chattisgarh flock the shrine during the navratris of Kavar (during Dussera) and Chaitra (during Ramnavmi). During these navratris, melas (fairs) which run 24 hours, are organised in the premises of the temple.
Another site worth seeing of Rajnandgaon is the ancient place of Mata sheetala devi Shakti Peetha. This temple, which dates from 2200 Years ago, lies 1.5 km from the railway station.

Main Festivals

Diwali is perhaps the most well-celebrated festivals in the town, its known as the "festival of lights & crackers" for the honors of Goddess Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth. Ganesha Chaturthi is very aggressively celebrated with Lord Ganesha's idols installed on every corner, every street and every homes, with arrangements for lighting & flower-decoration. Similar to Mumbai Ganpati Visarjan is very Aggressively done in Rajnandgaon.

Places of interest in Rajnandgaon city

Sites in the city include the temples Gayatri Mandir, Sitla Mandir, and Barfaani Ashram, and Choupati near Ranisagar a Tank of 200 Acres.
Celebrations include "Mohara Mela" (a fair organized on the bank of the river Shivnath), "Bull Run" (a competition of running bulls in festival Pola), and the Mina Bazaar(organised only for a few months in a year) .
There is also a very famous shop - RATTAN FANCY STORES' which is has been in existence for more than sixty years.

Geography

Rajnandgaon is located at 21.10°N 81.03°E in Chhattishgarh. It has an average elevation of 307 . metres (1010 feet).

Dr.Sanjay Alung-Chhattisgarh ki Riyaste/Princely stastes aur Jamindariyaa (Vaibhav Prakashan, Raipur1, ISBN 81-89244-96-5)

Dr.Sanjay Alung-Chhattisgarh ki Janjaatiyaa/Tribes aur Jatiyaa/Castes (Mansi publication, Delhi6, ISBN 978-81-89559-32-8)

External links

• Official website of Rajnandgaon district