Monolithic Nandi Statues in India

Nandi is the sacred bull and the Vahana(vehicle) of Lord Shiva. Nandi statue in seated posture facing the Lord are usually placed at the gateway of the main shrine, so that Nandi's intimate relationship with the Lord was made explicit. According to Hindu mythology, Nandi is the most loyal attendant and gate-keeper of Lord Shiva and it is considered as a symbol of valour, prosperity and blissfulness in Indian culture. Bull's religious significance can be found in artifacts of Indus valley civilization.

The worship of Shiva and Nandi can even be traced back to the Indus Valley Civilization time-period. The famous 'Pasupati Seal' depicts a seated figure, which is usually identified as Shiva, and there were many bull-seals found in Mohenjo daro and Harappa, which led to conclusion of the researchers, that Nandi worship has been a long standing tradition for many thousands of years.

Largest Monolithic Nandi in India - Lepakshi Nandi

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Republic Day Special Lalbagh Flower Show 2020

The Republic Day special Lalbagh Flower Show pays floral tribute to Swami Vivekananda. The Nation will be celebrating the 157th Birth Anniversary of Swami Vivekananda. Chief Minister of Karnataka, B.S. Yeddiyurappa inaugurated the 211th Lalbagh flower show on 17th January 2020. The Glasshouse at Lalbagh, which is the main center of flower show will have a floral replica of Swami Vivekananda Memorial of Kanyakumari.The glass house will also have a 19feet tall statue of Swami Vivekanands. Other Major attractions inside the Glass House will be a floral model of Memorial Hall of Chicago and Vivek Kuteera. A statue of Sri Ramakrishna Paramahansa (Vivekananda's Teacher) and Sarada Devi will also be put up in the Lalbagh Flower Show.

Stories related Swami Vivekanands are depicted using Sunflower inside the Glass House. 92 different varieties of flowers are brought from countries like Brazil, Thailand and Argentina for the flower show.

Lalbagh Flower Show 2020

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Lalbagh Flower Show 2019

Tribute to Jayachamarajendra Wadiyar at Lalbagh Flower Show 2019

The Independence Day special Flower Show at Lalbagh will pay tribute to Jayachamarajendra Wadiyar - The Last Ruler of the Wadiyar Dynasty. 

The Glass house at Lalbagh which is the main center of Flower Show will have a floral replica of Jayachamarajendra Circle of Mysuru. Visitors will be able to see the last rulers statue inside the Glass House. Floral replica of famous places in Mysuru, Raja Durbar of the Mysore Palace and musical instruments used by Jayachamarajendra Wadiyar is also recreated.

Lalbagh Flower Show 2019

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Cellular Jail Kalapani Jail in Portblair

Cellular Jail, Port Blair

Cellular Jail was a colonial prison in Andaman and Nicobar islands. Shri Moraji Desai then prime minister of India declared the Cellular Jail as a national monument on 11th February 1979. Cellular Jail was constructed to deal effectively with the freedom fighters who revolted against the British rule during India's first war of independence. A Light and sound show happens daily in the evening in Cellular Jail. 

This site being located just opposite to Ross Island, the Administrative Head Quarters of the British, was found more suitable for construction of the Jail. It was also better suited in terms of security of the jail, as more than half of the outer wall was bounded by sea

Cellular Jail, Port Blair

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Andaman Trip Plan 6 Days

Andaman Exploration

Our Andaman Travel Plan

Day 1:

We arrived at Veer Savarkar International Airport and we were greeted by our tour guide. Checked into the hotel and had breakfast. Later we visited the Cellular Jail. We need minimum 2 Hours to explore the Cellular Jail. It will be good to hire a guide for Rs:300.00 to know more about the history of Cellular Jail. In the afternoon our plan was to visit Ross Island. But since the sea was rough we couldn't go to Ross Island. We returned to our hotel and took rest for some time. Evening around 6.30 PM, we again went to Cellular Jail to watch the Light and Sound Show. The light and sound show is available in English and Hindi, but based on weekdays.

Radhanagar Beach

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UNESCO Heritage Sites of South India

UNESCO World Heritage Sites of South India

UNESCO World Heritage sites are important place of cultural or natural heritage. In 1982, International Council of Monuments and sites declared April 18th as the World Heritage Day. World Heritage Day is to raise awareness about Monuments and other sites which form a part of our history and culture.

World Heritage Sites of South India

1. Group of Monuments, Mahabalipuram

The Group of Monuments at Mahabalipuram was built by Pallava Kings in the 7th and 8th century. These monuments have been carved out of rock along the coromandel coast. Monuments at Mahabalipuram was inscribed under the UNESCO World Heritage list as cultural propery in 1984. The monuments includes Ratha Temple, Mandapas, 11 Cave sanctuaries, Arjuna's Penance

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Lalbagh Flower Show 2019

Tribute to Mahatma Gandhi at Lalbagh Flower Show 2019

The Republic Day special Flower Show at Lalbagh will pay tribute to Mahatma Gandhi - The Father of the Nation. The Nation will be celebrating the 150th Birth Anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi on October 2nd 2019.

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Veera Narayana Temple - Belavadi

Veera Narayana Temple of belavadi is one of the finest examples of trikuta Temple built by the Hoysala Empire. This temple is at a shorter distance from the famous Hoysala temples of Belur and Halebidu. The temples of Belur and Halebidu are known for its intricate sculptures, but this temple is known for its architecture. Vera Narayana Temple of Belavadi is one of the largest temple built by the Hoysala Kings.

Veeranarayana Temple Belavadi

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Gandikotta - The Grand Canyon of India

Gandikotta, known as The Grand Canyon of India is located near Jammalamadugu in Kadapa district of Andhra Pradesh in India. Gandikotta got its name due to the ‘gorge”, in Telugu called as gandi, formed between the Erramala range of hills and the river Pennar that flows at its foot.

Gandikotta Gorge

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Shettihalli Rosary Church - Hassan

Shettihalli Rosary Church, built by the French missionaries in 1860 is one of the best examples of Gothic Architecture. Shettihalli Church is located on the banks of Hemavathi River and is at a distance of 22km from Hassan. The church was abandoned after the construction of the Gorur Dam on the banks of Hemavathi River in 1960. Since then it has been a famous tourist spot for travel lovers to see the half submerged church during the monsoon.

Shettihalli Church, Hassan

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Bucheswara Temple - Koravagala

Bucheswara temple, located in Korvangala village of Hassan District in Karnataka is one of the finest example of 12th century Hoysala Architecture. Bucheswara temple is also spelt as Bucesvara or Bucheshvara. The temple was constructed in 1173 AD by a rich officer called Buci, to celebrate the coronation of the Hoysala King Veera Ballala II. This temple is protected as a monument of national importance by the Archeological Survey of India. Nearby to Bucheswara Temple, there are two more temples that are in ruins. From inscriptions it is evident that these temples were constructed by Buci's older broters Govinda and Naka and hence it is known as Govideswara and Nakeswara temple

Bucheswara Temple

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Panchalingeshwara Temple - Goivndanahalli

Panchalingeshwara Temple in Govindanahalli Taluk of Mandya district in Karnataka is a rare example of Panchakuta construction in Hoysala architecture. This temple was constructed by King Vira Someshwara in 1238 AD. The name “Panchalingeshwara” literally means “five linga”. This temple is protected as a monument of national importance by the Archeological Survey of India.

Panchalingeshwara Temple

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Bhoga Nandeeshwara Temple - Nandi Village

Bhoga Nandeeshwara Temple is a Hindu temple located in Nandi village at the base of Nandi Hills in Karnataka. This temple dedicated to lord Shiva is one of the oldest temples of Karnataka, dates back to the early 9th century. Bhoga Nandeeshwara Temple was constructed by the rulers of the Nolamba Dynasty and the Rashtrakuta Empire. The temple was later under the patronage of south Indian dynasties like Ganga Dynasty, Chola Dynasty, Hoysala Empire and the Vijayanagara Empire. This temple is now protected as a monument of national importance by the Archaeological Survey of India.

Bhoga Nandeeshwara Temple - Pushkarani

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Lakshminarayana Temple, Hosaholalu

Lakshminarayana Temple of Hosaholalu is a Hoysala Temple built by King Vira Someshwara in 1250CE. The temple is located at a distance of 2km from the taluk headquarters of Krishna Raja Pete in Mandya Districts of Karnataka state. There are many lesser known temples built under the Hoysala Empire between 11th and 14th century in Krishna Raja Pete. Lakshminarayana temple is one among the many unknown Hoysala temples.

Lakshminarayana Temple

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Madhugiri Fort Trekking, Tumkur

Madhugiri Hill or Madhugiri Betta is one of the largest monoliths with a height of 3930ft and is one of the adventurous trekking spot located at a distance of 105Km from Bangalore. The Madhugiri fort is said to be built around 1678 during the reign of Raja Hera Gowda. Madhugiri fort trekking is little technical and steeper than most of the treks around Bangalore.

Madhugiri Fort

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Shivaganga Trekking, Tumkur

Shivaganga is a small hillock located near Dabaspet in the Tumkur District of Karnataka in India. The hillock looks like a Shivalinga when seen from one of the sides and spring water found here is believed to be the sacred water from Ganga and hence the place got the name Shivaganga. Shivaganga is a place where trekking and religion comes together

Nandi Statue on top of Shivaganga

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Shravanabelagola

Shravanabelagola is a historical temple town and pilgrimage center located near to Channarayapatna of Hassan district of Karnataka in India. Shravanabelagola is famous for the Bahubali Statue which is supposed to be the tallest monolithic stone statue in the world with a height of 58 feet carved out of a single block of granite. The largest number of Digamber Jain Basadis in India is found at Shravanabelagola. Shravanabelagola is also famous for the largest number of rock inscriptions, concentrated at a single center.

Gomateshwara / Bahubali Statue at Shravanabelagola

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Panchakuta Basadi - Kambadahalli

Panchakuta Basadi is a Jain temple located in Kambadahalli village of Mandya district in Karnataka. It is 18km from the famous Jain Temple of Sravanabelagola. The name Kambadahalli means a village with pillar. Panchakuta Basadi and Shanthinatha Basadi are the two important temples in this village. This temple complex was built by the kings of Western Ganga dynasty in 900-1000CE. It is believed that there were 72 Jain temples in Kambadahalli village. The monument is protected by the Archeological Survey of India as a National Monument

Panchakuta Basadi, Kambadahalli

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Ranganathittu Bird Sanctuary

Ranganathittu Bird Sanctuary also known as Pakshi Kashi of Karnataka is a bird sanctuary in the Mandya District of Karnataka in India. It is the largest bird sanctuary in the state. The Sanctuary includes six islands on the banks of river Kaveri and was declared a bird sanctuary in 1940. Ranganathittu Bird Sanctuary is an important nesting and breeding ground for the thousands of bird species

Painted Stork, Ranganathittu Bird Sanctuary

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Rajiv Gandhi Memorial - Sriperumbudur

The Rajiv Gandhi Memorial is a memorial located in Sriperumbudur District of Tamilnadu state, to commemorate the death of former Indian Prime Minister, Rajiv Gandhi. The town was the place where Rajiv Gandhi was assassinated in a bomb blast in 1991. He was killed at this place by the LTTE using a human suicide bomber while campaigning for the local Loksabha candidate. Rajiv Gandhi is the former Prime Minister of India (1984 – 1989).

Tamil Nadu Government donated around 12.19 acres of land to build the memorial. The Central Public Works Department constructed the memorial at a cost of around INR21.15 crores.The construction of the memorial started in June 1994 and on 10th October, 2003, Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam, former Indian President, dedicated it to the nation.

A long view of Rajiv Gandhi Memorial

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