DEOGARH FALLS (Caves at)
21.533300,84.733300
Description
»Fantastic caves« formed in what KITTOE (1839b) regarded as »large masses of stalagmite« (probably rather travertine / calcareous tufa than speleothems) are found at the falls near a town of Deogarh (note 1) on the road (now National Highway NH6) from Sambalpur (note 2) to Keonjhar (note 3) and about 200 km in a direct line north-west of Cuttack (N20°30': E85°50'). KITTOE (1839b: 477-478) ventured to see the water falls (no name mentioned) near Deogarh because he was told that there were many »assura ka har« or giant's bones, a denomination generally applied to fossils: »I proceeded with all haste, expecting a fine harvest. It was becoming dark just as I reached the lowermost basin of the falls, in a beautiful woody recess, the rocks towering several hundred feet above. I never saw a more enchanting spot [sounds like karst], the mango [Hindi: am; Latin: Mangifera indica] and other trees growing to an incredible height. There are five falls [one above the other] and as many basins [gour pools?] formed by them; the height of each may be 70 or 80 feet [20 to 25 m]; the volume of water is considerable. I climbed to the second basin, and there waited till torches were procured to enable me to see the "giant bones," but lo! what was my disappointment when I found that these said bones were nothing more than large masses of stalactite in which were fantastic caves. The inhabitants make lime with it.« CULTURAL HISTORY - cave legend: »There are several fabulous stories connected with the spot, and a large serpent [keyword: cave snake legend] is said to inhabit one of the caverns, which is not however improbable.«
NOTE 1: Deogarh N21°32': E84°44' (nima.mil/geonames accessed 16.11.2003) on AMS sheet NF45-09, formerly in Bamra feudatory state (Bamra railway station, on AMS sheet NF45-05 at N22°03': E84°18' nima.mil/geonames, accessed 16.11.2003), now either in Dhenkanal district N20°45': E85°30' (nima.mil/geonames accessed 16.11.2003) on AMS sheet NF45-14; Kendujhar (Keonjhar, Keonjhargarh) district N21°30': E85°30' (nima.mil/geonames accessed 16.11.2003) on AMS sheet NF45-10; or or Sambalpur District N21°24': E83°53' (nima.mil/geonames accessed 16.11.2003) on AMS sheet NF44-12. NOTE 2: Sambalpur N21°27': E83°58' (nima.mil/geonames accessed 16.11.2003) on AMS sheet NF44-12. NOTE 3: Keonjhar (Kendujhar, Keonjhargarh) N21°38': E85°35' (nima.mil/geonames accessed 16.11.2003) on AMS sheet NF45-10.
Caves nearby
| Distance (km) | Name | Length (m) | Depth (m) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 96.4 | BIRAMITRAPUR HILL TOP CAVE | ||
| 100.0 | MATAMPA (Grottes de) | ||
| 100.0 | Gua | ||
| 102.1 | NOAMUNDI | ||
| 127.7 | BHIMKUND, Mayurbhanj | ||
| 150.4 | CHORDTALLA | ||
| 150.4 | Malmalpur Cave | ||
| 150.4 | SHITALPUR CAVE | ||
| 179.8 | ANJANA DEVI GUFA, Anjan, Anjana |