Nanded - Holy Town of Maharashtra

My recent Indian tourist place was the holy town Nanded. It was the occasion of Lohri in January and the complete town was celebrating this harvest festival. Of course, reaching a special destination on a specific occasion is always memorable. I prefer this place to visit again because of the wonderful experience. Nanded City is one of the famous religious places of India under the Marathwada Division, Maharashtra state. It is the holy city having huge value for the Sikh religion in India. Sources say City is the landmark of Hazur Sahib Gurudwara. Hindu religion people are also having huge value for Nanded as the town is having big known Renuka Devi Shakti Peetha shrine located at Mahur street. River Godavari is flowing from the Nanded city, which is also a holy every flowing river of India.

Another The feature of the town is Nanded is the oldest city of Marathwada established close to Godavari River. As per history, the Nanda dynasty administered the region for long years between the 4th to 5th centuries BCE. In 272 to 231, BCE the city was under Maurya Empire Ashoka.

 

 

Earlier the city was recognized as Nandita during the ruling period of Andhra Barty's and Satavahanas It was the headquarters of the Telangana region during the ruling period of Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb. This Mughal ruler died in 1708 and then Guru Gobind Singh reached the city with spiritual values for the Sikh community. Guru Sri Gobind Singh Ji established the small area and Guru Granth Sahib in Nanded for the welfare of the Sikh community. Maharaja Ranjit Singh founded the world-famous Gurudwara Nanded Sahib Ji in 1835. You will be surprised by visiting the town as there are many historical Gurudwaras in the town. The best part is accommodation and transport in the town is very cheat.

This is known to the world that Gurudwara's are always open to travelers. If you have the plan to visit the town then no worries, just reach the town and you can have accommodation without any worries. My visit to the town was surprised by my family as my friends. We decided to go Nanded by car from Hyderabad which took around 6 hours to reach, though the route is wonderful and roads are clear particularly in Telangana state. We reached the gurudwara in the evening as we started late in the morning. The finest part is we got the AC room with all facilities in just 600 Rs. INR. There are many lodgings and hotels as well so you can book according to your convenience. 

I was lucky and got the room at Hazur Sahib Ji Gurudwara (also known as Sachkhand Gurudwara) is the biggest among all in the city. Wonderful experience in 24 hours as it was full of colorful nights with fountains. Another finest thing you can book the seat on the bus at Nanded that covers 11 historical gurudwaras in one day. It starts at 9 am from outside Hazur Sahib Ji and ends at 5 PM. Charges are 100 Rs. per seat which is again a lesser price office. This offer solves transportation and the guide problem so if you are in town then go for it. This Indian tourist place is worth your investment. The food problem is also solved as lunger (food served in Gurudwara) is available for 24 hours. It very tastes and hygienic so you are saving money and also getting prasad all time. 

 

Places to visit in Nanded:

Sachkhand Gurudwara: 

Nanded is the religious place of India popular for Sachkhand Gurudwara also known as Takhat Shri Hazur Abchalnagar Sahib. Sources say Guru Gobind Singh Ji took his last breath in Nanded. Maharaja Ranjit Singh did the construction of Gurudwara in Nanded in 1835. He ruled the Punjab city between 1830-1839 A.D. 

Lunger House Gurudwara: 

You must not miss this wonderful Gurudwara. Highly crowded on weekends and beautifully decorated with all holy values. You will feel the difference once you enter this guru ka dwar. Countless gurudwaras (Sikh temple) are located at distance in the town, though 11 of them are historical. Such gurudwaras played a vital role in the freedom fight of 1857 against the British government.

Mahur Gad: 

Another religious location is known, as Mahur Gad is available for voyagers, though the place is popular for Shaktipith in Maharashtra. Here voyagers must attain to Goddess Renuka Devi’s temple located on high hill area. Temple is placed at only a distance of 2.5 km distance from the small town Mahur.

Kandhar Dargah: 

A Dargah recognized as Haji Saravar Magadum Dargah is the next location for voyagers. Construction of Kandhar Dargah was done 750 years ago.

Malegaon Yatra: 

A small town located in Loha Taluka is the next tourist attraction in Nanded. Malegaon is popular for conducting the biggest fair to honor the Lord Khandoba. The name of the fair is Malegaon yatra and people from diverse cities are reaching Malegaon to attend this fair. The town is just 57 km away from Nanded City center. The specialty of the fair is the sale of animals such as horses, camels, asses, etc.

Masjid of Biloli:

 Hazrat Nawab Sarfaraz Khan Masjid is another place for travelers. People also recognize the place as Masjid of Biloli constructed 330 years ago. The Masjid was named after Sarfaraz Khan who was the officer in the Mughal army.

Vishnupuri Dam: 

River Godavari is flowing from Nanded City and the beautifully constructed dam on the river is the next tourist attraction. Vishnupuri Dam is the largest lift irrigation plant in Asia constructed close to Asarjan village, which is just 8 km away from Nanded. Surrounded area of Dam is properly managed by Nanded administration and countless beauty spots are available where travelers can spend their time. 

Kandhar Fort: 

The famous fort located in Kandhar Town is the next spot in Nanded. Fortis surrounded by a ditch filled with water. The ditch in the area was part of the safety of the fort. 

Sahastrakund Waterfall: 

Nature lovers can find the location Sahastrakund waterfall in Nanded. The good height of the fall on the Banganga River could be a diverse experience for voyagers. The finest feature to attain the place is water flows for the whole year at this place so voyagers can attain spot anytime. It is the seasonal waterfall so visiting the place in the summer season would not be a good idea.

There are many other places for voyagers in Nanded like Hottal Temple,   Ankleshwar Hot Springs etc. However, numerous other tourist attractions are surrounding Nanded City like Aundha Nagnath, Parli Vaijanath, Bidar Gurudwara, Basar Temple, and Narsi Namdev. These all places are unique and having plenty of beauty spots with greenery.

How to reach Nanded?

By Air: domestic airport of Nanded is available, which is also recognized as SGGS (Shri Guru Gobind Singh Ji) Airport. Flights from Mumbai, Trivandrum, Nagpur  , and New Delhi is available at a good quantity to reach Nanded. The biggest international airport close to Nanded is Hyderabad located at only a distance of 284 km.

By Rail: Nanded railway station is properly connected to major cities of India as many link trains are crossing the city from various parts of the nation. Trains entering Maharashtra are touching the Nanded city. Direct trains from Mumbai, New Delhi, Hyderabad, Amritsar, Pune, Aurangabad, Bangalore, Visakhapatnam, Nagpur, Kolkata, Patna, Tirupati, Sambalpur, Ajmer, Rameshwaram, Sri Ganganagar and Thiruvananthapuram are available for Nanded City.

By Road: reaching Nanded by road is also possible through travelers to have to cross the distance of 651 km from Mumbai to attain the city. NH 222, about a five-hour drive from Aurangabad and an eleven-hour drive from Pune. Several passenger bus services operate from Nanded providing overnight service to most major cities in Maharashtra. In 2009, NHAI has announced the extension of existing NH 204 National Highway 204 which passes through Nanded city which connects Kolhapur-Solapur-Latur-Nanded-Yavatmal-Wardha to the NH 7 near Nagpur.