Panch Mahals district General information

Panchmahal, also Panch Mahal, is a district in the western India, in the eastern portion of Gujarat state. Panch mahal means "five districts", and refers to the five districts that were transferred by the Sindhia Maharaja of Gwalior to the British. The district had a population of 2,025,277 of which 12.51% were urban as of 2001.

The district is located on eastern end of the state. It is bordered by Dahod district to the east, Kheda,Vadodara and Sabarkantha districts to the west, State of Rajasthan to the north and district of Vadodara to the south.


History

Panchmahal were conquered from the Mughal Empire by the Maratha leader Sindhia in the eighteenth century. The Sindhias became Maharajas of Gwalior, and after 1818 were forced to recognize British sovereignty. The Panch Mahals were transferred in 1861 by the Sindhias to British India, where they became a district in the northern division of Bombay Presidency.


Tourist Place

Godhra: There is a big tank in Godhra called Godharak (Godhra-haka) said to have been built during the period when Champaner was the capital of Gujarat. It is said that cows from Champaner used to come as far as Godhra for grazing. Hence the town is called Godhra. The objects of interest in the town are the Ramsagar lake and the fort to its north-east, Ramji Mandir and Kalka Mata temple both remnants of Scindia’s regime, the Swaminarayan temple, the Ankleshwar Mahadev temple, the Gokulnathji temple, the Jhakurkhan Ara Masjid, the Bohora Masjid, and the Old Methodist Church. Round about the Ankleshwar Mahadev, there are ruins of SasuVahui Vav and AtiPati-no Chotro. Godhra is the birth place of the famous saint Rang Avadhoot of Nareshwar and has, therefore, become a place of pilgrimage for the followers of the Datta Sampradaya. A fair is held at the Ankleshwar Mahadev temple on the Janmashtami day.

Malav: There is a well-known ashram known as Krupalu Ashram named after its Mahant Shri Krupalu Swami who is devoted to the yogic practices.

Pavagadh Hill: is a famous place of pilgrimage situated in the Halol taluka of the district. The gods send so large a hill that three quarter of it filled up the hollow and the rest standing out of the plains was called ‘Pavagadh’ the quarter hill. In old inscriptions, the name of the hill also appears as ‘Pavakgadh’ or ‘fire-hill’. The first historical reference to the Pavagadh is in the writings of Chand Barot of the eleventh century, who mentioned Ram Gaur, the Tuar, as lord of Pava. Pavagadh is well-known as the strongest hill fortress of the ancient Gujarat.

Kakachia: The ‘Triveni Sangam’ or the sacred confluence of three rivers, viz. The Mahi, the Panam and the Veri, Near the village, there is an ancient Shiv Temple.

Kadana: There is a memorial stone (Khambhi) which is believed to have been erected in memory of a marty who died in the revolt of 1857. Near the site of the dam, on the opposite bank of the river Mahi, there is the temple of Nadinath Mahadev in the hills where a fair known as the Math-Kotal fair is held from Maha Sud 14 to Maha Vad 1 February. In the nearby hills, there is a Bhamaresnvari cave. It is believed that the underground portion of the cave is about 80 kms. long under the hilly area.

Mota Hathidhara: The sculpture on the outer sides of the temple includes Shiv in tandava pose and Mahakali with emaciated limbs. Brahma, Vamanavatara, Narasinhavatara and other unidentified sculptures in the niches point out that the temple belongs to the period when the sculptures were not sumptuous, but were put up with great restraint. The broken image of Bhairava lying on the debris of the temple is decidedly post-Gupta. It can be dated as not later than 9th century A.D. A big fair is held here every year on Amali Agiarash, Falgun Sud 11.

Devgad Baria: A fair is held at Devgad Baria during Dassera festival every year. The old Kalika Mata temple is on the hill. There are also temples of Ranchhodji, Gokulnathji, Radha-Govind, Patalesh-war Mahadev, Garudeshwar Mahadev and the Sun temple.

Paroli: The place is a pilgrim centre for the Shwetambar Jains. There is a Jain temple dedicated to God Neminath, the 22nd tirthankar. To the right of this image there is a Shivling which is believed to be swayambhu or self-emeged. To its left there is an idol of Laxminarayan. On every full moon day, the Jains visit this place in large numbers.

Ghoghamba: There is a Vaijanath Mahadev temple where there is a swaymbhuling. It was constructed during the time of Patai Raval of Champaner. Near this temple, there are two other temples of Hanuman and Adya-Shakti Devi. There is also a samadhi of the Mul Purush who built this temple. It is believed that this is the place where Vishvamitra Rishi performed a sacrifice to send to heaven the king Trishanku with his mortal body. It is said that the ling is installed at the place where the sacrifice was performed by Vishvamitra. The ling seems, therefore, to be very old.