Forts of CG

Chaiturgarh Fort (Pali, Chhattisgarh, India)

Chaiturgarh or Lafagarh is a fort about 19 kilometres (12 mi) from Pali, Katghora tehsil, Korba district, Chhattisgarh, India, on the Korba–Bilaspur road. It is an Archaeological Survey of India protected monument. Chaiturgarh is one of the 36 forts of Chhattisgarh. Chaithurgarh is situated around 70 kilometres (43 mi) from Korba and 25 kilometres (16 mi) from Pali town.

Chaiturgarh (also known as Lafagarh) is situated at a height of 3,060 feet (930 m) on a hill top. It is protected by strong natural walls and is considered as one of the strongest natural forts. Since it is protected by strong natuaral walls, only at some places walls have been built. The fort has three main entrances which are named as Menaka, Humkara, and Simhadwar.

On the hilltop there is a plain area of about 5 square kilometres (1.9 sq mi) where there are five ponds. Three of these ponds have water all round the year. The hillocks of Chaiturgarh are famous for their natural beauty and the adventurous experiences it offers. Many types of wild animals and birds are found here.

The famous Mahishasur Mardini temple is situated here. The idol of Mahishasur Mardini having 12 hands is installed in the sanctum sanctorum. Shankar cave is situated 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) away from the temple. The cave which is like a tunnel is 25 feet (7.6 m) long. One can go inside the cave only by creeping since it is very small in diameter.

Ratanpur Fort (Bilaspur, Chhattisgarh, India)

Just adjacent to the Ratanpur bus stand are the remains of the Hathi Qila built by king Prithvideva. The fort is guarded on all four sides by gorges. It has four entrances - the Singh, Ganesh, Bhairav and Semar dvars.Near the entrance of the fort is a huge stone statue presumed to be that of the valiant king Gopal Rai, of which only the head and the feet remain. A little further down the road, one can see the Laxmi Narayan Temple which was built by the Maratha queen, Anandi Bai. It is next to the much older Jagannath Temple, built by Kalyan Rai that houses beautiful images of Jagannath, Balaram and Subhadra.

The west gate of the fort faces Motipur, where the twenty queens of Lakshman Rai are said to have performed sati. Recently, a hamam (bath complex) has been unearthed. Located close to both the Lakshmi Narayan and the Jagannath Temples, it is indicative of the ritual ablutions that were performed here by the royal family.

Kosagaigarh (Korba, Chhattisgarh, India)

The fort of Kosagaigarh, on the hills of Phutka Pahad, is on the outskirts of Korba. This old fort is camouflaged by dense vegetation. It can be accessed only through a tunnel, which in times of war was used for rolling rocks down on the enemy waiting at the other end.