Geography of Maharashtra (Nighoj potholes)

श्री मळगंगा,निघोज रांजणखळगे

श्री मळगंगा प्रसन्न

माता मळगंगा, कुंडमाऊली, घागर ,निघोजचे जगप्रसिध्द रांजणखळगे

●►निघोजचे धार्मिक भौगोलिक अविष्कार !

अहमदनगर जिल्हयात पारनेर तालुक्यातील निघोज या गावामध्ये माता मळगंगा देवीचे वास्तव्य आहे. या देवीची एक मोठी महती आहे गावामध्ये मनाला आकर्षित कराव असं पुर्ण संगमरवरी दगडामधील मंदीराचे बांधकाम आहे. गावापासून फक्त २ कि.मी. अंतरावर १९९० च्या दरम्यान गिनीज बुक ऑफ वर्ल्ड रेकॉर्ड ने ज्या ठिकाणाला वेगळे स्थान म्हणून मानाचा दर्जा देऊन जागतिक पातळीवर नोंद घेतली ते ठिकाण म्हणजेच निघोजच्या कुकडी नदीवरील रांजणखळगे होय. या रांजणखळग्यांना स्थानिक भाषेत कुंड कुंडमाऊली असे म्हणतात.

●►निघोजचे जगप्रसिध्द रांजणखळगे

आशिया खंडातील सर्वात मोठे कुंड म्हणून या ठिकाणाची ख्याती आहे. कित्येक शतकापासून या कुंडामध्ये सतत पाणी असते. कितीही दुष्काळ पडला तरी पाण्याची पातळी कमी होत नाही. अतिशय सुंदर अशा कोरीव कामाप्रमाणे खडक या ठिकाणी पहावयास मिळतो. वर्षाच्या तिनही ऋतुमध्ये या ठिकाणी निसर्गाचे वेगवेगळे सौदर्य पहावयास मिळते.

पावसाळयात खळखळणार पाणी अती सुदंर धबधबे हिवाळयात थोडयाशा ठिकाणी खडकावर उगवणारी हिरवळ मनाला प्रफुल्लीत करते. उन्हाळयात कुंडातील पाण्याचा गारवा बहरलेल्या हिरव्यागार वृक्षांची उणिवच भासू देत नाही एक रम्य परिसर व आकर्षक पर्यटन स्थळांचे केद्र म्हणूनही या ठिकाणाला विशेष महत्व प्राप्त झालेले आहे. इंग्रजीत पॉट होल्स या नावाने ओळखले जाणारे हे रांजणखळगे अतिशय सुदंर व मनोवेधक असल्याने क्षणार्धात लक्ष वेधून घेतात.

●►निघोजचे धार्मिक व सांस्कृतिक संबंध

मळगंगा आणि रांजणखळगे यांचा धार्मिक व सांस्कृतिक बाबतीत जवळचा संबंध आहे. चैत्र महिन्यात मळगंगेची यात्रा भरते दोन दिवस चालर्णाया या यात्रेस पंचक्रोशीतील भाविक एकत्र येऊन देवीचा उत्सव साजरा करतात. उत्सवात पालखीची मिरवणुक यात ढोल लेझीम ताशा व शोभिवंत दारूकाम आणि तन मन धनान एकरूप झालेले भक्तगण सर्व समुदायाला भाराऊन टाकतो या मिरवणुकीत देवीची प्रतिमा व घागरीच्या दर्शनासाठी भाविकांची धडपड चालु असते शेवटी मिरवणुकीनंतर ही घागर बारवेत विसर्जीत केली जाते. कुंडावर देवीचे एक मंदीर आहे मग यात्रा उत्सव तिकडे साजरा होतो. यात्रेच्या निमित्तानं निघोजची आर्थिक उलाढाल कोटीच्या घरात होते. यात्रेत पंचक्रोशीतील नव्हे तर जिल्हयातील सर्वच लोकाच सहभाग असतो. त्यामुळेच निघोज मळगंगेच्या यात्रेचा नावलौकिक खुप दुरवर पोहचला आहे.

●►पर्यटन

रांजणखळगे निर्मिती असल्यामुळे व गिनीज बुक ऑफ वर्ल्ड रेकॉर्डने या ठिकाणाची नोंद घेतल्याने या ठिकाणाकडे अनेक पर्यटक आवर्जून येतात रांजणखळगे पाहून एक वेगळे समाधान मिळते. गावकरी मात्र कुंडमाऊली मळगंगा म्हणुनच या ठिकाणाकडे बघतात. भुगोल अभ्यासप्रेमी संशोधक महाविदयालयीन विदयार्थी यांच्या सहली येथे वारंवार येतात. शालेय अभ्यासक्रमाच्या भुगोल विषयात कुकडी नदीतील या खळग्यांचा खास उल्लेख असल्याने या ठिकाणाबाबत अनेकांच्या मनात उत्सुकता दिसून येते. पुणे विदयापीठातील भुगर्भशास्त्र भुगोलशास्त्र व पर्यटनशास्त्र पदव्युत्तर अभ्यासक्रमाचे विदयार्थ्यी प्राध्यापक संशोधक येथे अनेकदा येऊन जातात खुप मोठया प्रमाणावर छायाचित्रण केले जाते. निघोजच्या धार्मिकबाबींचे वर्णन रेखाटणारा नुकताच प्रदर्शित झालेला कुंडमाऊली मळगंगा हा चित्रपट होय.

असे हे निघोजचे धार्मिक व भौगोलिक अविष्कार खुप पहाण्यासारखे आहेत व ते पहावेतच ही संधी पर्यटकासाठी सोन्याचीच

|| श्री मळगंगा मातेची गर्जना ||

बोल मळुबाई छात्र की जय सदानंद की जय

बडी दौलत दादा मेहेरबान बोल मळुबाई छात्र की जय।

रांजणखळगे फोटो :

Nighoj potholes or how violent can a river get!

The river Kukdi carves its way through a rock bed of black and reddish basalt rocks. During the course of its flow, over the years, it has made some bizarre cuts and holes through the rocks. These are popularly known as the ‘Potholes of Nighoj’.

Just a few metres away, a rock bed was all we saw. There is absolutely no indication of what lies ahead. One might even wonder if they are at the right place!

As we moved closer, an alien-ish landscape unfolded. It was a visualisation of Kukdi’s wrath!!

Some of the potholes were big enough for an adult to fit in. We saw the whirlpool-like motion of the river water trapped in some of these potholes. Jumping from one rock to the other, going deeper down this rock bed, it was a fun-filled adventure, full of discovery.

A temple of the local deity Malganga is next to these potholes. The locals believe these potholes to be a blessing of Malganga.

Just 90 km from Pune, the Nighoj potholes can easily be visited as a day trip from Pune. For the more adventurous types, ST (State Transport) buses are available from Shirur, the biggest town close to Nighoj. They are infrequent at best, so it’s better to start early if taking the bus.

From the bus stop at Nighoj (indicated only by the road turning at the end of the village), the potholes are a 3 km walk through the farms. Ask anyone for directions to the kund. That’s what the locals of Nighoj – a friendly, simple farming community – call these potholes. They will be happy to guide you to the Nighoj potholes. Of course, only after giving you incredulous looks for having come all the way just to see the potholes.

We visited these potholes from Morachi Chincholi, where we stayed overnight.

While planning a trip to Nighoj, one has to bear in mind the lack of any tourist facilities like food, stay or toilets. But the place makes a lovely spot for a picnic. Especially in the winters.

After exploring the potholes, we devoured some freshly squeezed (and hygienic) sugarcane juice before heading back to Morachi Chincholi.

POTHOLES(KUNDA) AT NIGHOJ

KUNDA

MALGANGA MATA AT NIGHOJ

MANDIR

POTHOLES

MALGANGA

Nighoj Nighoj is famous for Malganga Temple and Pot Holes  in Kukadi River. The Nighoj Kund is much more famous for Pot Holes . The big pot like shapes made in rock at Nighoj. They are also called as Kund. Kund are the gigantic Potholes which are supposed to be the largest in Asia according geologists. Lot of People from all over world come to see this miracle of god. Most of the people from Nighoj are now working in Mumbai with the fisheries Business. There is one river nearby Nighoj called Pushpawati. Nighoj is situated in Parner Taluka(Ahmednagar,Maharashtra,India). Nighoj is 70 km From Pune and near the Shirur. The river Kukdi that flows by Nighoj village in Maharashtra has shaped up beautiful potholes in the riverbed that have fascinated geologists. The villagers, though, don’t understand what the fuss is about EVERY year on Janmashtami, Nighoj village indulges in a little ritual. Over six lakh devotees pour into Nighoj, a village 75 kilometres from Pune in Ahmednagar district, to witness a “miracle”. At the stroke of midnight, villagers claim, an earthen pot filled with water emerges from the main well in the village, the pot is put on display for three days and after a grand procession, it’s immersed into the well so that it rises again the next year. Everyone here vouches for the miracle, saying nobody dares question goddess Malganga. But the goddess herself would have seen bigger miracles—like the small gorges the river Kukdi, a tributary of the Bhima river, has formed over the years. The river, which flows by the village, takes a semi-circular turn less than 50 metres behind the temple, throwing up swirls and water currents that beat relentlessly against the hard basalt rockbed. The river has done this for countless years, giving rise to one of the most fascinating vignettes of geology in the Deccan plateau —beautiful rock formations and several potholes formed by the water flowing through the stone. The potholes—spread over three kilometres with an average depth of over 100 feet—give the basin the look of a canyon. “This is a geographical phenomenon where the pebbles that are carried by the river get locked in the cracks developed in the basalt rock riverbed. These pebbles, which rotate due to the water current, form pot shaped cavities in the basalt rock. This is what you see in Nighoj. The process is spread over thousands of years. The river Ghataprabha has formed similar potholes at Gokak in Karnataka,” says Tanuuja Marathe of the Department of Geology, Fergusson College. Faith, the villagers say, can move mountains, so what’s a river? They don’t think much of the potholes, saying goddess Malganga is above everything else. They say they don’t understand why geologists, foreign researchers and photographers who frequently visit their village head straight to the riverbed, rather than visit the temple. Last year, a team of researchers from National Geographic had visited Nighoj to study the potholes as well as to study the birds in the area. In 1997, Citizen magazine had reported about the potholes. But the villagers of Nighoj, primarily agriculturists who grow wheat, onion and sugarcane, are not impressed.

How to go:-

Nighoj is situated on Nagar-Pune Highway.

There are two ways-

1) Catch Nagar highway. Stop at Ranjangaon Ganpati. then take left from there. And Ask there about nighoj. Anyone can tell you.

2) Go to Shirur by Nagar highway. Cross the Shirur City. After the Ghodnadi Bridge take first left. Ride for 24 K.m. . You are now in Nighoj. Kunda_the Famous potholes are here. Enjoy.

You can locate Nighoj on Google Map. Search for Nighoj Potholes in Google Map. Here is link.

1]http://maps.google.co.in/maps?source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=nighoj&sll=18.512819,73.856964&sspn=0.322952,0.64064&ie=

UTF8&hq=nighoj&split=1&hnear=&ll=18.737305,74.227753&spn=0.645049,1.281281&z=10

2]http://www.maplandia.com/india/maharashtra/ahmadnagar/nighoj/ Right time to visit- In Rainy season River flows full of water so you cud not see the potholes.But you can enjoy beautiful nature. with Water Falls. so you can visit in any other season.

For More Info: https://www.facebook.com/NighojPotholes