Nuakhai - Important festival of Kalahandi

The most important festival of western orissa,comprising the districts of sambalpur,Bolangir,Kalahandi,Sudergarh and some area of Phulbani is Nuakhai.
Generally it takesplace in the bright half of the month Bhadrab or Bhadraba on an auspicious day that is fixed by the astrologers. In the ex-state arears the date is fixed according to the instructions of the ruling chiefs.

Nuakhai is a festival and celebration of happiness. Preparations starts a fortnight prior to the day,most of the houses are cleaned,neatly plastered and decorated by the housewives.On this occasion peoples old and young wear new clothes,different types of local sweets and foods are cocked. All the family members are assembled together, after offering the new rice to the deity they all set together and take the new rice, along with different types of Manda-Pitha Khiri-Puri etc., After finishing the food they take the blessing of the Istha-Devi and from other elders of the family. In the evening it is habitual and obligatory to have meat, as it is believes that one who does not eat meat on the Nuakhai day, shall born as a heron in his future birth. What ever may be the fact it is a celebration of the mass. People forget their personal differences and greet each other in this point of view Nua-Khai is not just welcoming the new rice-paddy it is a festival which welcomes general happiness and mass development of the society. People may stay in far of lands, for there livelihood, but in the Nuakhai they must come to celebrate this festival with other members of the family with pageantry.

Thought the festival is intended for eating new rice of the year.It is observed as a general festival.Meeting friends and relatives,singing,dancing and merry-making are the parts of this festival.Onthis occasion the new rice is cooked with milk and sugar and then offered as Bhog to goddess Laxmi.Then the eldest member of the family distributes the same to other members.

Jhami Yatra - Lanjigarh

Lanjigarh:-

Lanjigarh is a village situated to south-east direction of Bhawanipatna, near the Kalahandi-Rayagada border.It is 65km from the district head quater Bhawanipatna by road.The 428ft. high summit of the Niyamgiri hlls situated just on the district border,overlooks a narrow valley to its north of which Lanjigarh forms the apex.Lanjigarh was the headquarters of Lanjigarh Zamindari under Kalahandi .

The village is surrounded by heavy forests and hills.The deity "Dokari" is greatly revered in the area.The local Jhami Yatra or Jhamu Yatra in the month Chaitra (March - April) is an occasion when thousands of people gather and witness the walking on burning charcoal by a number of devotees.This Yatra is so famous in that area and also Kalahandi-Rayagara district .Jhami Yatra a major draw attended by thousands of people from far and near. This festival going to 6-7days or around 1 week.

Beautifull Place:- GudaHandi

The Gudahandi hills are situated in the vicinity of Khaligarh, a tiny village close to the Koraput District boarder, about 17.6 km northeast of Ampani. Ampani is 77 K.Ms from Bhawanipatna on the road towards Nawarangpur. In the Gudahandi hills are some ancient caves bearing pictographic paintings of remote antiquity, Khaligarh is a very out of the way place, the 17.6 K.Ms of Ampani being car track parts of which pass through dense forest.

Three small hills, all of curved length, are together known as the Gudahandi hills.The North and the South hills join each other in the East leaving a courtyard like valley in between which is open towards the West. This valley is paved by a huge block of stone slopping down to the East. Just at the foot of these hills facing the valley are rows of caves. Excepting one in the North, all the caves are small in size. Although at places hewed to shape by human hand they generally appear to have been formed by nature itself in red slate stone. Pictographic paintings in Red and Black colours appear at the entrances of some of caves in the Southern row. These have not yet been thoroughly studied but it is generally surmised that they bear approximately to the picture scripts of the Indus Valley Civilisation. Besides Gudahandi in Kalahandi District, Bikramkhol and Ulapgarh in Sambalpur District and Naraj in Cuttack District also possess some writings resembling pictographic paintings.

A fact indicative of pre-historic man's habitation in Orissa. The third hill extending North to South stands like a way to the immediate West of the Valley. But as this hill does not join with the other two, the valley is approachable from the North as well as from the South by a narrow pass. All the three hills taken together have the appearance of a pot with a lid on. The name Gudahandi, meaning a pot, for molasses, may have its origin in the impression its shape apparently conveys. A rivulet named Behera flows past the village. There are remains of a very old dam across this revulet, local people call it the work of Bhima, the second of the Pandavas.

Many visitors are coming here every year to see the living beauty of nature of kalahandi,also it becomes one of the famous picnic spot for school children & also for alder peoples.peoples are glad to see the beauties of hills around this place and also to see the picture scripts of the Indus valley civilisation.The local peoples of this area believes that some years ago,Bhima(One of the brother of Pandavas)was came here & he made a small dam near that village which looking like a pot(Handi),thatswhy that place was named Gudahandi.