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| Rajagiri |
Six months after my first visit to
Gingee (Krishnagiri), had an opportunity to trek again at one of the Gingee Fort (Rajagiri). While the Krishnagiri was easier to trek (took about 30 to 40 minutes), Rajagiri posed bigger challenge (One and hour hour to reach the top).
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Kalyana Mahal
(Marriage Hall)
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| One of the Massive Grain Storage Room |
At the foot of the hillock, we spend an hour looking at the Kalyana Mahal (Marriage Hall), the rows of enclosure for the royal staff, a massive tank called Elephants' tank, King's Audience Hall, Grains Storage, the Mosque and Magazine. The Audience Hall has a square area marked by a high and ornate platform with bold traditional temple-type moldings and a massive stone backrest. The Mosque located at the entrance of the inner fort of Rajagiri was erected by Sad-at-Ullah Khan to commemorate his victory over De Singh and the capture of the fort in 1713 AD.
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| King's Audience Hall |
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| Staircase (made out of Stones) leading to Audience Hall |
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| Temple at the Foothill |
Next, we passed through an uneven flight of steps along the rocky hill track to the top in 90 minutes. Atop is granary, magazine, cannon and a beautiful temple.
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| Ranganathar Temple at the Top |
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| Cannon at the Top |
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| Granary at the Top |
We offered our prayers at the shrine for Kamalakkanai Amman, the guardian goddesses of the place before moving down in 45 minutes.
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| At the Top of Rajagiri |
General Instruction to the Visitor:
- Government charges an entrance fee of Rs. 5 for Citizens of India (free for children under age of 15) and $2 for people from other countries.
- Approximate duration for Rajagiri trek is 4 hours.
- Rajagiri remains open from 9.00 A.M to 5.00 P.M.
- Gingee is on the highway (National Highway 66) which connects Thiruvannamali and Chennai, and hardly takes 3 hours to reach from Chennai.
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| Beautiful Scene near Rajagiri |
