Dantewada (also known as Dantewara) is a town and a municipality, or
nagar palika
In India, a Municipal Council (also known as Municipality, Nagar Palika, or Nagar Palika Parishad) is an Urban Local Body that administers a city of population 100,000 or more. However, there are exceptions to that, as previously Nagar Palikas ...
. in the
Dantewada district
Dantewada District, also known as Dantewara District or Dakshin Bastar District (South Bastar District), is a district in the Indian state of Chhattisgarh. Dantewada is the district headquarters. The district is part of Bastar Division. Until 1 ...
in the state of
Chhattisgarh
Chhattisgarh (, ) is a landlocked state in Central India. It is the ninth largest state by area, and with a population of roughly 30 million, the seventeenth most populous. It borders seven states – Uttar Pradesh to the north, Madhya Prad ...
,
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area, the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...
.It is the administrative headquarters of
Dantewada District
Dantewada District, also known as Dantewara District or Dakshin Bastar District (South Bastar District), is a district in the Indian state of Chhattisgarh. Dantewada is the district headquarters. The district is part of Bastar Division. Until 1 ...
. It is the fourth largest city of Bastar division. The town is named after the goddess Danteshwari, the presiding deity of the
Danteshwari Temple
Danteshwari Temple is temple dedicated to Goddess Danteshwari, and is one of the 52 Shakti Peethas, shrines of Shakti, the divine feminine, spread across India. The temple built in the 14th century, is situated in Dantewada, a town situated 80&nb ...
located in the town, 80 km from the
Jagdalpur
Jagdalpur is a city in Bastar district in the Indian state of Chhattisgarh. Jagdalpur is the administrative headquarters of Bastar District and Bastar Division. It was earlier the capital of the former princely state of Bastar. It is the f ...
town. The goddess is worshipped as an incarnation of
Shakti
In Hinduism, especially Shaktism (a theological tradition of Hinduism), Shakti (Devanagari: शक्ति, IAST: Śakti; lit. "Energy, ability, strength, effort, power, capability") is the primordial cosmic energy, female in aspect, and r ...
and the temple is held to be one of the fifty-two sacred
Shakti Peethas
The Shakti Pitha or the Shakti Peethas ( sa, शक्ति पीठ, , ''seat of Shakti'') are significant shrines and pilgrimage destinations in Shaktism, the goddess-centric denomination in Hinduism. The shrines are dedicated to various fo ...
.Dantewada Town is well connected by broad gauge railway line from Visakhapatnam. The Nearest Big city to Dantewada is
Raipur
Raipur ( ) is the capital city of the Indian state of Chhattisgarh. Raipur is also the administrative headquarters of Raipur district and Raipur division, and the largest city of the state. It was a part of Madhya Pradesh before the state of Ch ...
and well connected with Bus services
Geography
Dantewada is located at . It has an average elevation of 351 meters (1154 feet). Dantewada city is situated on the river banks of Shakini and Dakini rivers.
Places of interest
Danteshwari temple
One of the Shaktipeethas of India, Maa Danteshwari temple is in Dantewada. The presiding deity of Dantewada is goddess Danteshwari. World-famous Bastar Dussehra which is also the longest festival of world, starts from Dantewada Shaktipeeth.
Dholkal Ganesha
Ganesha idol at a height of 3000 feet is amidst the lush green forests of Bailadila ranges. Path to the peak is full of beautiful sightings. Tourists are visiting Dholkal for real adventure.
Phoolpad waterfalls
Phoolpad waterfall is a waterfall with scenic ambience. Recently, District Administration Dantewada started river rappelling to boost tourism in the area.
Barsoor
Known as "the city of temples and lakes", Barsoor has a great historical significance. Grandeur architecture of the temples speak out the glorious history of Barsoor. Twin Ganesha idol, Mama Bhancha temple, Chandraditya temple and Battisha temple are some of them.
Saathdhara waterfalls
6 kilometers from Barsoor, there is a bridge which connects Abujhmarh with Barsoor. The bridge is on Indravati river and before it, there is a trek of around two kilometers to reach the waterfall. Indravati river streams are separated by seven sub-streams and flows through rocky terrain and forms Saathdhara waterfall.
Administrative divisions
Dantewada Tehsil is divided into thirty eight
gram panchayat
Gram Panchayat () is a basic village-governing institute in Indian villages. It is a democratic structure at the grass-roots level in India. It is a political institute, acting as cabinet of the village. The Gram Sabha work as the general bod ...
s, each one of which has jurisdiction over one or more villages.
Demographics
India
census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses inc ...
,
Dantewada had a population of 13,633. Males constituted 53% of the population and females 47%. Dantewada had an average literacy rate of 70%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy was 78% and, female literacy was 61%. In 2001 in Dantewada, 14% of the population was under 6 years of
Educational institutes
1- Government Danteshwari PG College Dantewada http://www.pgcollegedantewada.com
2. College of Agriculture, Chitalanka, Dantewada
3. Kendriya Vidyalaya, Chitalanka, Dantewada http://www.kvdantewada.com/home.php
4. Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya, Barsoor, Dantewada http://www.jnvbarsoor.in
5. Govt Model Higher Secondary School, Dantewada
6. NMDC Polytechnic College Dantewada http://nmdcdavpoly.in
Notable person
Mahendra Karma was a politician of Indian National Congress who was assassinated by Maoists in 2013.
References
{{Dantewada district
Cities and towns in Dantewada district