Gandhari khilla is a hill fort located near Bokkalagutta, in Mandamarri

Mandal A tehsil (, also known as tahsil, taluk, or taluka () is a local unit of administrative division in India and Pakistan. It is a subdistrict of the area within a district including the designated populated place that serves as its administrative c ...

Mancherial district Mancherial district is a district located in the northern region of the Indian state of Telangana. The district comprises 18 mandals and two revenue divisions – Mancherial and Bellampalle, Bellampalli. The district headquarters is located at M ...

in the south Indian state of

Telangana Telangana is a States and union territories of India, state in India situated in the Southern India, south-central part of the Indian subcontinent on the high Deccan Plateau. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, ele ...

. It is located on the sand rock hills. It is 270 kilometres (157 mi) north east of the state capital,

Hyderabad Hyderabad is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part of Southern India. With an average altitude of , much ...

. The fort was built within a thickly forested area which has a wealth of plant species which includes many medicinal herbs. The fort has not been fully excavated and is still partially covered by forest. Mahankali Jatara (quarry jatara) is conducted every year which attracts more than 10,000 people. Gandhari maisamma jatra is done in the temple on the fort of Gandhari for every 2 years and tribal people from Vindhya region i.e maharastra, Chattisghad on the other bankside joins it. The

Mancherial Mancherial is a city and headquarters of the Mancherial district of the Indian state of Telangana. It is both the district and administrative headquarters of Mancherial mandal in the Mancherial revenue division. It is located on the north banks ...

–

Chandrapur Chandrapur (earlier known as ''Chanda'', the official name until 1964) is a city and a municipal corporation in Chandrapur district, Maharashtra state, India. It is the district headquarters of Chandrapur district. Chandrapur is a fort city ...

Nagpur Nagpur (; ISO 15919, ISO: ''Nāgapura'') is the second capital and third-largest city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is called the heart of India because of its central geographical location. It is the largest and most populated city i ...

NH 363 passes close to the fort, which is 3 kilometres away from the Bokkalaguttta village.

Gandhari Gandhari (, ) is a prominent female character in the ancient Hindu epic ''Mahabharata''. She is the daughter of King List of characters in the Mahabharata#Subala, Subala, the ruler of Gandhara kingdom, Gandhara, and becomes the wife of Dhritar ...

Maisamma temple is located at the fort.

History

Temple built during the rule of Gond kings

View of a stone sculpture in Gandhari Khilla

The fort was built in the 12th century by the Gondu tribals with the help of the Kakatiya Kings of

Warangal Warangal () is a city in the Indian state of Telangana and the district headquarters of Warangal district. It is the second largest city in Telangana with a population of 811,844 per 2011 Census of India, and spreading over an . Warangal serv ...

. Archaeological work suggests that construction of the fort was begun early as the Rastrakuta era (prior to 1200 A.D.) and continued until the 16th century.

Herbal plants

The forest in the area of the Gandhari fort is an important source for medicinal plants. Large numbers of local medicinal people collect the plants and offer them for sale in nearby towns. Students also visit the area to identify these plants and make herbarium specimens. In view of this importance for medicinal plants, it has been suggested that the forest of the fort area be declared a Medicinal Plants Conservation Center. References

External links

Ghandhari Kota
; www.adivasialambana.com * {{Clear Adilabad district Archaeological sites in Telangana Forts in Telangana Hindu pilgrimage sites in India Indian architectural history