Parasnath railway station, station code PNME, is on the

Asansol–Gaya section The Asansol–Gaya section is a railway line connecting and Gaya in India. This track is part of the Grand Chord, Howrah–Gaya–Delhi line and Howrah–Allahabad–Mumbai line. This section includes the NSC Bose Gomoh–Barkakana line. ...

of the

Grand Chord Grand Chord is part of the Howrah–Gaya–Delhi line and Howrah–Prayagraj–Mumbai line. It acts as a link between Sitarampur railway station, Sitarampur, (Asansol) (West Bengal) and Pt. Deen Dayal Upadhyay Junction (Uttar Pradesh), previous ...

and serves the town of Isri in

Giridih district Giridih district is one of the twenty-four districts of Jharkhand state, India, and Giridih is the administrative headquarters of this district. As of 2011 it is the third most populous district of Jharkhand (out of 24), after Ranchi and Dhanbad ...

in the Indian state of

Jharkhand Jharkhand (; ) is a States and union territories of India, state in East India, eastern India. The state shares its border with the states of West Bengal to the east, Chhattisgarh to the west, Uttar Pradesh to the northwest, Bihar to the north ...

. The Parasnath Hill or

Shikharji Shikharji (), also known as Sammet or Sammed Shikharji, is one of the holiest pilgrimage sites for Jains, in Giridih district, Jharkhand. It is located on Parasnath hill, the highest mountain in the state of Jharkhand. It is the most important ...

, located nearby, with a height of is the highest mountain in the state of Jharkhand.

Etymology

The word Parasnath comes from the 23rd

Tirthankara In Jainism, a ''Tirthankara'' (; ) is a saviour and supreme preacher of the ''Dharma (Jainism), dharma'' (righteous path). The word ''tirthankara'' signifies the founder of a ''Tirtha (Jainism), tirtha'', a fordable passage across ''Saṃsā ...

Jainism Jainism ( ), also known as Jain Dharma, is an Indian religions, Indian religion whose three main pillars are nonviolence (), asceticism (), and a rejection of all simplistic and one-sided views of truth and reality (). Jainism traces its s ...

, Parshva. Jains refer to the Parasnath Hill as

, and it is one of the two most prominent Jain pilgrimage centers, the other being

Shatrunjaya Shatrunjaya, also spelled Shetrunjaya ("place of victory against inner enemies") and originally known as Pundarikgiri, is a range of hills located near the city of Palitana in the Bhavnagar district of Gujarat, India. The hills are situated on ...

, in

Gujarat Gujarat () is a States of India, state along the Western India, western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the List of states and union territories ...

. According to Jain belief, twenty of the tirthankaras got moksha from Shikharji.

History

The

was opened in 1906.

Further extension

There are plans from the Railway ministry to connect Parasnath with via Madhuban, for the convenience of the Jain pilgrims visiting

. construction of which was sanctioned and the project included in the Union Budget 2018-19 at a cost of on a 50:50 cost sharing basis between the Government of Jharkhand and Indian Railways. The foundation stone for construction was laid in 2019. The 49-km long railway line will have two crossing stations and a couple of halts. During the financial year 2022–23, Indian Railways had allotted ₹50 Crores for the above project for early starting of the project. In a land acquisition application submitted to DLAO/Giridih by DyCE/Con/HZME office, ₹78.27 Crores were demanded for Raiyati land of 26 villages and payment for land acquisition is yet awaited for deposition of fund from Government of Jharkhand.

Electrification

The Gomoh–Koderma sector was electrified in 1961–62.

Shikharji

It is a holy place to visit with innumerable temples, shrines, and meditation halls amid natural scenery and wildlife. There are two recognized routes to Parasnath Hill. The summit of Parasnath Hill can be reached either from the southern or the northern side. The southern approach is from Isri Bazaar or , to the top. It is motorable for about , the rest being a climb of . The northern approach is a route from

Madhuban Madhuban is a small area of Jorhat City and is under Jorhat municipality Board, Assam, India. The only road that passes through Madhubon is the Madhuban Path. It connects two important roads of Jorhat; Malow Ali and Choladhara road. Madhuban is ...

on the Dumri-Giridih road. Madhuban is about from

Giridih Giridih is headquarters of the Giridih district of Jharkhand state, India. The city of Giridih is known for its industrial and health sectors, as well as its scenery. Giridih houses the Giridih Coalfield which is one of the oldest coalfields to ...

and about from Parasnath Rail Station/ Isri Bazaar/ Dumri, all on

Grand Trunk Road Grand Trunk Road (formerly known as Uttarapath, Sadak-e-Azam, Shah Rah-e-Azam, Badshahi Sadak, and Long Walk) is one of Asia's oldest and longest major roads. For at least 2,500 years it has linked Central Asia to the Indian subcontinent. It r ...

( NH 2). Buses ply along this route from Dumri to Giridih and stop at Madhuban village. Hired cars or taxis are available at Isri Bazar, just outside the rail station. There are several Jain temples at Madhuban. There is a metalled trek route of to the summit, a major part of which is motorable. Both the Shwetambaras and

Digambar ''Digambara'' (; "sky-clad") is one of the two major schools of Jainism, the other being ''Śvetāmbara'' (white-clad). The Sanskrit word ''Digambara'' means "sky-clad", referring to their traditional monastic practice of neither possessing n ...

as have established Dharamshalas or

Ashram An ashram (, ) is a spiritual hermitage or a monastery in Indian religions, not including Buddhism. Etymology The Sanskrit noun is a thematic nominal derivative from the root 'toil' (< Shikharji Shikharji (), also known as Sammet or Sammed Shikharji, is one of the holiest pilgrimage sites for Jains, in Giridih district, Jharkhand. It is located on Parasnath hill, the highest mountain in the state of Jharkhand. It is the most important ...

or Parasnath Hills

References

External links

Trains passing through Parasnath Station
* {{North Chotanagpur Division topics Railway stations in India opened in 1907 Railway stations in Giridih district Dhanbad railway division