Surajkund hot spring (also called Surya Kund) is a natural

hot spring A hot spring, hydrothermal spring, or geothermal spring is a spring produced by the emergence of geothermally heated groundwater onto the surface of the Earth. The groundwater is heated either by shallow bodies of magma (molten rock) or by c ...

in Belkapi

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 bo ...

Barkatha Barakatha (also spelled Barahkatha) is a village in the Barkatha CD block in the Barhi subdivision of the Hazaribagh district in the Indian state of Jharkhand. Geography Location Barkatha is located at . Surajkund hot spring is from Barkat ...

CD block In India, a Community development block (CD block) or simply Block is a sub-division of Tehsil, administratively earmarked for planning and development. The area is administered by a Block Development Officer (BDO), supported by several technic ...

in Barhi subdivision of

Hazaribagh district Hazaribagh district is one of the twenty-four districts of Jharkhand state, India and the district headquarter located in Hazaribagh town. It is currently a part of the Red Corridor. Etymology The district is named after its headquarters, the tow ...

in the

India India, officially the Republic of India ( Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the ...

state State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * '' Our ...

Jharkhand Jharkhand (; ; ) is a state in 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 and Odisha to the south. It has an area of . ...

Geography

Location

Surajkund is located at .

Area overview

Hazaribagh district is a

plateau In geology and physical geography, a plateau (; ; ), also called a high plain or a tableland, is an area of a highland consisting of flat terrain that is raised sharply above the surrounding area on at least one side. Often one or more sides ...

area and forests occupy around about 45% of the total area. It is a predominantly rural area with 92.34% of the population living in rural areas against 7.66% in the urban areas. There are many

census towns In India and some other countries, a census town is designated as a town that satisfies certain characteristics. India In India, a census town is one which is not statutorily notified and administered as a town, but nevertheless whose population ...

in the district, as can be seen in the map alongside. Agriculture is the main occupation of the people but with the extension of coal mines, particularly in the southern part of the district, employment in coal mines is increasing. However, it has to be borne in mind that modern mining operations are highly mechanised. Four operational areas of

Central Coalfields Central Coalfields Limited (CCL) is a subsidiary of Coal India Limited (CIL), an undertaking of the Government of India. CCL was established in 1956 as National Coal Development Corporation Limited and is a Category-I Mini Ratna company sin ...

are marked on the map. All these areas are spread across partly this district and partly the neighbouring districts. Note: The map alongside presents some of the notable locations in the district. All places marked in the map are linked in the larger full screen map. Urbanisation data calculated on the basis of census data for CD blocks and may vary a little against unpublished official data.

Hot spring

Surajkund has a hot water spring containing

sulfur Sulfur (or sulphur in British English) is a chemical element with the symbol S and atomic number 16. It is abundant, multivalent and nonmetallic. Under normal conditions, sulfur atoms form cyclic octatomic molecules with a chemical formul ...

that has healing properties. Tourism department of Jharkhand Government has planned to set up spas, saunas, massage parlours, restaurants and convention halls here, Surajkund hot spring is claimed to be the hottest

spring Spring(s) may refer to: Common uses * Spring (season), a season of the year * Spring (device), a mechanical device that stores energy * Spring (hydrology), a natural source of water * Spring (mathematics), a geometric surface in the shape of a h ...

in India. Surajkund hot spring has a surface temperature of and an average subsurface temperature of . According to recent assessment, India has a large potential of

geothermal energy Geothermal energy is the thermal energy in the Earth's crust which originates from the formation of the planet and from radioactive decay of materials in currently uncertain but possibly roughly equal proportions. The high temperature and pre ...

, which can be gainfully utilized for power generation; Jharkhand possesses a good share of these. Of the total recorded sites numbering 340 in India (assessed by Geothermal Education office - US), around 60 sites are in Jharkhand. Surajkund is among the most prospective sites. Other prospective sites in Jharkhand are: Tantolaya / Tantlol, in Santhal Paragana division, and Thatha / Konraha and Jarom in Palamu district. There are five ''kunds'' or springs, namely Surya Kund, Lakshman Kund, Brahm Kund, Ram Kund, and Sita Kund. These are located in one place with water varying from very hot to cool. A

Durga Durga ( sa, दुर्गा, ) is a major Hindu goddess, worshipped as a principal aspect of the mother goddess Mahadevi. She is associated with protection, strength, motherhood, destruction, and wars. Durga's legend centres around comb ...

temple has been constructed in more recent years.

Transport

Surajkund is from

Hazaribagh Hazaribagh is a city and a municipal corporation in Hazaribagh district in the Indian state of Jharkhand. It is the divisional headquarters of North Chotanagpur division. It is considered as a health resort and is also popular for Hazar ...

and from

NH 19 National Highway 19 (NH 19) is a national highway in India. It was previously referred to as Delhi–Kolkata Road and is one of the busiest national highways in India. After renumbering of national highways, Delhi to Agra route is now national ...

(old NH 2) (

Grand Trunk Road The Grand Trunk Road (formerly known as Uttarapath, Sarak-e-Azam, Shah Rah-e-Azam, Badshahi Sarak, 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 ...

References

External links

Hot springs of India Landforms of Jharkhand Tourist attractions in Jharkhand Hazaribagh district {{Jharkhand-geo-stub