Keshkal (Chhattisgarh): While walking on the dusty paths in the remote forest area of Keshkal in Chhattisgarh, suddenly the sound of water falling from the spring will startle you and you will have some such natural scenes in front of you, most of which were out of reach of common people till some time ago. This ancient forest covered with Sal trees on the hills was once notorious for Naxalite activities and the tribals living in the villages of this region never imagined that these natural reservoirs would become centers of tourism and a means of livelihood for them.
About 170 km from Chhattisgarh’s capital Raipur, Keshkal falls in Kondagaon, one of the seven districts of the Bastar region which are badly affected by Left extremism. Local villager Deepak Netam told PTI-Bhasha, “Bastar is full of natural beauty. Generally people visit Chitrakote, the magnificent waterfall located in the adjacent Bastar district, which is called the Niagara of India, but other areas like Keshkal have not been explored from the point of view of tourism.
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Twenty-one-year-old Netam said that the initiative taken by the local administration last year by taking the local tribals along is now yielding results. Netam is a member of one such committee. He hails from Honhead village, 15 km from Keshkal where the sound of Kulkasa Falls can be heard from a great distance. Many tribals are seen in light green T-shirts. All of them are part of a locally formed tourism committee that has been entrusted with the management of the site. The administration has provided this dress to the committee.
Netam, who is pursuing his graduation in science, said that working on the waterfall does not hinder his studies. Honhead Deputy Sarpanch Atmaram Sori said the committee was constituted in September last year and this year in the last three months (September, October, November) it collected over Rs 33,000 as entry fee from visitors. He said the committee charges Rs 10 from adults and Rs 5 for children, which is used for repairing roads and creating parking space for vehicles. (agency)