Tourism in Rajnandgaon comprises of the discovery and the exploration of the numerous sites in Chattisgarh, India. In order to discover a tourist spot one needs to get acquainted with the history of the specific region as the past history of a place almost defines the current scenario and clouds the popularity sky of the tourist spot. The Rajnandgaon was originally called Nandgram. The Rajnandgaon state was ruled by Somvanshis, Kalchuris and Marathas. The contribution of Gajanan Madhav Muktibodh, Padumlal Punnalal Bakshi and Baldeo Prasad Mishra in the field of Hindi literature has a special mention. The city was also ruled by the Gond Rajas. The foundation of the city can be traced to a religious celibate, who descended from Punjab towards the end of the 18th century. Until 1879 it was ruled through succession and later the British Government identified the ruler as the hereditary chief of the place and the son was bestowed upon the title of Raj Bahadur.
Dongargarh
Dongargarh is the main tourist as well as pilgrimage site of the district that is known for its religious, architectural, archaeological or historical perspectives. Dongargarh is located at a distance of 40 kms from district headquarter Rajnandgaon and well connected with buses from Rajnandgaon. Dongargarh is also well connected with trains.
It`s on Mumbai - Howrah main line at a distance of 170 kms from Nagpur and 100 kms from Raipur. The nearest airport is at mana (Raipur), around 110 kms from Dongargarh. Blessed with majestic mountains and ponds, Dongargarh has been derived from two words: `Dongarh` meaning `mountains` and `garh` meaning `fort`. Tehsil headquarter, the city of Dongargarh is one of the most visited pilgrim centre of the state. A temple dedicated to Maa Bambleshwari is built on top a hill, at an altitude of 1600 feet.
Bambleshwari Temple
The Bambleshwari Temple is of great spiritual importance and a legend is associated with this shrine. This temple is also known as Badi Bambleshwari to her devotees. Another prominent shrine in the vicinity is Chhoti Bambleshwari Temple. Thousands of devotees flock the temples during various festival and other occasions. During the occasion of Navaratri or Dussehra and the day of Ramnavmi in the month of Chaitra, many devotees and tourists come to pay their obeisance and receive the blessings of the goddess of the temple. An annual festival is also organized during the festival of Navaratri in Dongargarh which remains quite popular among the tourists as well as the local people of the city. In this fair, the local people of the state find pleasure in buying different types of goods. Many companies and organisations display their products in the fair.
Apart from these temples the Shivji Temple and the temples dedicated to Lord Hanuman are also located here. The ropeway is an added attraction and is the only passenger ropeway that has been set up in Chhattisgarh.
