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Shivpuri
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Sightseeing |
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Madhav National
Park |
 It is156 sq. km in area , the park is open throughout the
year .With a varied terrain of wooded hills the forests being dry mixed and
deciduous ,and flat grasslands
around the lake , it offers abundant opportunities for sighting a variety of
wildlife the predominant species that inhabits the park is the deer, of which
the most easily sighted are the graceful little
Chinkara ,the Indian Gazelle and the chital .Other species that
have their habitat in the park are nilgai, sambar, chausingha
or four horned antelope ,blackbuck, sloth bear , leopard and the ubiquitous common langur. The national park is equally rich in avifauna the
artificial lake, Chandpata, is winter home of mandatory geese, pochard, pinball,
tea, mallard and gadwall. A good site for bird -watching is where the
forest track crosses the wide rocky stream t hat flows from the Waste Weir
.Species that frequent this spot are red -wattled lapwing large -pied
wagtail ,pond heron and white-breasted kingfisher. The avifauna also includes
the cormorant, paint stork ,white ,purple sunbird ,paradise flycatcher and
golden oriole. |
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Chhatris |
 Set in
formal Mughal garden, with quiet nooks flowering tress, intersected by pathways
with ornamentals balustrades and illuminative by by Victoria lamps, is the complex in which the cenotaphs of the
Schindias are set. Facing for each other across a water tank are the chhatris of
Madho Rao Scindia . And the dowager queen Maharani Sakya Raje Scindia , synthesising the architecture idioms of
Hindu and Islamic styles with their shikhar type spires and Rajput and Mughal pavilions.
The glittering white marble surface of Madho Rao Scindia's
cenotaph is inlaid in the pietradura style ,with lapis lazuli and onyx to
create a spectacularly rich effect, heightened by the delicacy of the trellis
work on the sides. The dowager queen's cenotaph has a noble dignity of line and
superb of harmony. Both memorials contain life-size image of the Scindias and
these are tented to with extreme devotion by ceremonial-dressed retainers who
performed the rituals of placing, flowers and incense before the statues each
day. In the evenings, the hush is broken by the sound of music as artistes of
the Gwalior gharana render the classical ragas before the statues white. |
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Madhav Vilas Place |
| Standing upon a natural eminence, the elongated rose pink summer place of
Scindias is built in truly royal proportions .A fine example of colonial
architecture, the ‘Mahal’, as it is called, remarkable for is marble floors, iron columns, graceful terraces and the Ganpati
Mandap. From the Turrets, view is a spectacular one of Shivpuri town and the
park beyond. |
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George Castle |
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Deep within forests of park, on its highest point ,is the turreted George Castle
built by Jiyaji Rao Scindia. From here the view of the lake is unparalleled and the best time to visit the castle is at sunset when the lakes below
mirror the changing hues of the
evening sky .When word came to India, in the
days of the British Raj, that the King Emperor himself was due to visit the
sub-continent, one raja built an entire English castle, out in the jungle, for
the single night that George V would spend in his state. He imported English
tiles for the floors and stained glass for the windows. He brought in English
crockery, cutlery, napery, glassware and the best of European wines. And then, sadly, the King Emperor
didn’t come. Today the former hunting preserve has been converted into the
Madhav National Park. |
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Bhadaiya Kund |
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scenic picnic spot by natural spring . The water here is rich in minerals supposedly of a curative. |
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Sakhya Sagar Boat Club |
| Edging the
forests of the Madhav National Park is the Sakhya Sagar Lake, habitat of
variety of reptiles .Species that can be seen here are the marsh crocodiles or
mugger, Indian python and the monitor lizard . on the shores of the lake and
connected to it by a broad pier is a Boat Club, an airy, delicate structure
with glass panels. |
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