We can describe the forest of Gadchiroli district as untouched by artificiality and sparse population. Even today, this forest is so dense that even when walking through this forest in the afternoon, we feel it is evening. The ground forts located here are so densely forested that one does not know whether to call them ground fort or forest fort. One such ground fort can be found in Korchi taluka on the border of Chhattisgarh district. Chhattisgarh border is just one kilometer away from Betkathi village at the base of this fort. Since this part of Vidarbha is sparsely populated, even private vehicles are not seen very much in this area, so seeing a public vehicle is also a rare thing. Therefore, one should use a private vehicle for both travel and safety while visiting the forts in this area, otherwise it is difficult to see even one fort in a day. Korchi taluka place is 100 km from Gadchiroli city, 115 km from Gondia and 125 km from Bhandara city. ... Jhaparagad fort is located in the central part of both Pandharigota and Betkathi villages and Pandharigota is 5 km from Korchi and Betkathi is 8 km away. Chhattisgarh border is 1 km away from Betkathi village. From Pandharigota village, going towards Betkathi village, there is a dirt road leading to the fort on the left side at a distance of about 2.5 km. Here there is a plaque saying Jai Gadmata, Killadham, and Jhaparagad Betkathi”. About half a kilometer into the forest on this rough road, the fort climb starts and we reach the fort in half an hour. The path is well paved as there is a local shrine on the fort and a pandit currently resides there. By this route we reach the top of the fort in about half an hour. The top of the fort was flattened by breaking the stone and this stone is used for ramparts. An eight feet high mace-bearing idol of Maruti carved in solid stone can be seen on this level. Since the top of the fort is tapering, the front part has been secured by building a rampart about 12-15 feet high in this area. This rampart is about 70-80 feet long and the door in this rampart has been destroyed with the passage of time. A new room for the pandit has been built adjacent to the rampart using the fallen stones used in construction of rampart and door. After crossing this rampart we reach the top of the fort inside the rampart. The tapering head of the fort is spread over about 24 acres in the south-southeast and is 1570 feet above sea level. A base of a building can be seen near the ramparts on the inner side of the fort. There is a path going down to the left of the ramparts and there is a water spring on this path but this spring flows only till December. Due to the dense forest on the other side of the plateau, it is not possible to go further, so it is not known what the exact water supply should be at the fort. When we went, we did not meet the pandit as he had gone out of the fort for work, but seeing two drums filled with water, there must be water on the fort, but we could not see that place. Except for the initial part, the top of the fort is not very walkable due to the bushes, so our tour is completed in 15 minutes and we start our way back. Since this fort in Vidarbha is unknown to most, the history of the fort is obscure, but seeing the influence of the Gond dynasty on this area, it seems that the fort was built by the Gond kings.
© Suresh Nimbalkar