Maithon Dam
Maithon, derived its name from “माई का स्थान”(Mai ka Sthan), meaning the place for the Hindu Goddess Maa Kalyaneshwari Maa kaali. It is located on the banks of river Barakar.
The Maithon Dam is located about 48 kms from the Coal City of Dhanbad. On the Jharkhand West Bengal Border. The dam with an underground power station is one of its kinds in the whole of South East Asia. The lake on which it is built is spread over 65 square kilometers. This was developed by the Damodar Valley Corporation (DVC Ltd) way back in the year 1948. The Dam was built for flood control and power generation. It was founded by India's first prime minister Pt. Jawahar Lal Nehru.
The Maithon dam itself is located on a picturesque landscape amidst a beautiful lake and beautiful green forests. You could avail boating with friends and family on the lake. Apart from that you could even enjoy a walk in the beautiful green forests around the lake. Watching the sun rise and sunset, which you must not miss when you are in Maithon. If you are spiritual minded then you must also visit the ancient temple of Mother Goddess Kalyaneshwari.
Maithon also known as 'Kashmir of Koyalanchal' because of its location in the coal belt of india on the Barakar river is a very famous picnic and weekend destination. Maithon got its name from Mai-ka-sthan or maayer sthan which literally means mothers abode as there is an ancient kalyaneshwari temple here which was built by the king of Barakar in 16th century.
When to visit:-
April-June are the hottest Months in Maithon. The Maximum temperature often crosses 40 degrees Celsius. Also the Humidity from Dam reservoir makes the environment sweaty. So its best to avoid these months. Best time to visit maithon is October-February. The winters can be quite cold with the Minimum Temperature often dropping as low as 5 degree celsius. Monsoon is strong here and it lasts from July to September. Those who want to avoid peak season crowd can visit during monsoon to enjoy empty Green-Blue lake and open Dam Gates. The place gets crowded during the Christmas and new year eve, the condition there actually worsens during those days in terms of crowd and pollution as people practice cooking and other various activities all around the dam and forests too and there is actually no proper guidelines, penalties or anything for polluting there or may be guidelines exist but there's no one for maintenance.
Yes one more thing you can't stop your vehicle while crossing through the legendary Dam bridge for any reason.
How to reach:-
Maithon can be reached by train, bus or car, from Kolkata or Dhanbad.
By Train:- Kumardhubi(KMME) is the nearest railway station to maithon Dam. There are frequent Express trains to this station. The best train to reach kumardhubi from howrah or Dhanbad are Black-Diamond Exp & Coal-field Exp. The railway station is small in size and lacks infrastructure. Local auto generally charges Rs-100 from this railway station to dam. You can also get share autos from Kumardhubi to Kali Pahari in Maithon from where the Dam starts. One can also come to Dhanbad or Asansol railway station from any Part of the country and from there travel by road as both are equally near from Maithon.
Nearest Airport is Birsa munda airport, Ranchi around 200km from Maithon. Kumardubi has direct trains from Ranchi or you can hire a cab for onward journey.
Where to stay:-
There are many resorts and stays around the dam you can stay there, otherwise Dhanbad or Asansol are the nearest cities where you can get all kind of stays from cheapest to costlier resorts as per your choice and requirements.
What to eat:-
There are many dhabas and restaurants around the dam you can eat the food of choice there. Chaat, gol-gappa, Chhole bhature, Jhaal mudhi,kachori sabzi, jalebis,etc. are worth giving a try but stay attentive of the quality as some of them do serve stale food often during non peak season.
What to do:-
1.The best thing is to plan a picnic for the whole day with group of friends either on the riverside or in the forest, you can bring your own food or can cook there too but be a responsible citizen and dump the garbages at the specified places.
Overnight camping is not allowed there.
2. You can enjoy driving through the stretch road over the dam with a breathtaking breezy view on the both sides.
3. You can enjoy boating there, they generally cost Rs. 300-450 for a six seater boat or you can take high-speed boating ride they charge nearly Rs.500-600. Don't forget to give a tip of 20-50 Rs. to your boatman. The boat takes you to the island there and brings you back in around 30 minutes or 1 hour.
5. Worship at Kalyaneshwari temple. Offer garlands, peda and sindur to Maa.
What to buy:-
You can buy toys and handicrafts from footpaths.
Special and must to buy thing is Shakha pola bangles from kalyaneshwari temple. Shakha is set of conch shell the white bangle made of the well-made and cleaned conch shell. While polas are red colored bangles made of red corals. These are like blessings which married ladies of Hindu families wear.
Safety:-
Though maithon is a safe place, during New Year and tourist season, drunk tourists Can create havoc in the crowd.
Swimming in the lake is not advisable as there are many incidences of people being drowned and died very often.
In very near future Jharkhand tourism department is going to start a water sports complex there and also IIT Dhanbad(Indian school of mines "ISM") has decided to shift some part or a new campus to the Maithon. So a tremendous development and increase in tourist flux is expected in about next 5 years.
"Thank you!"
- Vivek Kumar
Also read: sathanur dam, vaigai dam