Travel
Ramtek: The place where Lord Rama took a stop during his exile

Ramtek is a city in the Nagpur district, Maharashtra. Legend has it that while in exile, Lord Rama took rest at Ramtek


Ramtek is an hour's drive from Nagpur city. Just when you reach Ramtek, you will see a grand entrance of the city


Ramtek was once ruled by Gond dynasty, after which, under the leadership of Raje Raghoji Bhonsle, the Bhonsle dynasty won it from the Gond rulers in the 18th century


When Raje Raghoji Bhonsle learnt about the legend of Lord Rama at Ramtek, he vowed that if he won the Battle of Deogarh Fort in Chhindwara, he would use all the treasure won in the battle to build a temple at Ramtek


After Raje Raghoji Bhonsle built the temple, to protect the Lord Rama temple from invaders, he built a huge fort around the temple premises


About 500 stairs lead the way to the entrance of the temple premises at Ramtek


Many devotees have donated money to build the stairs out of their love for Lord Ram. The stairs bear the names of these devotees as carvings


On the way to the entrance of the temple premises, one can see different vendors selling food items and pooja samagri


At the entrance, Krushna Rao Thanekar, a pundit, ties a Rakshasutra, a red thread considered to be sacred among Hindus on the wrist of the devotees


The temple premises consists of seven-eight different temples of Lord Rama, Goddess Sita, Lord Laxman, Lord Hanuman and Lord Rama's mother, Kaushalya


These temples are more than 300 years old


The Lord Rama temple at Ramtek. It is said that idols of Lord Rama and Goddess Sita at the temple were found at Surnadi (an erstwhile river at Ramtek)


Shri Lakshman Swami Temple at Ramtek. The idol at this temple was also found at Surnadi of Ramtek


The temple premises also consists of a water pool known as Sita Kund. It is said that the Queens of Bhonsle dynasty used to take bath in the pool, which they considered pure and sacred


Lord Hanuman's temple at Ramtek. Monkeys, who are known to be ardent devotees of Lord Hanuman, can be seen in heavy numbers all over the temple and fort premises


Another pundit at the temple, Dhanajay, says that Ramtek is home to more than 1000 monkeys


A monkey trying to snatch eatables from a local boy. The monkeys at Ramtek are often fed by the tourists; and when you don't feed them, beware, they snatch food!


MAKING A DEAL: It seems that the monkey and the dog have made a deal to share the food, the monkey has snatched from the tourists and locals


SHARING IS CARING: A goat and a monkey share popcorns given to them by a few tourists at Ramtek


Staying true to its mischievous nature, a monkey fiddles with a shopkeeper's stuff at Ramtek


IT'S MINE: A monkey possessively holds a coconut even as it tries to break it with its teeth


CHILLING OUT: A female monkey enjoys the good weather and relaxes with her child at the temple. They are sitting on an iron grill, which is on a height of at least 1000 feet from the ground level at Ramtek


YOU'RE SAFE WITH ME: A female monkey, fearing the height, protects its child


DIL CHAHTA HAI: This picture reminded us of the famous 'Dil Chahta Hai' pic of Aamir Khan, Saif Ali Khan and Akshaye Khanna at Fort Aguada, Goa. Much like them these monkeys seem to be great friends too!


LOOKING OUT: Monkeys sit on the fort wall to get a bird eye's view of the premises at Ramtek


On the temple premises, there's also a 'Vishnu Avtar Varah Mandir'. It is believed that if someone passes beneath the Varah's murti, it brings good luck to their life


Kalpana Nakode, a 67-year-old lady who sells pooja samagri, looks out to see if there are any monkeys around


Sanjay Dudhbarve sells kaccha chiwda on the road towards the temple at Ramtek


Many locals and shopkeepers keep and use slingshot to protect themselves and shoo away the monkeys


Just near the entrance of the temple premises after people are done climbing hundreds of stairs, Mohan Darode sits with his weight machine so that people can check their weight!


Apart from the Lord Rama Temple, Ramtek is also known for the ancient Jain temple, which consists of the various ancient statues of Jain Tirthankaras. The temple gained a lot of popularity after Digambar Jain Acharya, Acharya Vidyasagar, visited and staye


According to the 2011 census, the population of Ramtek is approximately 23,000. Former Prime Minister of India, P V Narsimha Rao, contested and won the 1984 and 1989 elections from Ramtek Lok Sabha constituency

Ramtek is a city in the Nagpur district of Maharashtra and is famous for the historic Lord Rama temple. It is said that Lord Rama rested in Ramtek for some days during his fourteen-year-old exile. Sage Agastya’s ashram was situated in the mountains of this holy land. During religious activities at the ashram, demons would often come and kill sages. When Lord Rama got to know about it, he got very disturbed and he vowed to eliminate the demons from the world. The word ‘Tek’ means ‘vow’ in local language and it’s at this place that Lord Rama took the vow – hence the name Ramtek. Nation Next takes you on a pictorial tour of the holy land.
Nagpur News
Dance enthusiasts, friends pay tribute in loving memory of Tiki Peters in Nagpur
Dance enthusiasts, friends and students came together and paid a heartfelt tribute in the loving memory of renowned western dance teacher late Benedict Peters fondly called as Tiki Peters. Moreover, the get-together also gave a chance to enthusiasts who wished to express their love for dance. The get together was held at Money Plant Terrace in Laxmi Nagar on March 13.
Hosts – businessman Dhananjay Sakharkar and Deputy Executive Editor at ABP Majha Sarita Kaushik – along with other guests, reminisced some memorable anecdotes of Tiki that lifted spirits of all as they went down the memory lane.
Fondly remembering Peters, Sarita Kaushik told Nation Next, “Tiki was a dear friend for whom Dhananjay and I arranged this small get-together. He was a gifted teacher who danced like no one else. His moves were fabulous; no body could teach better than him. He had a commendable sense of aesthetics when it came to dance. I’m glad his elder sister and brother are equally talented and will continue Tiki’s legacy of excellence.”
Dhananjay, who had known Peters for nearly four decades, said, “My association Tiki dates back to over 40 years. He taught us many dance forms including Jive, Salsa, Disco, Ballroom, Waltz, Cha Cha Cha. More than anything else, Tiki was an exceptional human being – with amazing sense of humour! When Tiki passed away, Sarita and I arranged a small party where we served everything that he loved – veg puff, macarons, cakes, soft drinks and of course music to dance! This was our small gesture for our dear friend who, I’m certain, was smiling from the heavens that evening!”
Tiki Peters, who was brought up in an Anglo-Indian culture – something that was predominant in city’s Mohan Nagar area, passed away in November last year.
Also read: Inside the famous ₹1.3 crore worth gift bag given to Oscar nominees this year…
Politics
Never thought I’d get such warmth, love after leaving Congress, says Ghulam Nabi Azad
Never thought I’d get such warmth, love after leaving Congress, says Ghulam Nabi Azad…

Ghulam Nabi Azad addressing public meeting at Banihal
Chairman of Democratic Progressive Azad Party (DPAP) and former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad said he never imagined he would receive such love and warmth after quitting the Congress party. Azad, on Saturday, remarked, “I had never thought that after leaving Congress, the people of Jammu and Kashmir would receive me with this kind of warmth and love.”
Azad said that after quitting the grand old party, more and more people were joining his new party; they have faith in him. He said, “It gives me more responsibilities and challenges to meet the expectations of people. People feel dejected and disappointed with the present governing system.”
Addressed a public meeting at Banihal- the place close to my heart. People especially youth seem desperate for change. My promise to you all, I will elevate Banihal as the centre of economic activities where you will not only have enough jobs but the development will speed up 1/2 pic.twitter.com/VG1fMywu4b
— Ghulam Nabi Azad (@ghulamnazad) March 21, 2023
Azad said he aimed to build a better and progressive Jammu Kashmir where the future of youth is secure. He said if his party came to power, he would bring the massive developmental revolution across the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir.
Azad also asserted that his politics was based on inclusiveness, development and peace. Speaking at the public meeting in Eidgah at Srinagar, Azad, said that unlike other parties who try to divide people for political benefit, he aimed to develop Jammu and Kashmir inclusively where each person irrespective of religion, caste and creed felt politically and socially empowered.
Addressed a gathering of workers at Anantnag today where DDC Chairman Anantnag Mohd Yousuf Gorsi sahib, DDC Member Adv Saleem Parray sahib, joined our party fold. I assure you all, will never let you down & will lead from the front to ensure your rights & future is safe & secure! pic.twitter.com/sqWo4nY6JA
— Ghulam Nabi Azad (@ghulamnazad) March 20, 2023
Azad concluded, “Be it statehood, land or jobs, I will lead my people from the front to secure their rights. My people are my priority. I have come back to Jammu Kashmir only for my people otherwise, I had all the opportunities I could desire ever in my life.”
Also read: Gadkari again receives death threat calls from same caller
Nagpur News
BREAKING: Gadkari again receives death threat calls from same caller

Nitin Gadkari
In a rather shocking incident amid the high security C20 conference in Nagpur, the Public Relations Office of Union Minister Nitin Gadkari again received two death threat calls today morning (March 21). According to the information received, once again there have been threatening calls received in the name of a criminal named Jayesh Pujari alias Jayesh Kantha.
Employees of the senior BJP leader’s office alerted Nagpur Police and security has been beefed up outside the office in Khamla and the leader’s residence on Wardha Road. However, cops are yet to ascertain whether the call was actually made by the same person who had issued death threats to Gadkari in January.
On January 14 this year, an unidentified extortionist, claiming to speak on behalf of underworld don Dawood Ibrahim, threatened to kill Gadkari in an explosion if he didn’t pay him ₹100 crore.
The caller threatened Gadkari though a phone call on the landline number of his Public Relations Office (PRO) at Khamla in Nagpur (around one kilometre away from his residence) at 11:25 am, 11:32 am, and 12:30 pm.
The employees of the office alerted the police after the threat call, where in the caller also threatened to blow up Gadkari’s office. Nagpur Police immediately beefed up the security outside Gadkari’s office and residence.
It was later revealed that a notorious gangster named Jayesh Pujari had threatened to kill Gadkari by allegedly making the three threat calls illegally using a cellphone while he was lodged in Belgaum Jail at Karnataka.
In 2016, Pujari had even escaped after breaking the jail. The gangster, in the past too, had threatened several senior officers and other people in a similar manner.
Also read: NMC spends ₹20 crore on lighting trees for C20 in Nagpur