Till two months back, if you had mentioned the name Belum, I would have stared blankly. I was ignorant of the existence of these caves. Last month, while we were at Ahobilam, a friend suggested that we visit Belum caves and that it is well worth the drive to and from Ahobilam. (Ahobilam, a place of pilgrimage in Andhra Pradesh, is a forest in the hills of Eastern Ghats. There are nine shrines of Lord Narasimha in the hills and a tenth one in Lower Ahobilam).

 

After hearing the friend describe Belum caves, I jumped at the prospect of visiting the caves.

The drive to the caves was interesting because the rugged terrain is beautiful and ugly by turns--beautiful in places where man has left it untouched and ugly where the hills are ravaged by man greedy for whatever he can extract. 

On the way to Belum-- Chitravati river

beautiful (above) and ugly(below) by turns



Ravaged hills

On the way, I saw a board with the name Banganapalle--my mouth started watering when I saw the name!

 

When we reached Belum, I saw a giant statue of Buddha against the backdrop of hills. I was surprised to see flat land all around. I had not associated caves with flat lands, but that’s how it is here.

Someone told me that a man fell into a sinkhole* here along with his cart and bullocks, and that is how the villagers discovered the caves here. Actually, remnants of vessels belonging to pre-Buddhist era have been found here. The locals must have known about the cave system. However, its existence was officially recorded by one Robert Bruce Foote in 1884. In the 1980s, a team of Germans and Indians led by Daniel Gebauer explored the caves. Local leaders have taken pains to persuade the AP government into converting this place into a tourist attraction.

 

Belum caves are the second longest in India after Krem Um-Lawan in Meghalaya which is much longer than this cave system. However, these are part of the longest cave system in flat plains in India--more than 3 km. The village Belum is so called because bilam in Sanskrit means cave. One of the three sinkholes above the caves has been converted into the entrance. After buying entry tickets, accompanied by a guide, (guides are a must we were told) we climbed down a staircase into the caves. At the foot of the staircase, I looked up to see the sky. It was an eerie feeling—as though I had descended into a well and was looking up! Inside the caves, the A.P. government has made arrangements for soft lighting that makes the caves mysteriously beautiful. Blowers blow fresh air in through shafts. 

Stairway into Bhoomadevi's bosom!



The view of the sky from below

These are limestone caves and so you can see and touch and feel magnificent stalactites* and stalagmites*. In one chamber, stalactite and stalagmite meet to form a pillar. 

Stalactite and stalagmite meet to form a pillar

The guide led us carefully into several sections that have different names. Kotilingalu chamber is so called because of the stalactite formation that looks as if there are crores of lingams. The entrance to this chamber is called simhadwaram.

In the kotilingalu chamber

 

There is a meditation chamber or dhyana mandapa which is said to have been used by Buddhist and Jain monks. It is certainly a place far removed from civilization and conducive for meditation. But I could not help wondering how the monks climbed down into the caves in those days? More importantly, how did they come up?

There is a musical chamber (stalactites produce musical sounds when you rap them with your knuckles). It is called saptaswarala guha. Unfortunately, the guide forgot to tell us about this. I learnt about this later.

In one chamber, stalactite formations look like the aerial roots of a banyan tree. So this is called the banyan chamber or voodalamari.

Interesting formations

There are pits you can see in the ceiling as you look above.

As we were exploring chamber after chamber, we could hear the sound of water flowing.

The guide took us down a passage to show us a small stream called Patalganga that flows into the ground. After spending a while in the caves, I felt somewhat uneasy and wanted to stand under a shaft connected to a blower. Perhaps the feeling was psychological because all the while I could not forget that I was more than 20 meters below the surface of the earth.

I thoroughly enjoyed looking at the interesting stalactite formations. However, after spending nearly two hours in the caves, I must confess that I felt happy once I came up. I would recommend this place to people who do not suffer from claustrophobia!

 Muted lighting adds to the mystery and beauty of these caves

APTDC has made good arrangements for lighting and fresh air. The floors are paved although uneven. There are no bats, or at least I did not see any! You have to watch your step and also take care that you don’t hit your head against the ceiling in some parts of the caves! At times, you have to squeeze through narrow passages. But it is great fun!

 

I could not help wondering what these caves would have looked like long ago when monks and others entered it. There was neither any lighting, nor any air blowers back then. I am sure there were many bats and other creatures hiding in the caves in the past. Yet, this place had its visitors. The adventurous spirit of man had drawn him to the caves. He had been well rewarded of course. Nature has her way of delighting adventurous people with her artwork. 

 

Some info you may be interested in:

The caves are at a distance of 270 km from Bangalore.

Belum caves are at a distance 60 km from Nandyal, 120 Km from Kurnool and 320 km from Hyderabad in Andhra Pradesh.

The nearest big railway station is at Kurnool (Nandyal too has one—a smaller one) which is connected to all major cities in the south. You can hire a car at Kurnool. Alternatively, catch a bus from Kurnool to Banganapalle where you can change bus.

The entry fee to the caves is Rupees 25 per head.

Timings are between 10 am to 5 pm.

Guides are compulsory, you are not allowed on your own. You are allowed to explore the cave for a distance of about 1.5 km.

APTDC has a guest house in Belum, but only dorm accommodation is available it seems (We did not make any enquiries because we were not planning to stay there)

Kurnool offers better accommodation.

 

Sinkholes*: At places, rocks below the ground surface are made of limestone etc that can be dissolved by groundwater. The rocks dissolve and leave a cavity.

 

Stalactites*: Icicle shaped mass of calcium carbonate and other minerals that hangs from the ceiling of a cave

 

Stalagmites*: Same as above except that these grow from the ground upwards