Murguma

Murguma village in Purulia has been on our radar for quite sometime. In 2018, our first attempt did not succeed. But in 2019, we did. It was done in the last week of September with a friend of mine with whom I had travelled to Matha.

We started from Kolkata around 8 in the morning and soon joined the DGP expressway crossing the Nivedita Setu. Had breakfast at Azad Hind Dhaba. From there on it was a straight drive except for tea breaks to Murguma. It was raining most of the way and we got down at Asansol to purchase some refreshments. There are two (possibly more) approaches to reach Murguma:

• Take the road from Purulia towards Begunkodor and then onwards to Murguma.
• Reach Ajodhya Hills and then drive towards Murguma (another 20-25 kms IIRC)

We took the first route from Kolkata to Murguma and the second route while returning to Kolkata. The Purulia-Begunkodor-Murguma route is mostly good except the final 15-18 kms where it is narrow, broken and with lots of speed breakers. The beauty of the road compensates for its condition however. Paddy fields stretch as far as you can see and they end in hillocks of different shapes. The rain had reduced and one could even hear the wiper sometimes brushing against the wind shield. Begunkodor is a haunted railway station and has an interesting story associated with it.

When we reached Murguma it was around 4 in the evening and on hearing the route that we had taken the resort folks spoke about a third route which we could not really understand. Internet wasn't available but phones were working. We had selected the Bon Polashi Eco Hut for one night. There are only 5 rooms in the resort - but those are clean, hot water is available and food tastes excellent. What follows next is an account of the time that we spent at the resort.

On reaching tea was served to us. Next up we had a hot bath. The dark clouds hovered over the village but the sun shone through the clouds, albeit only slightly. A light yellowish spread of the sun rays that after sometime increased in intensity and then resulted in long shadows that had spread around. We were seated on a chair soaking in the scene. The blades of grasses were tipped with rain drops, the small pond had ripples created due to the wind and rain. And when everything was quiet, a sudden gust carried itself from far and lashed against us the roof tops and trees and the cottages.

As the sun went down and darkness took over we could hear the rain from a distance that finally announced its arrival with the pitter patter on the tin shedded roof over our head. And along with the symphony of the rain we ordered maggi then omelettes then pakodas and talked about our college days, remembering stupid incidents and laughing it off. Dinner was country chicken curry and chapattis and then we went for a stroll in the vicinity in the rain.

Returning back we went to sleep and next morning had breakfast in the open air restaurant. The rains had ceased by then and we left Murguma around 11 in the morning. But the road through Ajodhya Hills was so beautiful that we kept stopped after every 10 mins or so. The initial few switchbacks on the Ajodhya Hills ghat was taken in 2nd gear and then it flattenend into a plateau from where you could see the entire landscape. Thickly vegetated forests with trees whose branches and leaves that had grown wild and were brushing against the car sides. As we were driving slowly we encountered a peacock on the road side. I did take a photo of it but it wasnt that appealing and it vanished in a flash. Stating that the road was lonely would be an understatement. In the 20 odd kilometers that we covered from the base of Ajodhya Hill (Murguma side) to the signs of the first settlement we encountered only one car. The greenery around was of fresh leaves that had sprouted after the monsoonal rains and trees that had exploded wild and crazy.

As we got down from the other side of Ajodhya Hills, we saw kash flowers blooming in the river bed and road sides - all of which I have captured in the photos. Later we had lunch at Asansol and reached Kolkata around 9 in the evening.