Karnataka - Shimoga   

Jog Falls presents a splendid view

By Our Special Correspondent

SHIMOGA, AUG. 6. <150>The world-famous Jog Falls in Shimoga district is back to its full grandeur following good rain in its catchment area for the past few days.

Tourists are streaming in for a view the waterfalls in all their majesty.

The Sharavathy, flowing over a rocky bed 227.50 metres wide, reaches a tremendous chasm 292.8 metres deep, creating the waterfalls. The water comes down in four distinct falls, presenting a spectacular view.

The Raja, the biggest of the four, pours in one unbroken column to a depth of 253.15 metres. The Raja of Sode, after whom this fall has been named, wanted to erect a shrine or mantapam on the spot.

The lines for the foundation of the shrine are visible on the stone just above the rock which projects over the chasm.

Half way down, the Roarer rushes down to meet the Raja. The Rocket waterfall shoots downwards in a series of jets. The Rani glides quietly over the mountainside in a sheet of foam.

The place is enveloped in dense fog during the monsoon for the greater part of the day.

If visitors are able to get a good view of the falls, they should consider themselves lucky.

But the varying effects of light and shade at different hours present a beautiful spectacle.

One is reminded of the lines of a century-old famous Kannada poem by Mooguru Basappa on the falls: "Manavanaagi huttida myale enen kandi, saayodarolage omme nodu Jogadagundi'' (What have you seen after being born as a human being, see at least once the Jog Falls before you die).

Earlier, the best season to visit the falls was from November to January. Now, the falls disappear during that period following the impounding of water in the Linganamakki Dam across the Sharavathy for power generation.

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