The town of Mukutmanipur is located in the district of Bankura in West Bengal at the confluence of rivers Kumari and Kangsabati. Mukutmanipur is near the Jharkhand border and this entire area acts as a popular touring region. Mukutmanipur has the second largest earthen dam the Kangsabati dam in India. . This dam was built in 1956, under the management of Dr. Bidhan Chandra Roy, the then Bengal Chief Minister, to enable irrigation facilities to arable land covering an area of 8,000 sq km. This place has now become a popular picnic spot.
The area in and around Mukutmanipur, has lot of sightseeing spots, like the Bangopalpur Reserve Forest, which is home to varied flora and fauna species. Other attractions include the palace of King Raicharan, the statue of Parasnath made of chlorite stone, Banpukuria Deer Park, Ambikanagar and Parasnath Hill.
Parasnath hill, which is a Jain pilgrimage centre, is the highest summit in this area. The hill is named after the 23rd Tirthankaras of the Jains and is the location of attainment of salvation of the 20 Jain Tirthankaras. This range of hills however, is under the Jharkhand’s Giridih District. There is a temple on the top of the hill of Lord Shiva.
Another Jain pilgrimage centre is the old town of Ambikanagar, where a few relics can be found close to a lake. This area is primarily famous for the handicraft of the native tribal population, who use grass and bamboo sticks to create novel things. Around 25 km away is the spot of Chhendapahar, where a training school and underground manufacturing factory of arms existed during the days of India’s war for freedom. Various arms had been supplied to the freedom fighters like Prafulla Chaki and Khudiram Bose from this factory.
