Me Sahyadri April 2020

As the economic development has taken the center stage, the balance between the environmental sustenance and socio economic development will be under the scanner. As most experts with balanced views have proclaimed, Indian wildlife and ecological system sustenance will be under threat, unless precautions are taken with the help of appropriate research and long term national interests. As we encounter the economic development, many habitats which indirectly or directly help sustainable development will be damaged. The awareness to gauge the success by sustainable development and not by year to year growth is a distant dream any environmentalist will assume in current scenario.
Western ghats, or Sahyadri as we all call it as, is a treasure trove of spectacular landscapes, biodiversity, flora, fauna, some amazing geological wonders and man made monuments. With the increasing pressure from human encroachment, all these elements are under stress and in turn are under depletion. Western ghats should be left untouched by human beings, to protect their future generations from getting short of resources, such as water, energy and clean air. The important elements of western ghats, which need protection are highlighted in the new version of Photo journal, Me Sahyadri Magazine.

Kolakewadi Caves are located south of Kumbharli Ghat in the main ridge of western ghats. The Cave is located at the altitude of about 620 meter altitude above mean sea level. The level of base village Kolakewadi is about 120 meter above mean sea level. So from the village the caves are at about 500 meter higher elevation. The location of the caves is close to the ridge top (Ghatmatha). The caves are accessible only from the Konkan (Kolakewadi) and not from deccan plateau (Ghatmatha). The caves are located on the hill which is disconnected from the main ridge. There is no village at the top of the ridge in this area, and the area at the top is reserved and restricted as it is part of Koyna National Park. The nearest village on the ridge is Navaja which is at the border of national park. There are several valleys created in this area due to erosion of the main ridge. Kolakewadi Caves are located on the extension hill of the main ridge. Due to the close proximity to the ancient trade route connecting Karad region on the deccan plateau and Chiplun in Konkan region, the caves must have been used either to control the trade route or for some unknown religious activities. Vasishti creek at Chiplun must have served as important gateway for the overseas trade. The distance between Kolkewadi and Chiplun is about 25 km.

Though the caves are located close to the top of the ridge due to a cut in the ridge extension, there is no traceable route from the caves to the deccan plateau. This probabaly indicates that the hill with caves is isolated from top deccan plateau and was probabaly used as a fort or checkpost to monitor Kumbharli pass or nearby pass. However with context to road today, the cave is located at very remote location. The region witnesses heavy rainfall in Monsoon, making the caves almost non accessible in that time period. Also the rock is of very poor quality and is brittle. The caves are incomplete and seems to have been left abondoned. But architecturally the caves are different than the typical buddhist caves and it looks like these caves are secular caves probabaly carved to house and support the checkpost/fort on the trade route.

At Kolkewadi except couple of caves almost all the caves are located on the precipitous cliff and are not easily accessible. There are mainly three groups of caves here. One of the cave group (Cave # 1 to 16) is located on the north cliff face of the hill. The second group is located on the south cliff face of the hill. (Cave # 17 to 27). The other caves such as Cave # 28 and water cistern # 29 are located at the base of the cliff in hill top. In this photoessay the Cave # 1 to Cave # 9 from the North Face Group are described. There are some remains of ruins of old settlement and few hero stones at the top of the hill.

After climbing the gradual inclination of the Kolakewadi hill, one reaches a narrow ledge. Above this ledge there is a hill cap with vertical precipitous cliff on all of its sides. On this narrow approach at the base of the hill cap, there are three places where the path has been abruptly cut by small slots. These slots are of the width of the ledge and are about 0.8 to 1 meter deep. The visitor walking along the ledge has to climb down in to this slot and again climb up on the other side after crossing the slot which is about 2 to 3 meter in length. This may be an obstruction to any intruder. This indicates that the Cave complex is probabaly secular and belonged to some local king who wanted to defend the hill, from outsiders. These slots are numbered as Slot # 1 to Slot # 3.

Cave # 4 : After walking along the narrow ledge one reaches the base of the hill cap having precipitous cliff. After climbing the cap halfway, there is a narrow approach to the north face cliff. There are few steps, climbing down these steps, one reaches the narrow open space outside the cave (# 4). After climbing down the steps one can enter the cave which is at the level below the level of open space around. The cave is not exactly rectangular and has arbitrary shape. All the walls however are verticle. Wether the cave was used for dwelling or as water cistern is not clear. There is a likely hood that water must be getting accumulated in this cave in monsoon. The cave is about 4.35 meter wide, 4.1/1.4 meter in length and 2.6 meter in height.

Cave # 5 : Outside the cave # 4, there is a slot which opens in to the valley. This is probabaly prepared as a drain. Further to the east there is a open rock cut chamber (open to sky), with walls on 3 sides. This chamber covered by a wooden roof at the top must have been used for dwelling in the past. The open chamber is about 2.5 meter wide, 6 meter in depth and 2/3meter in height.

Cave # 6 : Further to the east the chain of the excavations continue. Beyond Cave # 5, there is a large cave/cistern most of which is not under rubble. At the entrance of the cave/cistern is completely under rubble. Through a narrow opening through this rublle, one can enter the cave chamber. Again here the level of the cave is below the surrounding area. This is probabaly a large water cistern. The ceiling of the cave cistern is carved in 2 steps (levels), indicating the urge to go to lower level for creating the final chamber. This chamber has two pillar stumps which can be seen hanging from the roof. There is a likely hood that water must be getting accumulated in this cave in monsoon. The cave is very large and is about 3.8/8.5 meter wide, 7.5 meter in length and 3.5/4.5 meter in height.

Water cisterns # 7, 8 : Further to the east the chain of the excavations continue. Beyond Cave # 6, there are two small open water cisterns. These water cisterns are filled with rubble and the exact depth of these water cisterns can not be ascertained.

Cave # 9 : Further to the east the chain of the excavations continue. Beyond Cave # 6, and water cisterns 7 and 8. There is a group of interconnected caves (# 9 to 12). The Cave $ 9, is the most important cave of all the caves at Kolakewadi, for the simple reason that it has some defined architecture and few traces of ornamentation. The cave has open space in front of which at the edge of the cliff. On right side in this open speace there is a Niche carved in the side wall. The cave has a mazenine floor. The mazenine floor also is completely rock cut. By climbing up the high step near the back wall one can reach the mezenine floor with great difficulty. There are socket marks indicating that there was a wooden way to reach the mazenine floor from this high step in the back wall. The façade of the mazenine floor is a wall, with two openings on either side. There are traces of ornamentation on this façade of mazenine floor. The ornamentation mainly consist of the array of deeply carved out, array of four petal flower design. The affiliation of this ornamentation needs to be studied. On the face of it the ornamentation looks like a typical mediveal ornamentation. The cave is large and is about 3.6 meter wide, 6.2 meter in length and 3,4.5 meter in height (including height of mazenine floor). There is an entrance to Cave (Open chamber # 12) on right side and the entrance to inner Cave # 10 after climbing up the high step wall in the back wall of the cave #9, through a narrow opening.

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