Places to Visit
Top Places to Visit in Arki
The historic Arki town, which was the capital of erstwhile princely state of Baghal, has many interesting places you can visit and explore. Here is our pick of the best places in Arki…
Arki Fort
More than 300-year-old, this majestic fort was built between 1695 and 1700 by Prithvi Singh, the ruler of Baghal state at that time. It’s built in a hill overlooking the Arki town with vertical slopes on the sides and front.
Inside the fort, there are three main structures including Diwan-khane, a beautiful building where Rajas would meet his guests. The fort is today taken care of by the descendants of the Baghal royal family, which had run part of it as a heritage hotel for some time. A great place to visit and explore royal history.
Lutru Mahadev temple
Another historic place, Lutru Mahadev temple is the most popular temple in the area primarily due to its cave. Perched on a hill, this temple was originally built in the 17th century but what you visit today is its expanded version.
Located around 4 kms from Arki town, a road straight upwards leads you to the Lutru Mahadev. Inside, after crossing a flight of stairs, you enter a well-lit cave with daylight entering from few small rooftop openings. We found the cave well-decorated also as were there a day before the Shivaratri.
The temple also provides an awesome view of the hills. A popular place thronged by visitors on Shivaratri.
Laxmi Narayan temple
This is another old and popular temple of Arki. It is believed that the idols in this temple were placed by Baghal state founder Ajai Dev, who had come from Ujjain in Madhya Pradesh. The temple is located at the end of the Arki bazaar. The idols of Laxmi Narayan are taken out of the temple in a palanquin on Dussehra every year as locals pray and move in a procession in the town.
There are some other temples also in the town including the Mutru Mahadev temple. Like the Lutru Mahadev, Mutru Mahadev temple too has a cave.
