Road Conditions in Madhya Pradesh
Route.
We
had planned to take a road trip in our car, a Renault Duster, from NOIDA (UP) to over a number of
places in Madhya Pradesh in our 18 days trip from 21 Nov 2014 to 8 Dec 2014. We
covered almost the entire MP starting from NOIDA, Sagar, Vidisha, Sanchi,
Bhopal, Indore, Omkareshwar, Mandu, Maheshwar, Tawa reservoir, Panchmarhi, Narsinghpur,
Pench National Park, Kanha National Park, Jabalpur, Katni and back to NOIDA via
Sagar. It was a 3500 km long trip.
Noida
to sagar.
From NOIDA to Sagar it was a distance of about
655 Km. The road from Noida to greater Noida was via expressway and in the
morning mostly devoid of traffic except for a few trucks. The road is good but
watch out for trucks changing lanes and taxis from the service road which
appear unannounced. After Greater Noida to Agra it was via Yamuna expressway a
six lane express highway with a toll tag of Rs.320/=, which does not justify
the facilities provided, except for clean bathrooms after every toll barrier
and there are three of them. The negative point was no tree or shades in the
central divider thus in the night the headlights blind you, so avoid doing this
stretch in night. Keep on the center lane but keep a watch from vehicles
overtaking you from both sides. No fuel pumps so fill up before you enter the
expressway. There is one about halfway but you have to leave the highway and go
about 2 km
to the Petrol Pump and come back again. The biggest bottle neck is Agra which you have
to cross and with very few signboards to guide you in the city. Try crossing it
early morning or be prepared for hour and a half to cross Agra except on Sunday
and holidays when the traffic is less. Avoid Gwalior road sign near Taj Mahal as
it will lead you to a road with poles in between with just enough for a small
car. Agra to Gwalior is on NH 3 and it is a four lane highway with reasonably
good road but at places surface is not smooth and watch out for local traffic. You
almost have to crawl due to over bridge construction in Dholpur, as well as the
stretch near Chambal river where you have to take the old bridge with bad road
for about 5 Km.
Ten kilometers short of Gwalior is the
diversion to bypass Gwalior and it is best to take it as it takes you through
some institutional area and completely bypasses Gwalior. Avoid going through or
taking the NH 3 to town unless you have to. Road from Gwalior to Jhansi was the
worst stretch with road going through Dabra and Datia and you have to keep switching from left to
right to left again throughout the stretch. This stretch will take the maximum
time. Drive slowly and watch out for speed breakers near unfinished over
bridges, near town and villages. You bypass Jhansi by turning right before you
reach town towards Guna and go about 5 Km and then left to take the newly made
N-S corridor. It was a delight to drive from Jhansi to Sagar on this beautiful 205
Km stretch, excellent surface and beautiful surrounding with field and jungle.
You leave the highway near Sagar to do a 5 km bad stretch of road and then
drive into town. It took 10 hrs to do the entire stretch from Noida to Sagar at
a moderate speed of 90 Km/hr and with breaks for toilet and refueling. The
Duster behaved exceedingly well with an average of around 22 Km to a liter. We
reached without feeling tired due to excellent suspension and very little roll
or pitching. Avoid taking the NH- 3 from Gwalior to Bhopal as the road between
Shivpuri to Bhopal is presently not in a good condition and we were told to
avoid it and was the reason for us to go to Sagar first. Via Sagar is about 100
km long but then you do have to come back to Vidisha and the road is very good.
Sagar
to Bhopal.
The
Road from Sagar to Bhopal, 220 Km stretch, was via Gyraspur , Vidisha, Sanchi
and Bhopal, a state highway, rather
taking the taking the direct route which has toll, from Sagar to Bhopal via
Raisen. It was a two lane highway but very good surface and little traffic. We
diverted 10 Km to go and see the Rahatgarh Falls. A beautiful place in the hills and jungle,
which brought back old memories. Another stop at Gyraspur to see the remains of
ancient temples called Athakhambe and Chaukhambe and then to Vidisha to see the
Heliodorus pillar and finally to drive 10 km to see Udaygiri caves. This 10 km
is partly village and partly jungle road. Take the bypass road in Vidisha rather
than going through the city and avoid its traffic and a busy railway crossing. The
caves required a lot of walking but worth seeing. From there it was to Sanchi
via Vidisha again, as the direct road from the caves to Sanchi was not in a
good condition. Sanchi has the famous
Stupas and an important place of Buddhism. From Sanchi it was a straight run to
Bhopal. The road was good except for a few patches but a lot of traffic. We reached
Bhopal at about 1500 hrs.
Bhopal
to Bhimketa and Bhojpur
New
Bhopal is a lovely city with good roads, Lakes, parks and a lot of trees. The
Road from Bhopal to Bhimketa caves, about 40 Km away, which is inside Rattapani
national park is good except for the last 10 Km which is a forest road and you
had to pay Rs.100/= to enter the forest. Caves with their ancient paintings and
the forest with monkeys, langoors and the birds made it delightful. The newly opened Van Vihar national park in the city with a jungle safari was an excellent example of what can be done within the city limits by dedicated forest officials in MP. The road
to Bhimketa was a two lane but with lot of traffic and overtaking trucks was a challenge
due to oncoming traffic. Watch out for the sigh to turn right as it is just on
the turning and you miss it if you are not careful. Cross the main railway line
and you are in the forest and a 10 km drive on forest road takes you to the caves. From Bhimketa to Bhojpur the scenery was beautiful and the
massive shivling at Bhojpur made you feel small. The temple half- finished and
its plan etched on the stones nearby and the garden with the river nearby was
really worth visiting. Part of this road was under repair but manageable.
Bhopal
to Omkareshwar
The
road from Bhopal to Indore, 190 Km four lane state highway, was again very good with excellent surface and then at Dewas it meets the NH 3 to Mumbai. Dewas is by passed if one wishes
to and a slight diversion can take you to the Ujjain, the Shipra river and the
Mahakal temple, one of the twelve
jyotirlings in India. We were going to see another on the island of Omkarehwar
formed at the meeting point of Kaveri and Narmada river. It is an island shaped like OM
in which the shivling is situated. We had seen Ujjain and hence we pressed on
to Indore. The City is bypassed by the NH-3 and we took a slight diversion after
half way through the bypass to the town to meet
our daughter’s in laws based there and have lunch with them. Do not miss
the Gulab Jamuns ( Mawa Bati) enroute at
Sonkatch. The Dhaba is right on the highway out of the Town. After Indore you
turn left towards Khadwa for Omkareshwar, a distance of 90 Km. The road again
was a two lane state highway but very well maintained and good surface. It has
hill section with excellent forest, scenery and some very good picnic spots.
After crossing Narmada you turn left and go about 13 Km to reach Omkreshwar.
The road was a two lane road but reasonably good.
Omkareshwar
to Mandu and Maheshwar.
From
Omkareshwar to Mandu it was a run of about 145 km. From Omkareshwar we again
came back to Barwah on the Khadwa Indore road and then turned left to take the
road to Maheshwar and to Mandu. The road to Maheshwar was a state highway, two
lanes but with very good surface and low traffic density. You go upto Dhamnod
after Maheshwar to meet the NH-3 again. Take the under pass at NH-3 to proceed
straight rather than going on NH- 3 and then turning left at Milan Dhaba about
11 Km away from Dhamnod for Mandu. This narrow road after turning left at Milan Dhaba was good but too many
villages and too many speed breakers was a nightmare to drive. If you go
straight by underpass and travel another 15 Km on the road and then at the
village turn right to go to Mandu then the road is slightly wide with hardly
any villages and speed breakers. Near Mandu the road is not good. We took the
village road to come back to Maheshwar . Mandu to Maheshwar was about 57 Km.
Maheshwar
to Tawa Reservoir.
The
distance from Maheshwar to Tawa reservoir was about 347 km. We again came back
to Barwah from Maheshwar to take the state highway from Indore to Khandwa. It
was the same two lane state highway but good surface but the only negative
point was the drive through Khadwa after turning left from the state highway.
The road was under repair in the city with high traffic density and no
signboards showing Harda or Hoshangabad. The GPS was taking us through very
congested inner roads but a local person guided us to an over bridge and then
through reasonable open roads to out of Khandwa. The road from Khandwa to Harda
again was a state highway but very good surface but with lot of road blocks and
police checking due to local elections. Crossing Harda was tough with narrow
roads and no signboards till you are almost out of town, exercise care and drive
slowly and ask for directions. From Harda it was a straight run towards
Hoshangabad on the state highway, again a two lane good state highway. About 25
km short of Hoshangabad take the right turn for Itarasi and there is a signboard
showing it. You do not have to go to Hosangabad to come back to Itarasi. The
road is a single lane narrow road but with reasonably good surface for 30 Km to
reach Itarsi. You come out and join the state highway from Hoshangabad to Betul
after most of the town and very near Cantonment area. Turn right at Itarasi on
the Itarasi- Betul road (NH69) towards
Betul. The road is bad for about 7 Km with lot of potholes and heavy city
traffic. I was told that the stretch from Hosangabad to after Itarasi was bad
and is under repair. This was the first stretch in MP which we found bad and
reminded me of the state of roads in MP about 8 years back. After about 7 km
you are on ghat section with thick forest and you suddenly come across a road
going left with a signboard for Tawa town and reservoir. Take this forest road
to about 22 Km of thick forest to the banks of Tawa reservoir and a further 1
km takes you to Tawa resorts. The road is narrow but smooth and with very good
jungle view.
Tawa
to Pancmarhi.
Permission
was taken from the Tawa Dam authorities to cross over the dam and enter the
Satpura National Forest. The distance from Tawa to Panchmarhi is about 150 Km.We
were advised to drive slowly over the dam as it was under repair and also slowly
in the national forest stretch. The road was single lane forest road but with
good surface. The view was enchanting and we turned a corner and suddenly found
a Sambhar barring our way and questioning as to what we were doing in his
territory. The river and the forest view was simply superb and we drove slowly
just to enjoy the view and the wild animals. After about 15 Km we turned left
and towards the Hosangabad- Pipariya highway and meet it near Babai. A drive of
20 Km but the road was not good with potholes, bad patches and passed through
villages, so drive slowly and carefully. This was the first village road which
was not good. At Babai we turned right to go towards Pipariya and then to
Pancmarhi. On the way just two Km before Sohagpur there is a turning to the right to go to Madai, an official entry point and start of jungle safari to
Satpura National Forest. From Pipariya to Panchmarhi the state highway was two lanes
and with good surface till we turned right and left it for Panchmarhi. The road
now was typical hill road, good surface and some excellent view of the river.
Pachmarhi is inside the buffer zone of national forest; hence the old colonial
buildings are still there and the AEC center. A small quite hill station with
notorious monkeys who will go inside the car and take away anything that is
inside. So keep your vehicle always locked up with windows rolled up at all
times while in Pancmarhi. We had a strange encountered when a monkey almost got
through the legs of my wife to reach inside the car and was trying to take a
bag of oranges before we managed to shoo him away but he just kept sitting and
staring at us from a distance of 5 feet..
Panchmarhi
to Narsinghpur.
The
distance from Panchmarhi to Narsinghpur is about 176 Km. The road was the same
till Pipariya as it is one of the entry points for Panchmarhi from north. After
Pipariya we turned right towards Narsinghpur. The road again was two lane, which
by now we realized was the standard state highway in MP, but with good surface.
However on this route there were places where the road has small potholes and
surface had come out but still it was reasonably good. At Kareli we again
turned right on the N-S corridor to cover the rest 30 Km on it. Near Narsighpur
we turned right to the city to reach my wife’s ancestral place.
Narsingpur
to Pench.
Narsinghpur
to Pench National Park (Karamajhiri) is about 170 Km via Seoni and then to
Karmajhiri forest rest house. The road was the same N-S corridor which takes
one to Nagpur and further. We took this road to about 15 Km after Seoni and
then turned right to take the village road to the 30 Km drive on village road
and forest road to Karmajhiri forest rest house. The forest rest house in located just on the entry point with very good scenery and jungle view and reasonable rates. At night you may even hear tiger calls. It only has two to three safari jeeps so book early or you can get one from Tourani gate by paying extra. It is one of the entry points to
Pench National forest the other being 30 km down the N-S corridor and then turn
right at Khawasa to travel 13 Km on forest road to reach the Tourani gate. Last
10 Km of the Karmajhiri road was the forest road but was being done up. In MP you only pay the park fee on line and the safari and guide charges are extra and paid at the gate.
Pench
to Kanha.
From Karamjhiri to Kanha- Kisli forest rest
house was a 177 Km run. We took a slightly different road as advised by locals
and then the same village road for the rest of the trip to reach the N-S
corridor. This route had only 5 Km of forest road and was in a better
condition. The road up to Seoni was the same and at Seoni we took the bypass to
avoid Seoni city. The road was not so good but not bad either but was a let
down as compared to other state roads. If we had taken the regular route
through the city and then turned right then the road was said to be good but
with city traffic more time was needed. After 10 km we met the regular road
coming from the city. The road was the same two lane state highway and we made
good time till we reached Chiraidongi after driving 140 Km and left the state highway
and turned right to take the village and forest road for another 37 Km to the Kisli forest rest
house. The road was good and we made good time to the Khatia Gate, the official
entry point to the Kanha National forest. Our forest rest house was another 3
km inside the national park from the gate. We were advised to drive at 20 Km an
hour only on this road and the view with Cheetals and Sambhar grazing by the
side of the road was beautiful and worth the slow drive.
Kanha
to Jabalpur.
From
Kisli forest rest house to Jabalpur was a 165 Km run. It was the same 37 Km of village
road till Chiraidongi and then we turned right on the state highway to
Mandla. A 30 Km drive with good road. At Mandla we met the NH-12A coming from
Chattisgarh. The drive from Mandla to Jabalpur was through forest by the side
of the Bargi reservoir and the road was good. At places the view was simply
superb. There is a steamer service which one can take from Bargi to Madla and
then go to Kanha. It was a 100 Km drive from Madla to Jabalpur and only on
reaching Jabalpur we encountered traffic except for a village fair traffic
after Mandla. 10 Km short of Jabalpur there is a left turning for 20 km of
village road to drive to Bargi reservoir but we skipped it as it was getting
late and we wanted to reach the destination before dark. We thought that we will do
it tomorrow and take the 10 km drive from NH-7 after Bhedaghat but then the 10
Km route from NH-7 to Bargi was badly broken and we could not do Bargi
Resorvoir. The road from Jabalpur to Bhedaghat was again very good as well as
the portion of NH-7 which we encountered on our way back.
Jabalpur
to katni.
The
distance from Jabalpur to Katni was about 100 Km on NH-7. We took the Jabalpur
by pass to avoid the city traffic. The road was good but avoid entry and exit
from Jabalpur in the morning hours between 0800 to 1100 hrs and in the evening
between 1700 hrs to 1900 hrs as the road from Jablapur towards Sihora for
another 40 Km is choked with local traffic and driving in it was like driving
in the city itself. After 40 Km it was smooth sailing till Katni and we reached
there well in time.
Katni
to Sagar.
Katni to Sagar via Damoh is a straight run of
180 Km but we were advised not to take the direct road to Damoh as it was bad
but to go back for another 40 Km towards Jabalpur road to Sihora and then turn right
to take the village road for another 15 km and then meet the Jabalpur- Damoh
state highway. It was the second state highway which we found not to be good and
were told to avoid it. After Damoh we turned left to go to Sagar on the
Katni-Sagar state highway. The road was state highway and good. Incidentally
almost all the state highways in MP are two lanes with good surface but with toll.
The toll is minimal and one does not mind paying it.
Sagar
to NOIDA.
It
was the last leg of our journey. We started early in the morning at 0600 hrs to
reach NOIDA by 1630 hrs. Road condition has already been described in our
journey from NOIDA to Sagar. The only bad points we faced was near Jhansi- Gwalior stretch, near Dholpur and the
Agra city traffic with hardly any signs guiding you to Yamuna Expressway. There
are signs for Delhi but that will take you to NH-2 and to Delhi via Mathura,
Palwal and Faridabad, a bad stretch to drive due to heavy traffic and slow
progress at Mathura and Faridabad.
General
Road Conditions MP
All
the state highways in MP are two lane but with very good surface. They have
toll on all these state highways but the toll is minimal and you get good
driving comfort and also good mileage from your vehicle. The other state roads
and not state highways or the roads which lead to villages are mostly with good
surface but single lane and the road within the village is cemented. But be
careful of speed breakers on these roads while entering or leaving the village
and at some places there are more than two speed breakers. Some roads are under
repair while it is only 5 % of the roads that are not good. Overall driving in
MP is a pleasure and you enjoy the beautiful scenery and the forests. Eating
places are confined mostly to the cities or near cities and wash room
facilities are non- existent and confined to some of the petrol pumps. Carry
lot of fruits and eatables till you can find a decent eating place. On the way
you will be able to get lot of seasonal fruits being sold on the roads which
are locally produced. Carry a repair kit and a battery operated compressor if
you are using tubeless tyres. We carry as standard equipment a full tool kit, a
battery operated, jack, wheel nut opener and compressor along with our faithful
Swiss knife and a full medical box. Have a good GPS device with you but use it
cautiously within the city as it will take you through congested shortest route
rather than the long open roads. Do not hesitate to ask for directions within
the city frequently.