Siddeshwar Village

Siddheshwar village is situated in the Rajura taluka of Chandrapur district, Maharashtra. Siddheshwar can be reached by road and rail. The nearest railway station is at Virur, about 10 km from the village.

The total population of the village is 300. The resident communities of the village are waddewars (stone-breakers), golkars (shepherds), adivasi gonds (agricultural labourers) and other so-called lower castes. They live in traditional mud houses built with grass and wood. The village has for generations protected a sacred grove covering an area of 3.5 sq km and located at a distance of 1.5 km from the village. The sacred grove is owned by a trust called the Siddheshwar Shivalaya Devasthan. The villagers, young and old alike, are staunch believers in the deity (Lord Shiva) residing in the grove.

The villagers are partially dependent on the grove for meeting their subsistence needs, although visually there does not appear to be any serious negative impact of this on the grove ecosystem. In 1995 they registered the trust to promote plantation and other educational activities in the area. They believe that the grove supports many medicinal plants and even the water from the grove has disease-and pest-control properties. They are hoping for greater support from local political parties and the administration for better management and protection of the grove.