Giridih travel guide

Giridih, India

By the Travel Wiki editorial team

Giridih

Introduction

Giridih is the headquarters of the Giridih district in Jharkhand, India, and a place shaped as much by industry as by its surroundings. The city is known for its industrial and health sectors as well as its scenery, and it houses the Giridih Coalfield, one of the oldest coalfields to be worked in India.

Administratively, the city was part of Hazaribagh district before 1972, and it is also one of the six Data Processing Centres of the Data Processing Division of the National Sample Survey Office. For a visitor, that mix of coal-country heritage, a health-sector reputation and nearby scenery sets the tone of the place.

Getting there

Giridih has no main-line station of its own, so most travellers arrive by rail via one of two junctions. From Madhupur, on the Howrah–Delhi main line, a branch line runs to Giridih; a single passenger train makes the trip several times a day and takes about an hour. Parasnath station, on the Howrah–Delhi grand chord line, is another option, with the adjacent town of Isri on the Grand Trunk Road.

By road, regular buses connect Giridih with Ranchi, Munger, Dhanbad, Bhagalpur, Koderma and other places. Dumri, on the Grand Trunk Road (NH 2), is about 45 km away and makes a useful connection point if you are approaching from that highway.

Getting around

Giridih is a compact district headquarters town, and most of what you need sits in and around the centre. The town's bus terminus is in the middle of town, divided into platforms for private buses with a government bus terminus immediately adjacent, making it the natural reference point for orienting yourself and the most straightforward place to find onward transport. From here you can reach other parts of the district and destinations further afield including Ranchi, Dhanbad, Bokaro, Hazaribagh, Deoghar, Jamshedpur, Durgapur, Kolkata, Howrah, Asansol, Patna, Munger, Bhagalpur and Koderma. Note that the Grand Trunk Road (NH 19) passes through the district but away from the city itself, so long-distance travel on that corridor means reaching a point on the highway rather than boarding in the town centre.

Rail links here are branch-line connections to larger junctions rather than a through station on a main line, so if you arrive from a major city you will most likely change at Madhupur, Koderma or Parasnath and continue on a local passenger service; check timings before committing to a connection, as services are infrequent. For local trips, arrange transport through your hotel or at the bus stand and agree on a fare before setting off, and do not count on ride-hailing apps. Walking works well between the bus terminus, the government bus terminus and the main commercial area, which are close together, but take a vehicle for the outlying stations and the highway — the town spreads out away from the centre, and the ground is uneven in places. If you fly in, Deoghar Airport is the closest option, with Ranchi, Patna, Gaya, Durgapur and Kolkata progressively further; from any of them the practical route into town is by road, ending at the central bus terminus.

Where to stay

Giridih has a small stock of straightforward hotels, with the options below covering most of what's available. They range from very simple rooms to somewhat more comfortable ones, so it's worth asking to see a room before you commit.

Food & drink

For a quick bite, head to Bashir ki chaat near Abdul Qayyum Girls' School, a local spot for chaat. Beniadih, about 2.5 km from CCL DAV and near the sale office, is another option for snacks and sweets. Madhuban Vegis serves a vegetarian menu if you're after a meat-free meal.

Among the hotels, you can eat at Bewakuf Hotel, Hotel Galy International, Khalsa Hindu Hotel, Lakshmi Hotel, Nandan Hotel, Nikhar Hotel, Padam Hotel or Red Chilly. For drinks, Milan Bar and Rimjhim Bar are the bars in town, and Shivam Dhaba is another place to stop.

What to see and do

Giridih makes a good base for exploring the countryside and hills of the surrounding district. Khandoli Reservoir, about 10 km north-east of town, is the main draw: a reservoir used for water sports and bird-watching, with a watch tower and a hillock giving a panoramic view over the site. Boating, kayaking, parasailing and rock-climbing are on offer, along with elephant and camel safaris and other amusements. Taxis run from the railway station and bus stand. Usri Falls, roughly 14 km east of town in the Parasnath Hills, is a popular picnic spot where the Usri River drops about 40 feet through a steep gorge in three separate streams; taxis and autorickshaws are available from the station and bus stand.

Several temples and shrines reward a half-day or full-day trip. Harihar Dham, a small hamlet in Bagodar Block to the south-west, is home to a Shivlinga temple that draws worshippers from across India, especially on Shrawan Purnima. To the west, Langta Baba Samadhi Sthal at Kharagdiha honours a local saint worshipped as a god; offering a chadar at the samadhi is the custom, and you can take back a chadar in lieu of the one you offered as an auspicious possession. On the way back, stop at the Surya Temple in Mirzaganj, built in the middle of a lake in the shape of a lotus flower. Near the bus terminus and railway station, Sri Kabir Gyan Mandir in Sihodih Sirisia spreads the message of Sant Kabir and Sanatan Dharma, with a temple and murals and paintings depicting the life of Sant Kabir and the Vedas. Sammed Sikharji, a holy place for Jains, is reachable by car. For something more active, take a guided trip into the jungle, climb Christian hill, visit the Beniadih coal mines, or trek through the forest from Bengabaad to Pachamba or from Maheshmunda to Sugga Pahari.

Three days in Giridih

Day one: Settle into Giridih itself, the district town in Jharkhand that serves as your base for the days ahead. Get your bearings around the town and its neighbourhoods, then take a look at the Giridih Coalfield, the mining area that has long shaped the town's character. If you arrive by rail, note that the nearest practical railhead is Madhupur Junction, with New Giridih (NGRH) and Gadi also serving the area, and that road connections reach out toward Hazaribagh, Dhanbad, Koderma and Dumri.

Day two: Head out toward Parasnath, the hill that gives the surrounding area its name and the most prominent landmark near Giridih. The journey takes you through the smaller settlements around the town, including Isri, and you can return via the Grand Trunk Road, the old highway that links this part of Jharkhand with the wider region. Keep the pace easy and let the day revolve around the climb and the views rather than a packed schedule.

Day three: Use your last day to see how the town works and to reach the places beyond it that are easiest from Giridih. Administratively the town anchors a district within Jharkhand, and offices such as the National Sample Survey Office's Data Processing Division and Data Processing Centres reflect its role as an administrative centre. If time allows, take a road trip toward Maheshmunda, or look toward connections to Ranchi, Bokaro, Deoghar, Dhanbad, Munger, Bhagalpur, Jamshedpur, Asansol, Durgapur, Kolkata, Patna, Howrah and Delhi for onward travel.

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