The twin cities of Bhilai and Durg in the state of Chhattisgarh, India are the most important cities of the state, sometimes even more important then the state capital Raipur, Bhilai is a major industrial city in India as well as an education hub of central India. Bhilai–Durg is the second largest city after Raipur. It is believed that the name “Bhilai” is derived from the Bhil tribe which originally inhabited this region and continues to dwell in the nearby forests until today.
Bhilai was a small village and a part of the Haihaiyavansi Kingdom until 1740, when it was conquered by the Marathas. It was administered by the British from 1853 until 1947, when it merged with the Indian union.The foundation of the modern city of Bhilai was laid in 1955 when the Indian government signed a historic agreement with the Soviet Union in Magnitogorsk to establish a steel plant near the village. The first blast furnace of the plant was commissioned in 1959 by the first president of India, Dr. Rajendra Prasad. Bhilai is home to the Bhilai Steel Plant, the first Indian plant to produce steel rails.
Known as the steel city like other cities that house SAIL steel plant like Durgapur, Bokaro Rourkela Burnpur Jamshedpur it is the only unit that has been making profits uninterrupted since inception. Apart from that Bhilai also houses several other PSU, ancillary unit & private firms that operate in the city. A well planned city like other steel cities of India, Bhilai is divided into sectors with each sector having its own health centre, club, playground, school, market, and other civic amenities.
Well connected by rail, road with all major cities of India and by air through airport in Raipur, Bhilai is an education hub that has numerous well known technical colleges that attract students from across the country. A cosmopolitan town where people from all corners of the country came to work and settled, there are several places worth visiting in and around the city. Durg the twin city of Bhilai is a much older city on the east bank of the Shivnath River .
There are not many places worth visiting in the twin cities but still a few of them are worth mentioning, these include Tundula Dam, Gangrel D,am Siyadevi, Deobalod, Dhamdha, Hajra and Maitri Bagh zoo. For shopping Civic Centre, Sector 6 market in Bhilai and Indira market in Durg are the go to places. The recently opened Treasure Island mall which has the cities only multiplex and Surya shopping mall is also worth visiting. Tourist can also visit the steel plant with permission.
Tourist can also visit the Nagpura temple complex, and Dongargarh Bamleshwari temple both within couple of hours drive form the city. There are not many luxurious hotels but several budget hotels and lodges that provide accommodation at reasonable prices. Interested tourist can visit the Sector 6 Kali temple, Balaji temple sector 5 and Hanuman mandir sector 2. There is also a massive Jama masjid in sector and Gurudrawa in Nehru Nagar, a posh locality.
