Mysterious Places in India

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Himalayan Mysteries (Immortal Beings, Yeti, Yogis, Ghosts, Red Snow)
The number of mysteries surrounding Himalayas is as big as the mighty range itself. There are accounts of immortal beingsresiding in Himalayas. Yeti, the abominable snowman is said to inhabit the Himalayas of Tibet and Nepal. Many mountain climbers have witnessed mysterious red snowfall with red spots sprinkled over the ice. There are stories of mysterious meditating yogis in ashrams tucked well into the treacherous terrains of Himalayas. Thousands of people have died on these terrains in their efforts to surmount summits. No wonder Indian army personnels have reported strange ghost sightings of dead climbers and soldiers here.

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Kuldhara – Rajasthan (Ghost Town)


The village of Kuldhara is a ghost village that has been abandoned since 1800s. It is said to carry a curse of the villagers who migrated to other places. Kuldhara lies about 15 Km west of Jaisalmer in western Rajasthan. The village now lies in ruins. The village was established in 1291 by the Paliwal Brahmins, who were a very prosperous clan and were known for their business acumenand agricultural knowledge. But one night in 1825 all the people in Kuldhara and nearby 83 villages vanished in dark. According to folklore, Salim Singh, the minister of the state, once visiting this village fell for the beautiful daughter of chieftain (Paliwal Brahmin) and wanted to marry her. The minister threatened the villagers that if they did not marry the girl to him, he would levy huge taxes. The chief of the village with those of other 83 adjoining villages decided to abandon and migrate elsewhere as against marrying the girl to Salim Singh. Nobody saw them leave nor did anyone figure where they went, they simply vanished.

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Kottayam, Idukki – Kerala (Red Rain)


The southern districts of Kottayam and Idukki of Kerala witnessed an unusual phenomenon on July 25 to September 23, 2001 when the rain was unusually red tinged. Colored rainfall in Kerala had been reported as early as 1986 and on several instances since then, the most recent of which was in June of 2012. In 2006, red rain in Kerala gained widespread media attention when scientists from Mahatma Gandhi University proposed that the colored particles were extraterrestrial cells. Under electron microscope the solid pigment separated from water resembled biological cells. Initially, official reports indicated that the red pigment was dispersed by an exploding meteor, but later, following more thorough evaluation, cells resembled spores of lichen-forming algae belonging to the genus Trentepohlia. On further investigation, it was discovered that these areas had abundance of such type of algae in trees, rocks and even lamp posts.

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Bengal Swamps – West Bengal (Aleya Ghost Lights)


Aleya lights or marsh ghost lights are unexplained ghost lights reported in the marshes of West Bengal typically by local fishermen. These lights are said to confuse fishermen causing them to lose their bearing. It may lead to drowning if one starts following these lights moving over the marshes. Many bodies have washed ashore on these swamps that locals attribute to Aleya lights. Local believes these strange hovering marsh-lights are in fact ghost-lights representing the ghosts of fisherman who died fishing. Sometimes they confuse the fishermen while sometimes they help them avoid future dangers.

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Banni Grasslands Reserve – Rann of Kutch (Chir Batti)


Banni Grasslands Reserve lies on the southern edge of the salt flats of Rann of Kutch in Gujarat. This is a seasonal marshy grassland that forms each year from monsoon rains. During night there have been frequent reports of an unexplained strange dancing light that locals refer to as Chir Batti. These lights are said to be as bright as mercury lamps that change in color from blue, red, yellow and resemble a pear shaped moving ball. They can move as fast as an arrow, but may also come to a standstill. According to local folklore Chir Batti has been a part of life in Banni Grasslands and has been witnessed for centuries. Some witnesses claim the light sometimes appears to follow them. Apart from locals, foreigners visiting the reserve and Border Security Force personnel too have reported seeing these lights. Scientists believe these lights are caused by oxidation of methane expelled from the marshes.

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Unexplained Sounds in Ganga and Brahmaputra Delta (Mistpouffers, Barisal Guns)



Mistpouffers or Barisal Guns are unexplained sounds that resemble a sonic boom that have been reported in many waterfront communities worldwide. In India especially, they have been heard in the delta regions of Ganga and Brahmaputra. While they resemble the sonic boom of a supersonic jet, what’s even mysterious is the fact that they have been reported from times before any aeroplaneswere invented. T.D. LaTouche, a British officer wrote about them in his journal in the 1890s. He wrote, “…reports of Barisal guns occurring with the earthquake shocks, but they also are said to occur without, and to have been frequent before the big earthquake. A host of plausible explanations may now exist for these enigmas, including earthquakes, rock bursts, mud volcanoes, explosive venting of gas, storm-driven waves, tsunamis, meteors, distant thunder and so-called booming sands.” These unexplained sounds are still reported and continue to puzzle experts.

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Kongka La Pass – Aksai Chin, Ladakh (Indo-Chinese UFO Base)



Kongka La pass in the Himalayas is in the disputed Indo-Chinese border of Aksai Chin. The Chinese held part is known as Aksai Chin and the part under Indian occupation is Ladakh. This is one of the least accessed areas in the world and by agreement both countries do not patrol this border. Locals on both sides of the border believe there is an underground UFO base in this region with the knowledge of both countries. Locals have seen UFOs coming out of the ground. Tourists have witnessed strange triangular lighted silent crafts rising from the ground and moving vertically up. Local guides say this is not something new and it is a very common sight in Kongka La pass. Tourists are denied entry to this area in spite of permits to travel between the two countries. This theory is given credence by the fact that in June of 2006, satelliteimagery on Google Earth revealed a 1:500 scale detailed terrain model of the area in question on the Chinese side of the border. This model was surrounded by buildings resembling a military facility. Aksai Chin is a region where Eurasian and Indian plates have created convergent plate boundaries where one plate dives under the other and thus it is one of the few areas in the world where the depth of crust is twice as much as in the other places.

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Roopkund Lake – Uttarakhand (Skeleton Lake)



Roopkund Lake is a glacial lake located at about 5000 meters in the Himalayan ranges of Uttarakhand. In 1942, a forest guard stumbled upon hundreds of human skeletons on the banks of Roopkund. Over the years a number of expeditions by Indian and European scientists were attempted to resolve the mystery of their death. There were several theories suggested to explain these well preserved bones and skulls. One theory suggested them of being the remains of Japanese soldiers from World War II. Some theorized them of being General Zorawar Singh of Kashmir and his men, while others proposed them to be Mohammad Tughlak’s unsuccessful attempts to capture Garhwal Himalaya. Carbon dating of the corpses puts them between 12th and 15th century. The fact that intrigued the investigators was that there was no historical account of trade route to Tibet in this area. One well-established theory speculates them to be the entourage of king Jasdhawal of Kanauj. They are believed to have been on their pilgrimage to the Nanda-Devi Mountain and were caught in a terrible hailstorm with no shelter in the open mountains in which every single one of them perished.

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Kodinhi – Kerala (Village of Twins)



The village of Kodinhi situated about 35 km south of Calicut is home to about 2000 families. The village has a Muslim majority and is known for its very high rate of twin births. As of 2009 thevillage boasted of 220 sets of twins (440 individuals) and two sets of triplets officially. A local doctor though believes this number to be higher in the range of 300 to 350 pairs. He says this phenomenon began three generations ago and the numbers have been increasing exponentially with each passing year. Another fact that bucks the trend is that even women from Kodinhi who are married off to faraway places have exceptionally high rates of twin births. The fact that a large percentage of these twins are under the age of 20, the potential for mischief is enormous, the most common being that they often swap classes in school.

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Jatinga – Assam (Mass Bird Suicides)



The village of Jatinga in the Dima Hasao district of Assam has a population of around 2500. The village is world famous for its phenomenon of bird suicides. Most of the migratory birds visiting the area never leave the village and just drop to their death on the streets. The case gets even inscrutable in the sense that these birds plummet to their death precisely between 06:00 p.m. to 09:30 p.m. on the moonless nights of September and October. These mass suicides only occur on a specific 1 mile by 600 feet strip of land and this phenomenon is said to have occurred year after year without a break for more than a century. Many theories have been offered by scientists to explain this phenomenon, the most popular one being that these birds are attracted towards village lights that confuse them. Another theory that makes more sense is the presence of excessive magnetic field in the area that disorients them. Though more theories continue to arise, no one has yet been able to prove the exact explanation behind this phenomenon.