Daroji Sloth Bear Sanctuary is the only place where one can spot these Sloth bears, who are the honey-lovers endemic to India. The sanctuary is located in Ballari District. The Sanctuary has rough terrain and during the visit, tourists can spot animals like jackals, wild boards, mongoose, black-naped hares, leopards etc.
The major attraction is the sloth bear that is abundantly seen in these scrub-covered topographies. The sanctuary maintains a good number of sloth bears who are hidden in the caves in the green-covered hillocks.
The sanctuary provides a watch tower view to the location where these bears are normally seen in the forests, opposite to the Karadikallu Gudda. The view from the watchtower is amazing and one can enjoy the overall terrain from the top using a binocular.
It is a spectacular watch to witness animals living in their natural habitat. The big black bears that come out the shady bushes and go hunting on their own to curb their sugar cravings are an ideal watch during the visit to the Sanctuary.
The Archaeological Museum at Kamalapura is dedicated to the ruins of Hampi and the Vijayanagara Empire. Kamalapura is a small town in the Bellary district in Karnataka. It is situated within the ruins of the old city of Vijayanagara and just outside the ‘Royal Centre’ of the Vijayanagara Empire.
The Archaeological Museum at Kamalapura is a small but significant museum that preserves the relics and artefacts related to the Vijayanagara Empire and its ruins.
The museum started functioning in 1972 and is maintained by the Archaeological Survey of India. It captures the beauty of the bygone days of Hampi in a wonderful manner.
There are eight species of Bears in the world. Indian Sloth Bear is confined to India and Sri Lanka only. Its scientific (Zoological) name is Melursus ursinus. It has a long, dark unkempt coat of hair with a characteristic v-shaped chevron on its chest. Fore limbs are longer than the hind limbs. The hairless feet are armed with white, blunt, curved claws, which extend up to three inches. Hairless webs unite the pads of the fingertips. Though the head is comparatively large, the Sloth Bears have relatively small ears and eyes. Hence their sense of hearing and vision is poor. But they have an outstanding sense of smell.
Their short-haired, grayish-colored muzzle is extremely flexible and ends in the nose. The nostrils can be closed at will. The lips are extremely loose and two incisor teeth are absent in the upper jaw. All these arrangements are helpful for sucking termites and ants.
Normally, adults attain a length of about six feet and stand three feet at the shoulder. Male adults weigh about 140 kg and female adults about 75 kg. While sommer is their mating period, this is often accompanied by a lot of quarreling and fighting between the males and the females. Usually two to three cubs are born in winter. The newborn cubs are small, hairless and blind for three weeks. The mother rears the cubs for two to three years. The lifespan of Bears is 40 to 50 years. The Sloth Bears are nocturnal animals.
The Archaeological Museum at Kamalapura was established under the initiative of the Archaeological Survey of India after they undertook the responsibility to preserve the ruins of Hampi.
Some of the preservation work was already done by a section of British officers. These officers had collected several sculptures, statues, relics and artefacts from the ruins in Hampi and nearby locations and kept them at the elephant stables.
After the construction of the modern building of the Archaeological Museum at Kamalapura by the Archaeological Survey of India, all the preserved items were transferred from the elephant stables to the new museum.
By Road- The easiest way to reach the sanctuary is by road from Bangalore -Chitradurga which is around 199 km and then from there to Hospet close to 135 km. From Hospet to Kamalapur and to the sanctuary takes almost 12 and 10 km respectively. The historic hamlet, Hampi is hardly 20 kms away from the sanctuary.
By Rail- Nearest railway station to Daroji Sloth Bear Sanctuary is Hospet which is around 22 km away.
By Air- Hubli is the nearest airport and it lies 143 km away from Hampi. Belgaum airport lies around 720 km away.
Hampi is a popular tourist destination. It is well-connected by several means of transport. The Archaeological Museum at Kamalapura is situated in an area that can be easily reached from any part of Hampi.
By Air- The nearest town to have an airport is Ballari . Ballary stands at a distance of about 64 km from Hampi. Visitors who wish to travel by air can take a flight to Ballari and then avail local means of transport to reach Hampi.
By Rail- The town of Hampi has no railway station of its own. The nearest place to have a railway station is the city of Hospet where the Hospet Junction Railway Station is located. Hospet is at a distance of around 10 km from Hampi. To reach Hampi from Hospet one can opt for a bus ride or avail other means of local transport.
By Road- Hampi is a place with a well-connected road network. There are a number of buses that ply between Hampi and many of major towns and cities in Karnataka. Apart from the buses, visitors can also hire private cars, cabs or other vehicles from major cities like Bengaluru (Bangalore) or Mysuru (Mysore) to reach Hampi.
