Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav has announced the construction of Khupasdev Lok in the Satpura hills near Ajgaria village in Barwani district, along with a road to the hilltop shrine that draws tribal devotees from Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Gujarat.
The project is intended to promote the region’s tribal heritage and cultural traditions. According to the report by The Times of India, Khupasdev Lok will be developed on the lines of Mahakal Lok in Ujjain, a major religious and public-realm redevelopment project. The announcement establishes the proposed destination and its road connection, but details such as the project cost, construction agency, design, land requirements and completion timeline were not provided.
Khupasdev is worshipped on a prominent hilltop surrounded by dense forests. The shrine consists of five sacred stones, or pindis, which the local tribal community worships collectively as a single deity. Annual visitors include devotees from three states, making access to the site a central part of any future development plan.
The proposed road is significant because the shrine is located away from the main settlement on a hilltop. The report does not specify the road’s length, alignment, width or present access conditions. It also does not state whether the proposed development will include parking, sanitation, water supply, waste-management facilities, lighting or visitor-management systems.
Dr Saurabh Maru, a scientist at the School of Pharmacy and Technology Management at SVKM’s NMIMS University, Shirpur Campus, told The Times of India that the hill is home to more than 40 varieties of nutritious forest vegetables that could help address malnutrition in the region. The observation adds a livelihood and public-health dimension to the site, beyond its religious importance.
Maru also described traditional practices associated with Khupasdev. According to his account, tribal communities historically sought the deity’s help for weddings and other major family events, with money and silver serving as mediums of exchange. Local belief holds that grain or silver was provided without interest on the condition that it was returned after the harvest so it could help others. This tradition is associated with the name “Vaniya Dev”.
The hill has other cultural and religious associations. A natural water seepage point, locally called a jhiri, once fed a pond on the hill, while local legends connect the area with sages and the origin of the name Khupasdev. The site also houses the shrine of Tajuddin Baba, known as Chandan Baba. Followers of Shiv Panth believe that the area is mentioned in the Shiva Purana, according to the report.
The announcement places a culturally significant tribal shrine within a planned public-infrastructure project. The next stage will depend on the government specifying the road and visitor facilities, identifying the implementing authority and setting out how construction will be managed around the hill’s forested landscape. No such implementation details were included in the announcement reported so far.
