Chitharal Jain Rock Cut Temple

Direction

Chitharal is located about 45 kilometers away from kanniyakumari. It is famous for the Rock-cut temple. Hillock at Chitharal has a cave containing Rock-cut sculptures of Thirthankaras and attendent deities carved inside and outside dating back to 9th Century A.D. King Mahendra Varman I was responsible for the Jainism influence in this region. It was converted into Bagavathy Temple in the 13th Century A.D. Cars and Vans can go upto the foot of the hill. One has to walk for about 10 minutes to reach the temple. The Jain images have been preserved by the Central Archeological Survey of India. It comes under Vellankode panchayat.