Adi Badri, also Sri Sarasvati Udgam Tirath,Haryana Samvad , Jan 2018. is a tourist site of archaeological, religious and ecological significance in a forest area in the foothills of the Sivalik Hills in Bhabar area, situated in northern part of Yamunanagar district, of the north Indian state of Haryana. There are remains of many Buddhist stupas and monasteries,Haryana misses the buddha moment , The Tribune. which are about 1500–2000 years old,Adi Badri to get heritage tag for treasure trove, Daily Pioneer. and there is also a group of Hindu temples from the 9th century. Based on the multiple archaeological excavations undertaken here, archaeologists have sent the proposal to Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) to include this site in the list of protected heritage site. Several popular annual festivals are held here, including the five day long National Saraswati Festival in January, Adi Badri Akha Teej Mela in Vaisakh around April–May, week-long Adi Badri-Kapal Mochan Kartik Purnima religious mela around November.Famous Adi Badi - Kapal Mochan mela to be held in November, Uni India, Nov 2018

Adi Badri, often related to the Saraswati River,Haryana Rivers Profile: (Part-II – Ganga Basin), South Asia Network on Dams, Rivers and People. is one of the most ancient Vedic religious site in Haryana, along with 48 kos parikrama of Kurukshetra, Dhosi Hill and Kapal Mochan. The Somb river passing through here is considered by some to follow the course of the Rig Vedic Sarasvati river.Sharma, D P and Madhuri Sharma, Early Harappans and Indus Sarasvati Civilization, 2 Vols. (ed) 2006 It lies in the ecosensitive zone of Kalesar National Park. Adi Badri Vatika herbal park developed by the state's forests department also lies here.Overview of State Forests , Haryana Forests, page 18.

Adi Badri Heritage Board was formed by the state govt to develop the area and to revive the sacred Sarasvati river, and also owing to its religious, ecological and tourism significance and potential.Course correction of Saraswati ‘revival’, The Tribune, 31 Jan 2017.

Location and nearby attractions

Adi Badri can be reached from Jagadhri by a 40 km long all-weather road via Bilaspur, Haryana. The nearest village is Kathgarh, which is situated 2 km southwest from Adi Badri.

Kapal Mochan on Jagadhari road is an ancient place of pilgrimage for both Hindus and Sikhs, 17 km north-east of Jagadhari town, on the Bilaspur road in Yamuna Nagar district.

Nearby Bilaspur, Haryana (not to be confused with Bilaspur, Himachal Pradesh) in Yamuna Nagar District which takes its name from the corrupted form of "Vyas Puri", was the ashram of Ved Vyasa rishi where he wrote the Mahabharta on the banks of Sarasvati river near Adi Badri where Sarasvati river leaves Himalayas and enters the plains.Sarasvati Sodh Sansthan Publications 2015

Lohgarh was established as capital of Sikh empire of Banda Singh Bahadur in 1710.

A Glass Bridge Skywalk is planned here, see also List of Glass Bridge Skywalks in India.

Archaeological significance ASI has carried out excavations of 3 mounds over 9 years on this 13.5 acres site, with plans for further excavations. ASI has sent the proposal to Ministry of culture in 2013 to notify this as the protected site.Adi Badri, Haryana Tourism.

Buddhism

There are remains of many Buddhist stupas and monasteries near the confluence of rivers Som and Saraswati in Adi Badari. These stupas and monasteries, built of hard bricks, are about 1500–2000 years old.

Buddhist Sharirika stupa

The Buddhist Sharirika Stupa, made of burnt bricks, is dated to 3rd century Kushana.Adi Badri to get heritage tag for treasure trove, Daily Pioneer, 2013. During excavations ASI also found pottery of that era, such as bowl, lids, miniature pots, jars, cooking vessels, pitchers, storage jars and stamped wares. Phase I of Period I had bricks measuring (35x20x6 cm, 33x20x5 cm, 30x22x6 cm and 23x25x6 cm) organised in tapering circular manner, and the bottom 23 layers of bricks were unearthed during the 2002-03 excavation.Adesh Katariya, 2007, Ancient History of Central Asia: Yuezhi origin Royal Peoples: Kushana, Huna, Gurjar and Khazar Kingdoms, pp128-.

Buddhist monastery Adi Badri Buddhist monastery is dated to 10th-12th century. Few cells, big enough to accommodate one person, and a Buddha statue suggest that this rare ancient monastery was meant for meditation.Historical importance of adi badri areaOne year on govt fails to promote buddhist tourism , The Tribune.Kaushik, A. and Kaushik, G., 2010, January. AN ANALYSIS OF BUDDHIST FUNERARY STRUCTURES IN HARYANA: WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO THE SITE OF ADI BADRI. In Proceedings of the Indian History Congress (Vol. 71, pp. 1079-1087). Indian History Congress. Buddhist statues from 12th century CE were discovered here.Yamunanagar History , Gazatteer of Haryana: Yamunanagar.

Hindu temples and sculptures Yamuna Nagar Adi Badri is a group of Hindu temples from the 9th century. Excavations by ASI unearthed several ancient sculpture and monuments pertaining to the Vaishnavism, Shiva and Shakti traditions, including late medieval Adi Badri-Narayana temple (Vishnu) built by Adi Shankaracharya on the banks of Somb river, Shakti-Mantra Devi temple (wife of Abhimanyu and daughter of king Virata of Matsya Kingdom during Mahabharta) and Sri Kedarnath Temple (Shiva). Several 9th century CE Hindu statues of Shiva, Parvati and Ganesha were discovered here. Archaeological finds also include lingam, which is estimated by experts to be 4,000 years old. Nearby Kathgarh village is hub of several oral traditions related to the Saraswati Civilization.

Present-day religious significance According to legends, this is the place where Ved Vyasa wrote Bhagavata Purana, and Pandavas stayed her during the last year of their exile.Adi Badri, Yamuna Nagar, Haryana, Apni Sanskriti.

Adi Badri has a Sarasvati kund (pond) for the worship of Sarasvati river where evening aarti is held every day. Adi Badri Akha Teej Mela is a large fair that takes place at the Hindu temple complex on the Akshaya Tritiya (Akha Teej) in Vaisakh around April or May. The popular week-long annual Adi Badri-Kapal Mochan Kartik Purnima religious mela is usually held around November. All the main Hindu festivals are also celebrated at the ancient temple complex.

Sarasvati River revival

Adi Badri Heritage Board

The Government of Haryana, headed since 2014 by BJP, announced setting up of the Adi Badri Heritage Board and its plans to revive the sacred Sarasvati river by creating a new water channel along the supposed path of the river.R.U.S. Prasad, 2017, River and Goddess Worship in India: Changing Perceptions and Manifestations of Sarasvati, Routledge, Annexure-I. The board has 70 partner organisations, for research on Sarasvati river, including ASI, ISRO, several IITs and Union Government ministries of India.Haryana Sarasvati Heritage Development Board affiliated organizations, Haryana Sarasvati Heritage Development Board, accessed 20 July 2021.

Sarasvati revival

Significance

According to a government-constituted expert committee, Saraswati River did exist, originating in the Himalayas, and passing through Haryana. According to committee-member Khadg Singh Valdiya, the committee identified a paleo-channel which is related to the Indus Valley civilisation, and to the present Ghaggar, Sarsuti, Hakra and Nara rivers.Economic Times (15 Oct 2016), Government constituted expert committee finds Saraswati river did exist Joint efforts by several states en route, from the origin of its initial tributaries in Uttarakhand and Himachal, to its paleodelta in Gujarat with ancient dock at Lothal (one of the southernmost sites of the ancient Indus-Saraswati Valley civilisation with trade links to MesopotamiaGosch, Stephen S. & Stearns, Peter N. (2007), Premodern Travel in World History, Taylor & Francis, , p.12. and Sumer), via Haryana, Punjab, Rajasthan, are on to map and revive the Rig Vedic flow till Gujarat and build religious tourism and irrigation-cum-flood control facilities along the way. The Sarasvati revival project of Haryana seeks to build channels and dams along the route of the lost river in Haryana, and develop it as a tourist and pilgrimage circuit.After History, It's The Turn Of Geography , Tehalka, 11 July 2015.Haryana's Saraswati heritage board to develop 5 riverfronts , The Tribune, 19 Jul 2021.Haryana government revives ‘Saraswati’ river by pumping 100 cusec water through dug channels in Yamuna , India Today, Aug 2016. Downstream in Rajasthan, one of the paleochannel of the now-lost scared Sarasvati River, which is also the paleochannel of later-era partially-lost Ghaggar River, is now occupied by the Indira Gandhi Canal which why the canal is also known as the Saraswati Rupa Rajasthan Canal.Lost and found after centuries, Saraswati brings growth, Daijiworld, 19 Jun 2022.

Revival status

Haryana Sarasvati Heritage Development Board (HSHDB) established by the Government of Haryana is responsible for the revival of Sarasvati in Haryana.Haryana, Punjab and Rajasthan will have to adopt Saraswati River model for flood control: Haryana Saraswati Board VC, Times of India, 12 Sep 2025. As of 2025, the entire length of 400 km Saraswati in Haryana has been revived in the phase-1 where water flows during the monsoon. In the next phase, dams and barrages are being constructed to make it perennial. In total, 10 small and one big dams are being constructed in the Saraswati river catchment area, and most of these are in varying stages of environmental approval. During fy 2025-26 budget, Haryana granted the administrative approval of Rs 388.16 cr for revival of Saraswati River and construction of Adi Badri Dam to be constructed by HPPCL for which Rs 34.67 cr had been already deposited with Himachal government. Adi Badri Dam has already received the environment clearance, and the forest clearance is awaited. The design of Somb Saraswati Barrage is awaiting final approval from Central Water Commission (CWC), after which it will be constructed by the Irrigation & Water Resources Department (I&WRD) of Haryana. Cost estimates will be revised after the finalisation of design and wildlife approval.Haryana FY 2025-26 Budget, Government of Haryana, accessed 31 July 2025. By 2025, Haryana had already constructed 15 major reservoirs along Sarasvati's course, including at Bibipur (1000 acre reservoir), Rampur Haria and Rampur Kambian (350 acre), Saraswati Wildlife Sanctuary at Seonsar in Pehowa (70 acre), Sanghor (15 acre), Bohli (12 acre), Kandoli (12 acre), Rampura (7 acre), Marchehri (7 acre), etc to restore rainwater for flood control and irrigation which has raised the groundwater level. Haryana will replicate this model to other rivers also including Somb river, Chautang, Rakshi, Tangri, Markanda, Ghaggar.

Earlier, 212 km channel in Haryana was revived, including 55 km section from Adi Badri to Uncha Chandna, 153 km section from Uncha Chandna to Kaithal and 4 km section from Kaithal to confluence with Ghaggar River in Punjab, from there Ghaggar reenters Haryana and courses through Fatehabad and Sirsa districts up to Ottu barrage.‘It's a religious issue. If you could, then give it (land) voluntarily, Indian Express, 15 Aug 2016. To revive the river, the dried up channel was dug up and dams will be built in the Sivalik Hills at Adi Badri, Haripur and Lohgarh on the Somb river (a tributary of Saraswati) and downstream Senonar barrage (Guldehra). This will help in controlling floods from Somb river, harvesting and conservation of water for irrigation and lake tourism.