NANDI HILL is a hill formation close to the city of Bangalore and in many ways can be called BANGALORE HILL. The word NANDI refers to the NANDI bull of LORD SHIVA and this place has a very ancient SHAIVITE shrine. Technically it is taller than the CHAMUNDI HILL in Mysore.
It is definitely a modern day tourist attraction of this part of the world with forests and parks atop. The unique aspect of the NANDI HILL is that it is surrounded by many such hill formations. The SATHYA SAI HOSPITAL institution building can be seen very clearly from the top of the hill which is at a place called MUDDENAHALLI and this village called MUDDENAHALLI is also the birth place of SIR M VISHWESHWARIAH. For all practical purposes it can be said that SIR M VISHWESHWARIAH was born near to the NANDI HILLS.
NANDI HILL must be some 35kms from Bangalore. 25kms from Bangalore on the CHIKKABALLAPUR HIGHWAY (on Bellary Road) there is the Nandi cross junction from where on turning left some ten kilometres ahead is the NANDI HILL. DODDABALLAPUR and CHIKKABALLAPUR are twin towns created by the monarchy of yore and are adjacent to each other.
In the THIRD MYSORE WAR LORD CORNWALLIS seized this hill. He must have moved Cannons on the motor way up the hill and used Cannon fire to break upon the Fort gates. The modern day Bangalore is much cooler in and around the hill than the Bangalore city plains attracting people both in the present and the past to this bastion. The hill and its activities are controlled by KSTDC Karnataka State Tourism Development Corporation.
Let us see how modern day NANDI HILL looks like. Basically it refers to the plains on the top of the hill which has some 30 acres of land to my understanding with low ascent and is motorable. On entering the fort gates is a red building which used to be the palace and residence of rulers. Just behind this building is a lake which was renovated by the MYSORE kings.On driving upwards some one kilometer or slightly more is a place today called CIRCLE. Adjacent to this circle are many decent hotels and eat-outs. Adjacent to the CIRCLE is the ancient SHAIVITE shrine the most important component of this place..Just behind the shrine is a deep rocky descent which leads to a place called drop-point where prisoners were dropped to their deaths by the rulers. On the right of the CIRCLE is a Victorian style park called the GANDHI PARK.
I have seen YERCAUD in SALEM in TAMIL NADU. What would be the similarity between NANDI HILL and YERCAUD. The most important factor is both of them are on the EASTERN GHAT ROCK FORMATIONS. But the key difference is the surface area of YERCAUD on the top must be twenty times that of the NANDI HILLS.
When you visit NANDI HILLS it would be ideal to be part of some organised Tourist Services or your own mode of transport like car or two wheeler ; any other method carries high risk of getting forlorn and lost some-where in this part of the world.