Once part of 'Dakshina' or 'Southern Kosala' with references in the 'Ramayana' mentioning the marriage of King Dasharatha of Uttara Kosala to Kosalaya, princess of Dakshina Kosala, Durg was also apparently part of Ashoka's Empire. Two 8th century A.D. stone inscriptions associate the name of king Shiva Deva with Sivapura (the capital of Shivadeva) and Shiva Durga, the fort on the banks of the Shiva River. The city passed many hands from Tripuri Kalachuri dynasty in AD 1182 to the Marathas and then to the British. In 1906 Durg was rechristened as a separate district. It rises from the banks of the Shiva.
During the freedom struggle, Durg was a hot bed of nationalist activity. Many prominent leaders including Mahatma Gandhi, Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru and Dr.Rajendra Prasad visited Durg during the freedom struggle.
The district of Durg in Chhattisgarh presents tourists a harmonious confluence of natural beauty and historical sites coupled with a booming steel industry.
Durg is famous for the Bhilai Steel Plant, a major exporter of steel in 1959, as one of the first steps of independent India's drive towards industrialisation and self-reliance. Its main products are rails, structurals (beams, channels, angles, crossing sleepers), wire rods and plates.
Another attraction is the Maitri Baug, a zoo cum children's park, maintained by the Bhilai Steel plant management where you can see white tigers, musical fountain shows on alternate evenings and the yearly flower show.
The Uwasaggaharam Parshwa Teerth, a Jain shrine in Nagpura established in 1995 is located on the banks of the Sheonath River, with temples, guesthouses, a garden and naturopathy and yoga centre. The entrance to the resplendent marble temple is through a 30 feet gate that has the idol of Parshwanath, supported by four pillars (representing the four essentials of spiritual atonement, i.e., wisdom, introspection, good conduct, penance), being worshipped by two elephants. Sacred water, amiya oozes from the idol here. Hundreds of pilgrims visit this shrine on full moon nights.
An interesting legend explaining the origins of the Ganga Maiya temple located at Jhalmala, 58 km from Durg revolves around a statue that was fished out by a fisherman and how the goddess appeared in his dream and asked him to build a temple there. The temple grounds are site for various cultural activities and medical camps.
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