Odisha, formerly Orissa, is an Indian state located in Eastern India. It is the eighth-largest state by area, and the eleventh-largest by population, with over 41 million inhabitants. The state also has the third-largest population of Scheduled Tribes in India. It neighbours the states of Jharkhand and West Bengal to the north, Chhattisgarh to the west, and Andhra Pradesh to the south. Odisha has a coastline of 485 kilometres (301 mi) along the Bay of Bengal in the Indian Ocean. The region is also known as Utkaḷa and is mentioned by this name in India's national anthem, Jana Gana Mana. The language of Odisha is Odia, which is one of the Classical languages of India.
Bhubaneswar is the capital and second largest city of the Indian state of Odisha. It is located in the Khordha district. The region, especially the old town, was historically often depicted as Chakra Khetra and Ekamra Khetra. Bhubaneswar is dubbed the "Temple City", a nickname earned because of many temples which are standing there.
Rourkela is a planned city located in the northern district Sundargarh of Odisha, India. It is the third-largest Urban Agglomeration in Odisha after Bhubaneswar and Cuttack. It is situated about 328 kilometres (204 mi) west of state capital Bhubaneswar and is surrounded by a range of hills and encircled by the rivers Koel, Sankha, & Brahmani. The city is also popularly known as Ispat Nagar and Steel City of Odisha as well. One of the largest integrated steel plants set up with German collaboration Known as Rourkela Steel Plant, of Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL). It also has one of the premier national level technical institute known as National Institutes of Technology (NIT Rourkela). Every year, on 3 March Rourkela Day has been celebrated.
Bijayananda Patnaik was an Indian politician and aviator. He served as the 3rd Chief Minister of the State of Odisha from 1961 to 1963 and from 1990 to 1995. He was also the 14th Steel and mines and 1st Coal Union Minister of India from 1979 to 1980 and from 1977 to 1979 and a member of Lok Sabha from Kendrapara from 1977 to 1985. He is the father of Naveen Patnaik, who was the CM of Odisha.
Sundargarh is a town in Sundergarh district of the Indian state of Odisha. As of 2011 census, the municipality had a population of 45,036. Sundargarh is recognized as an industrial district in Odisha. Steel, fertilizer, cement, ferrovanadium, machine-building, glass, china-clay plants and factories, and spinning mills are some of the major industries of this district. Sundargarh occupies a prominent position in the mineral map of Odisha and is rich in iron ore, limestone, and manganese.
Rajgangpur is an industrial town situated in the Sundargarh District of Odisha. It is located 400 km to the north-west of the capital city, Bhubaneswar. It is located 30 km west of Rourkela. It is accessible by both road and rail. Rajgangpur Railway Station is on Mumbai-Rourkela line. Regular buses are available to Bhubaneswar, Cuttack, Rourkela and Angul. RGP Main Road is the main road of the town. The nearest functional airport is Veer Surendra Sai Airport, Jharsuguda which is approximately 95 km from Rajgangpur. Places of tourist interest in the vicinity of Rajgangpur include Mandira Dam, Chhatri Hill, Darjeeng, Vedvyas and Khandahar.
Dilip Tirkey, is a former captain of the Indian field hockey team, politician and sports administrator. He was awarded Padma Shree in 2004. Currently he is the president of Hockey India.
Nalconagar is a census town in Angul district in the Indian state of Odisha. Nalconagar, Angul is a suburb of Angul, Odisha.
The Kalinga Stadium is a multi-purpose international sports complex in Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India. Its foundation stone was laid by the former chief minister of Odisha Biju Patnaik in 1978. It is best known as the home ground of the Indian Super League club Odisha FC since its inception in 2019. It was the home ground of the I-League club Indian Arrows from 2018 until 2022. It is situated in the heart of Bhubaneswar near Nayapalli area. It has facilities for athletics, football, field hockey, tennis, table tennis, basketball, volleyball, wall climbing and swimming. Other features of the stadium includes an 8-lane synthetic athletics track, high performance centres, and India's first Olympic standard pink and blue water-based AstroTurf.
The 2018 Men's Hockey World Cup was the 14th edition of the Hockey World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for men's national field hockey teams organized by the FIH. It was held from 28 November to 16 December 2018, at the Kalinga Hockey Stadium in Bhubaneswar, India. The inauguration ceremony which was held on 27 November 2018, witnessed the biggest ever drone flying show in India.
Sambad is an Indian newspaper of Odia language which is published daily from Bhubaneswar, Odisha. It is one of the largest circulated Odia newspapers in Odisha. It is published from the capital city of Bhubaneswar, as well as from Cuttack, Brahmapur, Rourkela, Sambalpur, Baleswar, Jajpur, Jeypore, and Angul The first edition of this newspaper was published on October 4, 1984, in Bhubaneswar. Editor since the foundation is Soumya Ranjan Patnaik, a businessman-politician.
Sports is an important part of the culture of Odisha and plays a key role in development of the state. Field hockey, athletics, association football, cricket, weightlifting, rugby union and rugby sevens are among the most popular sports in the Indian state of Odisha. Odisha is also known as the Sports Capital of India. The Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar and the Barabati Stadium in Cuttack are among the major stadiums in the state.
Anubhav Patnaik is an Indian politician currently serving as the Advisor to E & IT Department of Odisha Government in the rank of Minister of State. He was the sitting MLA from Khandapada constituency for the state assembly of Odisha from 2014-2019. He is the son of Late Arun Kumar Patnaik, an erstwhile MLA of the state assembly. He has also been appointed as spokesperson by the ruling party of Odisha, Biju Janata Dal and secretary in charge of “Women Empowerment” for BJD.
Prem Anand is an Indian music director and composer. He usually works in Odia film and television industry. In 2006, he started his career as a music director through the Odia movie Tu Eka Ama Saha Bharasa and worked as a music director in more than 60 Odia films. Apart from Odia films, he composed music for Odia daily shops, Bhajans and Jatra songs. In 2009, Anand worked as a music director for the Hindi film Dekha Bhai Dekh in 2019, he composed music for Bollywood film Luv U Turn. Apart from Odia and Hindi films, he composed music for Marathi and Bengali films. He composed the 2023 Men's FIH Hockey World Cup anthem.
The 2023 Men's FIH Hockey World Cup was the 15th edition of the Men's FIH Hockey World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for men's national field hockey teams organized by the International Hockey Federation. It was held at the Kalinga Hockey Stadium in Bhubaneswar and at the 20,000 seat Birsa Munda International Hockey Stadium in Rourkela, India from 13 to 29 January 2023.
Odisha Naval Tata Hockey High Performance Centre (ONTH-HPC) is a professional field hockey institute located at Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India. It was launched on 13 August 2019 after Government of Odisha, Tata Steel & Tata Trusts joined hands to initiate a three-pronged program under the HPC banner of Government of Odisha. It is one of the 11 HPCs at the Kalinga Stadium which have been set up under the governance of Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik and Commissioner Cum Secy Sports Shri Vineel Krishna, who have been very influential in development of sports in the state.
Cuttack Netaji Bus Terminal or CNBT, is a hi-tech bus stand currently being built by the Odisha Bridge and Construction Corporation (OBCC) over 14.95 acres of land in Khannagar, Cuttack at a cost of ₹90.2 crores. A three-storey bus terminal building has been constructed over two acre land with numerous facilities in offing. The bus terminal is named after the illustrious son of Odisha, Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose.
Kartikeyan Pandian, is a former member of the Biju Janata Dal from the state of Odisha and a former IAS officer.
