Balangir district


Balangir district, also called Bolangir district, is a district situated in Odisha state of India. The district has an area of, and a population of 1,648,997. The town of Balangir is the district headquarters. The composition of the land is predominantly rural. Other important towns in Balangir district are Titlagarh, Patnagarh, Kantabanji, Loisingha, Saintala, Belpada, Tushra, Agalpur, Deogaon, Chudapali, Biripali, Bhalumunda, Bangomunda, Sindhekela, Kansil, Turekela and Muribahal.

History

The district of Balangir is named after the headquarters town of Balangir. This town was also the headquarters of the feudatory state of Patna since the 1880s. The district of Balangir is flanked in the northwest by the Gandhamardhan hills. Many hill streams traverse it. It is also notable for having experimented in the republican form of Government that was overthrown by Ramai Deo.

Etymology

Ancient history

Historically It's a region of Kalinga, which is ruled by various dynasties like Mahameghavahana dynasty, Bhauma-Kara dynasty, Somavamshi dynasty, Kalachuri Dynasty,Eastern Ganga dynasty, Gajapati Empire & Chauhan over centuries.
The territory comprising the present district of Balangir was in ancient times a part of the South Kosala. According to tradition, the origin of South Kosala dates back to the time of Rama and scholars like Pargiter believe that Rama's long stay in that region gave rise to the name of South Kosala after his original homeland Kosala. According to Padmapurana, the kingdom of Kosala, after Rama, was divided between Lava and Kusa, his two son. Later Kusa founded the city of Kusasthalipura and ruled over the southern half of Kosala.
During the time of Grammarian Panini, a territory named Taitila Janapada flourished to the west of Kalinga and that territory has been associated by historians with the modern town of Titlagarh in Balangir district. Taitala Janapada was famous for trade in some commodities described by the Grammarian as "Kadru" the meaning of which may be either horse or cotton fabrics.
According to Chetiya Jataka, the capital of the Chedi country was Sothivatinagara which is the same as Suktimatipuri of Harivamsa and Suktisahvaya of the Mahabharata. The epic also states that the capital of the Chedis was situated on the bank of river Suktimati which is the Sukhtel river of Balangir district
Thus the ancestors of King of Kalinga Kharavela were from the Balangir district as they were ruling over the territory drained by the Sukhtel river in Balangir, wherefrom they advanced towards the east and became the master of Kalinga by the first century B.C. In the Hathigumpha inscription, Kharavela refers to one Rajashri Vasu as his ancestor, who is probably the same as Vasu, the son of Abhichandra, the founder of Chedi Kingdom. This Vasu may also be identified with Uparichara Vasu of the Mahabharata where hs is described as the King of the Chedis who were ruling in the modern district of Balangir and Subarnapur.
Balangir region continued to be under the rule of Chedis during the first century AD but in the second century it came under the possession of the Satavahanas, whose king was Gautamiputra Satakarni. He is said to have built a magnificent vihara for his philosopher friend Nagarjuna on the Po Lo Mo Lo Ki Li or Parimalagir identified with the modern Gandharmardan hills.

Early history

The earliest noted history of Balangir district dates back to the third century BC. According to Bhagavati Sutra and Harivamsha Purana, Mahavir started his earliest preaching of Dharma at Nalanda, Rajgriha, Paniya Bhumi and Siddharthagrama. According to some scholars, Punita Bhumi is a synonym of Paniya Bhumi as per Odra-Magadhi language. It is the same as Paniya Bhumi or Nagoloka, the present Nagpur, and it is further identified as Bhogapura, the modern Bastar, region of Chhattisgarh, Koraput, Kalahandi and Balangir district of Odisha.
In some of the inscriptions found in Balangir and Sonepur district, it has been mentioned that this part of the land was known as Attavika during Ashoka's invasion of Kalinga in 261 B.C.
The Chinese pilgrim Xuanzang visited Po Lo Mo Lo Ki Li monastery at modern Paikmal in the seventh century AD. It was then having cloisters and lofty halls and those halls were arranged in five tiers each with four courts with temples containing life-size gold images of Buddha
Utkal University Archaeology Prof. Dr. Sadasiva Pradhan excavated the Gumagad site under Gudvela block near the Tel river valley in Balangir district, where he found that a strategic military hub existed in the first century BC. It was set up by a king contemporary to king Kharavela. Four copper plates were also found at Terssingha village which speaks of the Tel valley civilisation. Those plates had information regarding the two capitals – Udayapur and Parbatadwaraka – which were under the rule of Rashtrakutas and local chieftains belonging to different clans. The Udayapur area, the capital of Rashtrakuta kings, who ruled in the valley, still does have standing structures and also the ruins. These are mostly found at Amathgad. Ruins of a medieval fort is also found there.
According to eminent historian and epigraphist Sadananda Agrawal, copper plates were recently found in Kapsila village near Balangir. The found materials were three copper plates tied together by a circular ring and issued by a king named Khadgasimha. It has been dated to the eighth century AD and it informs about new rulers and history of the Tel valley civilization.

Rulers of Ancient Balangir

The chronology of various dynasty who ruled Balangir over the time.
Ranipur-Jharial in Balangir district is another place of historical importance. According to historians this area was known for its Tantra-Vidya throughout India. Somavanshi kings had built many temples here that can be dated back to the eighth-ninth centuries AD. It is said that there were at least 200 temples covering an area of about half a mile in length and a quarter of a mile in width. The largest stone temple is Someswar Siva, which was constructed by a Mattamayura Shaivacharya Gagana Siva whose inscription can be found on the lintel of the temple.
Ranipur-Jharial houses one among the five existing rare monuments of Hypaethral temples dedicated to 64 yoginis in India. The other three are at Hirapur near Bhubaneswar, Khajurao & Bheraghat near Jabalpur, and Dudhai near Lalitpur. The images at Ranipur-Jharial are made of sandstone. The temple of 64 yoginis of Ranipur-Jharial is famous not only for its architecture, but also for its religious significance. Three-faced Natraj Shiva idol stands at the centre of the temple encircled by 64 sculptures of the Yogini goddesses in various positions. Unfortunately with the curse of time, and also due to lack of care only 48 Yoginis are left by now.

Chouhan Rule

Ramai Deo founded the kingdom of Patna in 1360 AD, and within a short span of its aggressive career become the head of the cluster of eighteen Garhs. The Patna kingdom stretched from Raigarh in Chhattisgarh to Bamra in Sundergarh District.
Image:Balangir palace.jpg|thumb|250px|Royal Palace of Balangir
Balaram Deo, the 19th Raja of Patna, founded a town called Balramgarh and shifted the capital of Patna state from Patnagarh to Balramgarh in the early 16th century. Subsequently, the town was renamed as Balangir from Balramgarh. After around 8 years of rule in Patna state, he was awarded the land from river Ang until the boundary of Bamra kingdom by his mother. Subsequently, he founded a kingdom named Sambalpur, which went on to become a strong kingdom.
List of Chouhan rulers of the Patna state
  • Raja Ramai Deo
  • Raja Mahaling Singh Deo
  • Raja Vatsaraja Deo
  • Raja Vaijal Deo I
  • Raja Bhojaraj Deo
  • Raja Pratap Rudra Deo I
  • Raja Bhupal Deo I
  • Raja Vikramaditya Deo I
  • Raja Vaijal Deo II
  • Raja Bajra Hiradhara Deo
  • Raja Narsingh Deo
  • Raja Hamir Deo
  • Raja Pratap Deo II
  • Raja Vikramaditya Deo II
  • Raja Mukunda Deo
  • Raja Balaram Deo
  • Raja Hrudesha Deo
  • Raja Rai Singh Deo
  • Raja Chandra Sekhara Deo
  • Raja Pruthuviraj Deo
  • Raja Ramachandra Deo I
  • Raja Bhupal Deo
  • Maharaja Hiravajra Singh Deo
  • Maharaja Sur Pratap Singh Deo
  • Maharaja Ramchandra Singh Deo II
  • Maharaja Dalaganjan Singh Deo
  • Maharaja Prithviraj Singh Deo
  • Maharaja Sir Rajendra Narayan Singh Deo
  • Maharaja Raj Raj Singh Deo
  • Maharaja Kanak Vardhan Singh Deo

    The Eighteen Garhs

Below is the list of eighteen Garhs which were part of the old Patna State and Sambalpur State during the Chouhan rule. Also known as the Garhjat States.
  • Patna
  • Sumbulpore
  • Sonepoor
  • Bamra
  • Rehracole
  • Gangpoor
  • Boud
  • Atmullick
  • Phooljur
  • Bunnaee
  • Raigarh
  • Buragarh
  • Suktee
  • Chandarpur
  • Sarangarh
  • Bindanawagarh
  • Khariar
  • Borasambar

    List of industries before independence

Though now Balangir is one of the most under-developed districts in Odisha, it was not the same before its merger with Odisha. Ex-Patna State was one of the earliest states in India to have started industries as early as the end of the 17th century.
Below is the list of industries that existed in the area during the pre-merger period.
  • Koshal Transport and Trading Co. Ltd., Balangir
  • Koshal Industrial Development Co. Ltd., Balangir
  • Balangir Trading Co. Ltd., Titlagarh
  • Patna Village Industries Association Ltd, Lathor
  • Rajendra Tile Works Ltd, Titlagarh
  • Koshal Industries Development Syndicate, Balangir
  • Patna State Graphite Mining Co., Titlagarh
  • Patna State Weaving Factory, Balangir
  • Mahavir Jain Weaving Factory, Belgaon
  • Weaving Factory, Manihira, Loisingha
  • Central Jail Weaving Factory, Balangir
  • Handmade Paper Factory, Balangir