Athmallik | |
|---|---|
Town and Sub-Divisional headquarter | |
 Panchadhara Ghati, Athmallik Sub-Division | |
  Athmallik Location in Odisha Show map of Odisha Athmallik Athmallik (India) Show map of India | |
| Coordinates:20°43′11″N84°31′48″E / 20.71972°N 84.53000°E /20.71972; 84.53000 | |
| Country |  India |
| State | Odisha |
| District | Angul |
| Sub-Division | Athmallik |
| Area | |
• Total | 1,890 km2 (730 sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+05:30 (IST) |
| PIN | 759125 |
| Telephone code | 06763 |
| Nearest city | Boudh,Angul,Sambalpur,Sonepur |
| Avg. summer temperature | 48 °C (118 °F) |
| Avg. winter temperature | 08 °C (46 °F) |
Athmallik[1] is a sub-division and its headquarter inAngul district inOdisha, India, and also anotified area council. It previously came underDhenkanal district but after the creation of Angul district in April 1993 it then came under Angul. The Athmallik sub-division of Angul district includes Athmallik andKishorenagar blocks and tehsils.
Athmallik was initially an estate (jagir) which was recognized as aprincely state in 1874. Athmallik was one of the 26 feudatory states of Odisha. Kaintragarh was the capital of Athmallik State, being carved out of the erstwhileBaudh ex-feudatory state.
In the 11th century, the princely state, established by King Pratap Deo, a scion of the Kadamba Dynasty. Pratap Deo was said to have found aHonda (Metal Vessel) which was considered to be lucky enough, after which the territory was then named as "Hondpa". In the course of time, one of the chiefs divided the ex-state into eight divisions and placed one sub-chief called "Malla" in each division with a view of suppressing the unruly tribes; on this basis the kingdom changed its name from "Hondpa" to "Athmallik".
One of the most prominent Zamindari includes Zamindari of Aida-Kalamati held by the House of Mishras-Sambalpur since the 1870s. The Zamindari was granted by the Raja of Athmallik state to be an independent functioning administrative Zamindari and thus they were allowed to use His Highness title informally along the Rajas. The state merged with Dhenknal from the rule of Kishore Chandra Deo in 1948 and remained under Dhenkanal District until 31 March 1993. Due to bifurcation of the District Athmallik, a Sub-Division, is now under Angul District, as from 1993.
Rajas of the princely states are as follows:[2]
The Panchadhara hills, on the northern side of Athmallik acts as a physical barrier for natural disasters such as floods and storms. The length of thePanchdhar Range is around 100 km and its height is around 400 meters and its width is around 5 km.
The mountain range separates Athmallik city from Thakurgarh andBoinda and provides a shelter for wild animals like elephants, leopards, bears, wolves, deer, wild goats, wild boars and various types of birds.
TheMahanadi River passes through Athmallik sub-division. The Mahanadi, which floods every year, is known as the "Tragedy of Athmallik". The river separates the Angul and Boudh districts. I is the only natural source of water for the people of Athmallik.
There are only two tributaries near Athmallik. One is Malipadar Canal which provides the larger portion of water to Mahanadi from Athmallik region, another is the Liploi canal - which is a small canal.
As of 2001[update] Indiacensus,[3] Athmallik had a population of 11,383. Males constitute 52% of the population and females 48%. Athmallik has an average literacy rate of 65%, higher than the national average of 59.5%; with 59% of the males and 41% of females literate. 13% of the population is under 6 years of age.
Due to the geography of the region bordering the western odisha, the language and culture of Athmallik sub-division is largely influenced by the western Odisha culture orSambalpuri culture. The local language of Athmallik Sub-division is called asAthmallikia which closely related tosambalpuri. many festivals which are celebrated in Western Odisha likePushpuni, Bhai Jiuntia, Pua Jiuntia,Sitalsasthi, Karma Parba festivals are celebrated in Athmallik sub-division.The biggest festival ofWestern Odisha,Nuakhai, is also celebrated in Athmallik Sub Division.
TheDanda Nrutya is oldest folk festival of Athmallik. It is a century old tradition dedicated to lord Shiva and goddess Kali followed since whenAthmallik is existed. It is observed in all over the Athmallik Sub-Division.It is celebrated in summer season or in Odia month Chaitra of every year. It is a public festival of Athmallik.
The GoddessMaaMaheswari is the Presiding Deity of Athmallik Sub Division.Maa Maheswari is worshiped in the region since the Kadamba Dynasty is established the Athmallik State.Rath Yatra festival also is the most celebrated public festival of Athmallik.
Athmallik Sub-division is the birthplace ofSwedish artistP. K. Mahanandia. Mahanndia painted a portrait ofIndira Gandhi before he rode by bicycle to Sweden to reunite with his Swedish wife, Charlotte "Lotta" von Schedvin.[4]
Athmallik is located 235 kilometres (146 mi) fromBhubaneswar, 200 kilometres (120 mi) fromCuttack and 160 kilometres (99 mi) fromSambalpur and is well connected by road.National Highway 55 passes through it. The nearest railway station is atBoinda 36 kilometres (22 mi) away andBamur is 43 kilometres (27 mi) away. The nearest airports areVeer Surendra Sai Airport andBiju Patnaik Airport.
A circuit house (reservation authority is sub-collector, Athmallik), an inspection bungalow of public works department (reservation authority is executive engineer, R & B, Dhenkanal), a guest house of Manjore Irrigation Project (reservation authority Executive Engineer) and a dharmasala managed by NAC provide accommodation facilities to the tourists. However the comfort loving travellers are advised to stay at Angul and cover the shrine in a day by hiring a vehicle.
Athmallik has several educational institutions. It houses manyOdia, Hindi, and English-medium schools. Athamallik College (junior and degree) is the key centre for education in this area.
Pasayat, C. (1994), "Myth and Reality in Little Tradition: A Study of Dandanata in Orissa" inMan in India, Vol.74, No.4, December 1994, pp. 413–427.
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