Orissa, on India's east coast is steeped in history and cultural traditions and is richly endowed with mineral wealth. But sadly, it remains one of India's most under developed states.
Area: 1,55,707 sq km
Population : 3,67,06,920 includes over sixty Adivasi groups.
Main Language : Oriya
Capital : Bhubaneswar

Major Cities :
The two major cities of the state are Bhubaneswar the capital and Cuttack, which lie within 10 kilometres of each other. Puri and Konark are within 60 kilometres of Bhubaneswar; the triangle of Puri, Konark and Bhubaneswar is referred to as Orissa's "golden triangle."

Major Rivers :
The Mahanadi, the Brahmani and the Vaitarani

Physiography :
The state consists of an extensive plateau in the interior which gradually slopes to form a wide coastal plain along the Bay of Bengal. Three important rivers, the Mahanadi, the Brahmani and the Vaitarani flow through the state in a southeasterly direction before meeting the sea. The Hirakud dam built on the Mahanadi near Sambalpur is one of the world's longest dams.
Rourkela and Angul-Nalconagar, which has Asia's largest aluminium plant, are its major industrial cities. Other industrial towns are Rajganpur, Belpahar, Talcher, Koraput, Jeypur and Brajarajnagar. Paradeep is Orissa's only modern port and is slowly being rebuilt after the devastating cyclone of October'99.
Puri, Chandipur and Gopalpur are fast becoming popular beach resorts.
Besides its many ancient and historical monuments, Orissa can boast of beautiful beaches, wild life sanctuaries and a rich handicraft tradition.

More than 2000 years ago, in 261 B.

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