Odisha
Odisha, formerly Orissa, is an Indian state located in Eastern India. It is the 8th largest state by area, and the 11th largest by population. The state has the third largest population of Scheduled Tribes in India. It neighbours the states of West Bengal and Jharkhand to the north, Chhattisgarh to the west, Andhra Pradesh to the south. Odisha has a coastline of 485 kilometres (301 mi) along the Bay of Bengal.[15] The region is also known as Utkala and is mentioned in India's national anthem, "Jana Gana Mana". The language of Odisha is Odia, which is one of the Classical Languages of India.
The ancient kingdom of Kalinga, which was invaded by the Mauryan emperor Ashoka (which was again won back from them by king Kharavela) in 261 BCE resulting in the Kalinga War, coincides with the borders of modern-day Odisha. The modern boundaries of Odisha were demarcated by the British Indian government when Orissa Province was established on 1 April 1936, consisting of the Odia-speaking districts of Bihar and Orissa Province. The first of April is celebrated as Utkala Dibasa. Cuttack was made the capital of the region by Anantavarman Chodaganga in c. 1135, after which the city was used as the capital by many rulers, through the British era until 1948. Thereafter, Bhubaneswar became the capital of Odisha.
The economy of Odisha is the 16th-largest state economy in India with ₹5.33 lakh crore (US$71 billion) in gross domestic product and a per capita GDP of ₹116,614 (US$1,500). Odisha ranks 32nd among Indian states in Human Development Index.
Geography
Odisha lies between the latitudes 17.780N and 22.730N, and between longitudes 81.37E and 87.53E. The state has an area of 155,707 km2, which is 4.87% of total area of India, and a coastline of 450 km. In the eastern part of the state lies the coastal plain. It extends from the Subarnarekha River in the north to the Rushikulya river in the south. The lake Chilika is part of the coastal plains. The plains are rich in fertile silt deposited by the six major rivers flowing into the Bay of Bengal: Subarnarekha, Budhabalanga, Baitarani, Brahmani, Mahanadi and Rushikulya. The Central Rice Research Institute (CRRI), a Food and Agriculture Organization-recognised rice gene bank and research institute, is situated on the banks of Mahanadi in Cuttack. The stretch between Puri and Bhadrak in Odisha juts out a little into the sea, making it vulnerable to any cyclonic activity.
Three-quarters of the state is covered in mountain ranges. Deep and broad valleys have been made in them by rivers. These valleys have fertile soil and are densely populated. Odisha also has plateaus and rolling uplands, which have lower elevation than the plateaus. The highest point in the state is Deomali at 1,672 metres in Koraput district. Some other high peaks are: Sinkaram (1,620 m), Golikoda (1,617 m), and Yendrika (1,582 metres).
Languages
Odia is the official language of Odisha and is spoken by 81.32% of the population according to the 2011 census of India. It is also one of the classical languages of India. English is the official language of correspondence between state and the union of India. Spoken Odia is not homogeneous as one can find different dialects spoken across the state. Some of the major dialects found inside the state are Sambalpuri, Cuttacki, Puri, Baleswari, Ganjami, Desiya and Phulbani. In addition to Odia, significant population of people speaking other major Indian languages like Hindi, Telugu, Urdu and Bengali are also found in the state.
The different adibasi communities who mostly reside in Western Odisha have their own languages belonging to Austroasiatic and Dravidian family of languages. Some of these major adibasi languages are Santali, Kui and Ho. Due to increasing contact with outsiders, migration and socioeconomic reasons many of these indigenous languages are slowly getting extinct or are on the verge of getting extinct.
The Odisha Sahitya Academy Award was established in 1957 to actively develop Odia language and literature. The Odisha government launched a portal https://ova.gov.in/en in 2018 to promote Odia language and literature.