Cuttack district
Cuttack district is one of the 30 districts of Odisha state in India. Its administrative headquarters are located in the city of Cuttack. As of 2011 Census, after Ganjam, it is the second most populous district of Odisha, with a population of 2,624,470. The name is an anglicised form of Kataka or Katak which literally means The Fort a reference to the ancient Barabati Fort.
Geography and Climate
The district covers an area of 3,932 km². The geographical location of the district is 20.517° N latitude and 85.726° E longitude. From the point of view of climatology, the average annual precipitation over the district is about 1,440 mm, most of which occurs during south-west monsoon period. The temperature seems moderate for the area throughout the year except for the summer season, where the average maximum temperature is 41 °C. The average minimum temperature over the district is 10 °C.Divisions
Sub-divisions: Cuttack, Athagarh, BankiThis district was subdivided into 15 tehsils and 15 Revenue Blocks. The tehsils are Banki, Cuttack, Niali, Salepur, Choudwar, Mahanga, Kishannagar, Athagad, Baramba, Narasinghpur, Tigiria, Baranga, Kantapada, Nischintakoili and Damapada. The last four were created in 2008.
Education
- Ravenshaw University is in Cuttack.
- Piloo Mody College Of Architecture is in Cuttack
- Sailabala Women's College is in Cuttack
- National Law University Odisha is located in CDA Sector-13, Cuttack.
Culture
Religious Places
There are religious establishments often built within close proximity of each other in Cuttack.- Katak Chandi Temple: The temple of goddess Katak Chandi is probably the most famous religious establishment of city. With Katak Chandi being worshiped as the main goddess, the temple has smaller temples of other Gods and goddesses in its small compound. Not far away is the Gada Chandi temple which is inside the Barabati Fort. There is a temple of Lord Shiva on the banks of Mahanadi River, and near the fort, known as Gada Gadia temple.
- Paramahansa Nath Temple: Cuttack also hosts the Paramahansa Nath temple, Bhattarika Temple, Dhabaleswar temple, Charchika Temple, and the oldest temple is Charchika Temple. The Barabati fort houses the Gada Chandi temple which is one of the oldest temples in Cuttack. The Dhabaleswar temple is located on an island in the river Mahanadi and is connected to the mainland by a long hanging bridge. The pillar less hanging bridge is unique of its kind in India.
- Daatan Sahib Gurdwara: A holy historical Sikh shrine, the Gurdwara Daatan Sahib is where the first Sikh Guru, Shree Guru Nanak Dev, halted on his way to Puri. It is believed that a tree branch planted by him after using it as a tooth cleaner still flourishes here, hence the name Daatan Sahib. Cuttack houses several churches that include holy Rosary church, Oriya Baptist church, etc. Cuttack town enjoyed for a pretty long time the honour of being the seat of political authority of the Muslims in Odisha. During this period numerous Muslim monuments were built in Cuttack. It has various mosques, like Qadam-E-Rasool, Juma Masjid, etc.
- Jama Masjid: The word Jama means big, and this is the oldest, biggest masjid of Cuttack. It was built during the Mughal era. It possesses several rooms for visitors and students. Earlier there used to be a Madrasa in this mosque. However, since last 10 years, the Madrasa is shifted out. The neighbourhoods surrounding the Juma Masjid are inhabited both by Hindus and Muslims.
Festivals
- Dusshera, the festival of goddess Durga, is very popular in Cuttack. There are thousands of idols are worshiped in many streets and localities. In this city, Dussehra is famous for its Chandi o Suna Medhas, in which the idols are adorned with huge amounts of gold and silver, with localities trying to outsmart each other by constructing more attractive idols. Cuttack comes to a standstill on Astami, Navami and in Dashami burning of effigy of the demon Ravana as people travel all over the city appreciating the idols put forth by the neighbourhoods.''
- Kali puja: Just after Durga puja gets over, Cuttackis gear up with all their vigour to celebrate Kali puja. On the auspicious day of Diwali amidst the bursting of firecrackers on the banks of Mahanadi people celebrate the victory of good over evil and pay tribute to the goddess Kali.
- But the festival which Cuttackis look forward to most is the Bali Yatra. Bali Yatra is supposedly the second largest trade festival in Asia. In olden times, merchants used to trade with South-East Asian countries. Whatever items they brought from those places after trading Oriya goods used to be put up for sale in the capital. People from all over the state and beyond used to come to Cuttack to buy these items. Bali Yatra is the festival of continuing this ancient tradition. It is held every year in November on the banks of the Mahanadi. "Bali Yatra" literally means a festival to celebrate the trade that the ancient Oriyas had with the island of Bali in the ancient days. Many stalls are set up selling both local and exotic goods. People from all over Odisha come to the Baliyatra to buy items, as was the custom back in those days.
- Kartikeshwar puja: The organized puja committees in charge of carrying out the worship of the deity of Cuttack get ready for Kartikeswar Puja. Kartikeshwar is the eldest son of Lord Shiva. Nowhere else except Sabarimala is the Kartikeswar puja carried out with so much elan.
- Kite flying is celebrated with much enthusiasm and energy in the city. Kite-flying culminates with the Makar Sankranti, with kite-flying competitions being held all over.
Economy
Cuttack is widely known as the commercial capital of Odisha. It is believed to have the largest GDP among all cities in Odisha due to its large business houses and wide range of industries ranging from ferrous alloys, steel and logistics to agriculture and traditional industries like textiles and handicrafts. There are many trading houses in the city renowned nationally and internationally. The Port of Paradip around 85 km from the city facilitates the process.Large-scale industries
There are 11 large-scale industries in and around Cuttack mostly in Choudwar and Athagarh and many more in the pipeline. These industries include steel, power, automobile, alloys, fireclay, etc. Indian Metals & Ferro Alloys, the country's largest producer of ferrous alloys is in Choudwar, Cuttack. A mega-auto complex is in implementation stages on the city's outskirts.Traditional industries
The legacy of Cuttack in traditional industries in enviable. The city is second largest hub for textiles in eastern India after Raipur. The city's annual textile trade generates over a billion dollars. A large textile park is planned by giving a facelift to the erstwhile Orissa Textile Mills on city outskirts. Cuttack is famous for its glory of craftsmanship of handicraft work in silver filigree. These fine and unique handicraft works add significantly to the local economy.Logistics and other industries
The number of medium- and small-scale industries concentrated around Cuttack is by far the largest among the cities in the state. The industrial estates in and around Cuttack numbers around eight. Jagatpur and Khapuria are industrial estates inside the city. A large chunk of these serve as ancillary industries for the big industrial houses in Odisha and other states.Cuttack occupies a very significant place in the logistics map of the country. It connects the upper mineral-advanced districts and states to the Kolkata-Chennai corridor at the meeting point of NH-42 and NH-5 at Manguli Square.
The proximity to Paradip Port comes as an added advantage. OSL Group, one of the leading stevedore firms of the country is headquartered in Cuttack. Cuttack, being the largest business hub of the state is the nodal point of trade and transport. It also has the largest wholesale commodities market of the state at Malgodown and Chatrabazaar catering to the whole state.
Primary and service sector
Agriculture is a mainstay of Cuttack's economy. The nearby villages are known for their high-quality and surplus production of crops, vegetables and fruits. These are usually sold at the largest mandi of the state at Chatrabazaar inside the city. The presence of Central Rice Research Institute , the largest rice research institute in Asia, adds to the importance of Cuttack in the agricultural map of the country.Being the former capital of the state and a big business hub, many central and state government and corporate offices are in Cuttack. The service sector is quite large. The people of nearby districts are heavily depended on the city for their livelihood, contributing to the service sector and, thus, the floating population. The presence of Odisha High Court and the SCB Medical & College, the largest medical institution in the state, further nourishes the service sector. The Oriya film industry, Ollywood, is based in Cuttack and adds to its economy. Education is a major industry due to large number of universities, colleges, schools and coaching centres and caters to the neighboring districts.
Demographics
According to the 2011 census Cuttack district has a population of 2,624,470, roughly equal to the nation of Kuwait or the US state of Nevada. This gives it a ranking of 156th in India. The district has a population density of. Its population growth rate over the decade 2001-2011 was 11.86%. Cuttack has a sex ratio of 955 females for every 1000 males, and a literacy rate of 84.2%.At the time of the 2011 Census of India, 91.36% of the population in the district spoke Odia, 4.66% Urdu, 1.39% Hindi, 0.86% Bengali and 0.78% Telugu as their first language.
Important Places
TempleOdisha State Maritime Museum
Barabati Fort
Besides these places there are also many interesting places.
Politics
Vidhan sabha constituencies
The following is the 9 Vidhan sabha constituencies of Cuttack district and the elected members of that area| No. | Constituency | Reservation | Extent of the Assembly Constituency | Member of 14th Assembly | Party |
| 87 | Baramba | - | Baramba, Baramba Narasinghapur | Debiprasad Mishra | BJD |
| 88 | Banki | - | Banki, Banki, Banki-Damapara, Baranga | Pravata Kumar Tripathy | BJD |
| 89 | Athgarh | - | Athgarh, Athgarh, Tigiria, Tangi-Chowdwar | Ranendra Pratap Swain | BJD |
| 90 | Barabati-Cuttack | - | Cuttack | Debashish Samantaray | BJD |
| 91 | Choudwar-Cuttack | - | Chowdwar, Chowdwar, Charbatia, Cuttack , Tangi-Chowdwar | Pravat Ranjan Biswal | BJD |
| 92 | Niali | SC | Niali, Kantapada, Baranga | Pramod Kumar Mallick | BJD |
| 93 | Cuttack Sadar | SC | Cuttack Sadar, Cuttack , Nischintakoili | Chandra sarathi Behera | BJD |
| 87 | Salipur | - | Salipur, Tangi-Chowdwar | Prakash Ch. Behera | INC |
| 95 | Mahanga | - | Mahanga, Nischintakoili | Pratap Jena | BJD |