About Cuttack district-odikala

0 comments

Cuttack district is one of the 30 districts of Odisha state in East India. Its administrative headquarters are located in the city of Cuttack. As of 2011, it is the second most populous district of Odisha (out of 30), after Ganjam

Transport:-

Air

Cuttack has an Air Base named Charbatia Air Base for the exclusive use of the Indian Air Force. The nearest commercial airport is the Biju Patnaik Airport at Bhubaneswar, about 28 km away.

Road

On 28 April 2010, the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways officially published a new numbering system for the National highway network in the Gazette of the Government of India. As per the new numbering National Highway 16 (former National Highway 5) runs from North to South of the City. As a part of the Golden Quadrilateral project, this highway runs from Chennai to Kolkata.National Highway 55 (former National Highway 42) connects Cuttack with Sambalpur. Also Asian Highway 45 passes through the city. Feeder State Highways connect Cuttack to Jajpur, Paradeep, Talcher, Angul, Kendrapara and nearby towns in Cuttack district. Intra city transport is primarily through Auto rickshaws. Nowadays DTS city buses ply in the city to join different places in the city and the state capital. Cuttack is a major junction connecting all the major parts of the state. The bus terminus at Cuttack is located at Badambadi, and is one of the largest bus terminus in India, and thousands of private and government buses ply to hundreds of destinations everyday. A new bus terminus at Balikuda is under construction to relieve pressure off the Badambadi Bus Terminus.

Night view of Cuttack Railway Station

Rail

Cuttack Junction is one of the important stations on the Howrah, Kolkata-Chennai mainline of the East Coast Railway and falls under the Khurda Road division. A branch line to Paradeep starts from Cuttack. It is connected to all parts of India through trains run by the Indian Railways.The Cuttack Railway station is selected to be developed as a multi-functional railway station with a food courts shopping plaza, theatres to be developed. Other railway stations in the city are Baranga Junction, Balikuda, Matagajpur, Kandarpur, Kathajodi, Kendrapara Road, Kapilas Road, Manguli, Nergundi and Naraj.

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 the city. With Katak Chandi being worshipped 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 (near Barbati, 14 km from the city centre), Bhattarika Temple, Dhabaleswar temple, Charchika Temple, Panchamukhi Hanuman 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 pillarless 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

Cuttack celebrates festivals from all religions with much fanfare and devotion.

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 Sona 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 (the eighth, ninth and tenth days of Dussehra) 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 (called Gadgadia ghat) 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 (which was then Cuttack). 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.

All the other regular Indian festivals like Ganesh Chaturthi, Vasant Panchami, Holi, Id, Good Friday, Rath Yatra, Diwali, Christmas and the numerous Hindu festivals are celebrated here.

Tourism:-

Dhabaleshwar Temple:

Dhabaleshwar Temple is located on the shoreline of river Mahanadi, 37 km from Cuttack city, Orissa, India. Devoted to Lord Shiva, this godly shrine with its pure green environs, lifts up one's spirits to a morally superior plane.

Bhattarika Temple:
Bhattarika Temple, located in sasanga village, baramba, Athgarh, Cuttack District, India is dedicated to the Hindu Goddess Maa Bhattarika worshipped as a manifestation of Shakti. The temple is situated on the banks of the River Mahanadi. As per Puranic tradition, Parasuram facing certain defeat at the hands of Saharasjuna prayed to Durga who appeared on this spot to impart her divine power to the aid of Parashuram.

Ansupa :
Nearer to Athagarh, Ansupa is a small but picturesque lake offering an asylum to migratory birds in winter. The water spread is ideal for fishing and boating. The nearest bus stop is Athagarh. Regular bus services are available up to Athagarh from Cuttack. One has to travel the road distance from Athagarh to Ansupa (14 kms) either by hired Taxi/ Auto rickshaw

Barabati Fort:

The ruins of Barabati Fort with its most and gate and the earthen mounded of the nine-storied palace of the Ganga dynasty lie on the bank of the river Mahanadi as the silent witness of the vicissitudes of Odisha history. Another item of interest is the Barabati stadium adjacent to the fort. The stadium with its impressive structures covers an area of twenty-five acres and affords sitting capacity for thirty-five thousand persons.

Latlitgiri :

One of the earliest Buddhist sites, Lalitgiri was visited by the Chinese traveller Huien T Sang in the seventh century A.D. The large numbers of antiquities excavated here testify this place to be a part of the Puspagiri Buddha Vihar. Regular bus services are available from Cuttack to Paradeep and Kendrapara via Chandikhol.

Cuttack Chandi:
The Katak Chandi Temple is an ancient temple dedicated to the Goddess Chandi, the presiding deity of Cuttack, Odisha. The temple is located nearby the banks of the Mahanadi River. It is famous for the annual Durga Puja and Kali Puja festivals.

Barabati Stadium:

The Barabati Stadium is a cricket and association football venue in the east Indian city of Cuttack, Odisha. It is the home ground of Odisha cricket team and is operated by Odisha Cricket Association.
Odisha First Division League football matches are also held at the stadium. The Barabati Stadium is one of the older grounds in India, having hosted several touring sides including the MCC, the West Indies team and the Australians before it hosted its first international match.

Ravenshaw University:
Ravenshaw University earlier known as Ravenshaw College is the premier educational institution of Odisha established in 1868.

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 a 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.