Jeypore

Jeypore is one of the largest towns of Koraput district of Orissa. It is one of the important places in Orissa along with Bhubaneswar, Cuttack, Sambalpur, Rourkela, Balasore and Berhampur. It is bounded by the Eastern Ghats and the Araku hills on three sides and Chattisgarh on the western side.

With improvement in commercialisation and globalisation, Jeypore is developing into a major business hub in Orissa. Jeypore is an ancient town that reflects the history of Orissa in the form of temples and ancient forts. Oriya is the major language spoken here and other than Oriya, there are people who speak Telugu and Hindi.

Earlier the economy of Jeypore was totally dependent on agriculture but with the advancement of industrialisation in its economy now many popular industries have their units here. The major business units established here include Sewa paper mills – a part of BILT, NALCO, HAL and several local rice mills.

Other than these business units, the natural resources available in the dense forests and granite deposits on the hills also contribute to the income. Apart from natural products, animal products and leather products are also available here.

A major festival celebrated here is the Ghata Porbo, ‘Procession of the Goddess’. This event is held during the summer season. Other than the procession, the cultural dances of the devotees along with the drumbeats are the highlights of the festival.

The Dussehera celebrations and Rathyatra at Jeypore is considered one of the best in India. The local cuisines of Jeypore are a combination of dishes from the South and East, like pakhala, mutton kasa, machha besara are served with South Indian dishes like idli, dosa, puri and upma.

Some of the popular places here are Bagra, located on Kolab River, the Shiva Temple at Papadahandi, the Batris Simhasan located at Nandapur and Sunabeda. The waterfalls at Duduma, which are formed by the Machhakund River, are used for hydroelectric power. The place is also one of the important pilgrimages here.

Other places of religious importance are Gupteswar, where the shrine of lord Shiva is located on top of the limestone hill and Minna Jhola, the place where the Temple of lord Shiva is located. Fairs are held here during the time of Shivratri. Some of the popular waterfalls of India are located in Hatipathar nearby, where two waterfalls are formed of the river Nagavali.