Berhampur (; also known as Brahmapur) is a
city
A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...
on the eastern coastline of
Odisha
Odisha (), formerly Orissa (List of renamed places in India, the official name until 2011), is a States and union territories of India, state located in East India, Eastern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by ar ...
,
India
India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
. Known as the "Silk City" it is the headquarter of
Ganjam
Ganjam is a town and a notified area council in Ganjam district in the state of Odisha, India. Brahmapur, Odisha, Brahmapur, one of the major city of Odisha, is situated in this district on the eastern coastline.
Geography
Ganjam is located at ...
district and home to Odisha's one of the major and the oldest railway station. It rank the
4th most populous town of Odisha. Berhampur is also called the "food capital of Odisha".
Etymology
The name of the city is said to have been derived from the name of Brahmeswara, a deity in Hinduism, worshipped in a temple at Lathi, 4 km from the main city.
History
Ancient and Medieval Period
Berhampur, along with regions of southern Odisha, have been a core part of ancient
Kalinga empire.
Jaugada also known as ''Samapa'', 35 km away from Berhampur on the banks of the
Rushikulya, was an ancient fort and city existing from 3rd century BC to 7th century AD. Its existence before and after this time period cannot be ruled out. After
Kalinga war, Samapa turned into a provincial headquarter of
Maurya empire
The Maurya Empire was a geographically extensive Iron Age historical power in South Asia with its power base in Magadha. Founded by Chandragupta Maurya around c. 320 BCE, it existed in loose-knit fashion until 185 BCE. The primary source ...
along with ''Dhauli'' as evident from the edicts found at both places. Specific history about the place and civilisation does not exist after the Maurya rule and the fort is now buried.
As per
Ain-i-Akbari
The ''Ain-i-Akbari'' (), or the "Administration of Akbar", is a 16th-century detailed document regarding the administration of the Mughal Empire under Emperor Akbar, written by his court historian, Abu'l Fazl, in the Persian language. It forms ...
, this region used to be called ''Kalinga Dandapat'' which was an administrative division of the Odishan empire under the
Eastern Ganga dynasty and later the
Gajapati dynasty.
Berhampur is also known as the Silk city for its famous
Berhampur Patta (silk) Sarees. The chief of the Dera community, Kota Chandramani Kubera Senapati, led his community people to migrate to Mohuri (Berhampur) who settle down into their hereditary profession of weaving tussar silken products or ''Patta Matha''. They migrated to the city from
Rajahmundry
Rajahmundry ( ), officially Rajamahendravaram, is a city in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh and district headquarters of East Godavari district. It is the fifth most populated city in the state. During British rule, the district of Rajahmu ...
(they were known as ''Devanga''s there) sometime during 1662-1672 on the request of the then Raja Harihar Narayan Deo of Mohuri zamindari. The cult of ''Buddhi Thakurani Yatra'' also originated along with the emergence of weaver community in here. They started the ''Ghata Yatra'' (Pot Festival) for the purpose of highlighting the tradition of worshiping the Goddesses as well as to use it as a platform for sales promotion of their silken products.
Period of British Rule
The Ganjam Garhjat area was consisted of 22 zamindaris of various royal lineages. The French invaded Ganjam in 1759 (in the battle of Deccan) and quit in 1763. The British imposed their authority over southern Odisha in 1766 and placed the whole region under the
Madras Presidency
The Madras Presidency or Madras Province, officially called the Presidency of Fort St. George until 1937, was an administrative subdivision (province) of British India and later the Dominion of India. At its greatest extent, the presidency i ...
. The district headquarters of
Ganjam district
Ganjam is a district in the Indian state of Odisha. Ganjam's total area is 8,206 km² (3,168 mi²).
The district headquarters is Chhatrapur. Ganjam is divided into three sub-divisions: Chhatrapur, Berhampur, and Bhanjanagar.
As of ...
started functioning in 1768 from
Potagarh. An epidemic broke out in 1815 and that forced the authorities to shift the headquarters to Berhampur including the civil and military personnels. Berhampur was the capital and residence of the Mohuri (Mahuri) zamindar. But the Ganjam collectorate could not continue for a long time and shifted to
Chhatrapur in 1831 due to stiff resistance here. After the auction and abolishing the
Ghumusar and
Sorada zamindari in 1836, Britishers auctioned Mohuri zamindari in 1850 over non payment of tax dues and introduced
Ryotwari
The ryotwari system was a land revenue system in Company rule in India, British India introduced by Thomas Munro, 1st Baronet, Thomas Munro, which allowed the government to deal directly with the cultivator ('ryot') for revenue collection and gav ...
system of tax collection which led to Raja Krushna Chandra Narendra Deo out of power. The then value of Mohuri, which was a leading zamindari, was valued at 50 lakh rupees but no Indian dared to come forward to bid for it. So, it was auctioned for only 100 rupees. Britishers were stationed at Bhapur area, at the centre of Berhampur. They built military lines, a military hospital, a magazine house and a parade ground for sepoys there. Subsequently, Berhampur was formed into a
Taluk
A tehsil (, also known as tahsil, taluk, or taluka () is a local unit of administrative division in India and Pakistan. It is a subdistrict of the area within a district including the designated populated place that serves as its administrative ...
and was kept under a senior assistant collector. The present
Revenue Divisional Commissioner (RDC) residence was his residence. In 1867, Berhampur was declared as a
Municipality
A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate.
The term ''municipality' ...
area and this being a part of Madras Presidency, it attracted further influx of settlers from south because of better engagement in business sectors. The bi-lingualism (
Odia and
Telugu) prevails since that time. The
Brahmapur railway station started functioning by 1900. This had profound effects in the transport system and mobility of passengers. The population in 1901 was 25729 which increased to 62343 by 1951 as per census report. The colonial town generated a considerable amount of interest among Indian scholars who linked the important issues of modernity, national aspirations, notions of citizenship and the creation of new artistic sensibilities. The city is also known for its love for the theatre and cinema. The ''Ganjam Kala Parishad'' and ''Prakasam Hall'' are one of the oldest theatre halls in the country. The ''Sri Sitaram Vilas Talkies'' is the oldest movie hall in Odisha which was established in 1927 but closed down after the devastating
1999 Odisha cyclone.
Role in Orissa Province formation
Berhampur was where
Odias assembled and started their agitations more than three decades prior to demanding introduction of Odia as a subject in the
Madras University
The University of Madras is a public university, public State university (India), state university in Chennai (Madras), Tamil Nadu, India. Established in 1857, it is one of the oldest and most prominent universities in India, incorporated by an ...
and recognition of
Odia language
Odia (;["Odia"](_blank)
''Lexico''. , ISO 15919, ISO: , ; formerly rendere ...
in courts and government offices of Ganjam. This paved the path for the public grievances. In 1903 at the First
Utkal Union Conference at
Cuttack
Cuttack (, or officially Kataka in Odia language, Odia ), is the former capital, deputy capital and the 2nd largest city of the Indian state of Odisha. It is also the headquarters of the Cuttack district. The name of the city is an anglicised f ...
, Raghava Rao from Berhampur moved a resolution which called separation of the district of Ganjam,
Ganjam Hill Tracts Agency and
Vizagapatam Hill Tracts Agency from
Madras Presidency
The Madras Presidency or Madras Province, officially called the Presidency of Fort St. George until 1937, was an administrative subdivision (province) of British India and later the Dominion of India. At its greatest extent, the presidency i ...
. Subsequently, an annual conference of the Ganjam Jatiya Samiti (Ganjam National Conference) was held in 11 & 12 April 1903 at Berhampur. It saw the participation of some leaders from Odisha like
Madhusudan Das
Madhusudan Das (28 April 1848 – 4 February 1934) was an Indian lawyer and social reformer, who founded Utkal Sammilani in 1903 to campaign for the unification of Odisha along with its social and industrial development. He was one of the pro ...
,
Gopabandhu Das,
Radhanath Ray,
Nanda Kishore Bal and
Fakir Mohan Senapati. After continuous efforts the undivided
Sambalpur district was transferred to
Orissa division from
Central Provinces and Berar on 1 September 1905. Although the long standing claims of Odias of Ganjam was ignored. On 1912,
Bihar and Orissa Province formed without Ganjam district and Vizagapatnam Agency. Although Telugus opposed the amalgamation of Berhampur, the leaders
of the Andhra Movement advocated that, provinces were to be created on a linguistic basis. Some Telugus like Dr. B.Pattabhisitarameya, a nationalist, proposed to include Odia regions of Ganjam and Vizagapatnam to merge with Orissa. N. Subha Rao, a
Telugu member of the
Imperial Legislative Council
The Imperial Legislative Council (ILC) was the legislature of British Raj, British India from 1861 to 1947. It was established under the Government of India Act 1858 by providing for the addition of six additional members to the Governor General ...
pleaded for the same with some compensatory gain. Sri Rama Rayanger, a member of Council of
Governor-General of India
The governor-general of India (1833 to 1950, from 1858 to 1947 the viceroy and governor-general of India, commonly shortened to viceroy of India) was the representative of the monarch of the United Kingdom in their capacity as the emperor o ...
strongly supported the amalgamation. He presided over a meeting at Berhampur where both Odias and Telugus attended and he said that both groups suffered under the Madras government. From 1920 to 1936, the Odia Movement became more active and vigorous after British administration ignored the demands of the Odias in their
Government of India Act 1919
The Government of India Act 1919 ( 9 & 10 Geo. 5. c. 101) was an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It was passed to expand participation of Indians in the government of India. The act embodied the reforms recommended in the report ...
. Prominent leaders of Odisha repeatedly put the amalgamation question in the Provincial Legislative Councils, the
Imperial Legislative Council
The Imperial Legislative Council (ILC) was the legislature of British Raj, British India from 1861 to 1947. It was established under the Government of India Act 1858 by providing for the addition of six additional members to the Governor General ...
and even in the
British Parliament
The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, and may also legislate for the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace of ...
.
Mahatma Gandhi
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (2October 186930January 1948) was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalism, anti-colonial nationalist, and political ethics, political ethicist who employed nonviolent resistance to lead the successful Indian ...
when he visited Berhampur on 29 March 1921 appealed to the non-odias to yield to the demand of Odisha amalgamation. When he returned he wrote an article supporting the demands of Odias in ''Young India''. In 1928 when the
Simon Commission
The Indian Statutory Commission, also known as the Simon Commission, was a group of seven members of the British Parliament under the chairmanship of John Simon. The commission arrived in the Indian subcontinent in 1928 to study constitutional ...
visited India,
Krushna Chandra Gajapati, the Maharaja of
Paralakhemundi Estate and Bhubaneswar Rath of Berhampur appeared before the commission at
Madras
Chennai, also known as Madras ( its official name until 1996), is the capital and largest city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost state of India. It is located on the Coromandel Coast of the Bay of Bengal. According to the 2011 Indian ce ...
and presented memorandum claiming merger. The commission recommended the merger on the basis of linguistic pattern and appoint a sub-committee, to conduct
detailed investigation. The report of the Simon Commission led to the summoning of the
Round Table Conference in
London
London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
in 1930. The Maharaja of Paralakhemundi, leading an Odia delegate to the conference circulated a pamphlet, ''The Oriyas, their need and reasons for separate state''. The Government of India appointed a boundary commission for Orissa with S.P. O'Oonell as Chairman whose report was opposed by Odias as it only recommended the inclusion of the plains and the agency of Ganjam and excluded areas like
Paralakhemundi, Manjusa, Tekali, Tarla etc. Odia speaking people in and around Berhampur town tried their best to justify the linguistic affinity and socio-cultural attachment with the Odias of Odisha and Odia speaking people outside Odisha. They argued how under non-odia census officers, the population of Odias decreased from census to census. People realised Berhampur could become a noble point in the growth of socio-political consciousness and that territorial dismemberment of Odia speaking areas was the reason for backwardness under British rule. On 25 March 1933,
Sashibhusan Rath led an Odia delegation to the Collector of Ganjam. Similarly at many places in and around Berhampur protest meetings were organized demanding the merger of Paralakhemundi in Orissa. The Maharaja of Paralakhemundi again went to London to give evidence before the Joint Select Committee and after strenuous efforts he was able to include the Odia majority portion of
Paralakhemundi Estate along with its town and
Jeypore Estate in the new province of Orissa. In line with the recommendation of the Joint Select Committee, the
Government of India Act of 1935 was passed by the British Parliament and the
Orissa Province was formed in 1st April 1936.
Geography
Climate
Maximum summer temperature is 40 °C; minimum winter temperature is 22 °C. The mean daily maximum temperature varies from 27 °C to 32 °C. May is the hottest month; January is the coldest. The average annual rainfall is 1190 mm and the region receives monsoon and torrential rainfall from July to October.
Administration
The city is administered by the Berhampur Municipal Corporation (BeMC). The city used to be the first municipality which was formed in 1867, and was upgraded to a municipal corporation on 29 December 2008. The Municipal body completed its 150 years in 2017.
The Revenue Divisional Commissioner (RDC) of Southern range is located in Berhampur and covers the undivided
Ganjam
Ganjam is a town and a notified area council in Ganjam district in the state of Odisha, India. Brahmapur, Odisha, Brahmapur, one of the major city of Odisha, is situated in this district on the eastern coastline.
Geography
Ganjam is located at ...
,
Koraput,
Kandhamal
Kandhamal district also known as Phulbani district is a district in the States and territories of India, state of Odisha, India. The District headquarters is the city of Phulbani. It is a district full with natural beauties includes wild animals ...
, and
Kalahandi districts.
The headquarters for ''Berhampur Tehsil'', ''District Education Office (Ganjam)'' and ''Berhampur Sub-Division'' are also situated here.
Demographics
Census of
India
India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
(provisional), the population of Berhampur was 355,823, of which 185,584 were males and 170,239 were females making it the fourth most populous urban city in Odisha state
and
126th in India.
The effective literacy rate of Berhampur was 90.04%, higher than the national average of 74.04%. Male and female literacy rates were 93.83% and 85.92%, respectively. 8.2% of the population were children ages 0–6 years. The adult and child sex ratios were 917 and 898 females per 1000 males, respectively.
Census of
India
India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
(provisional), the population of Berhampur was 356,598, of which 185,754 were males and 170,844 were females making it the fourth most populous urban city in Odisha state
and
126th in India.
Transportation
Road
Brahmapur city is connected with National Highways
NH-16 (
Chennai
Chennai, also known as Madras (List of renamed places in India#Tamil Nadu, its official name until 1996), is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Tamil Nadu by population, largest city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost states and ...
–
Kolkata
Kolkata, also known as Calcutta ( its official name until 2001), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of West Bengal. It lies on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River, west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary ...
),
NH-59 (Brahmapur-Khariar),
NH-516 (Narendrapur-Gopalpur), State Highway 17 (Odisha) and State Highway 22 (Odisha) which connect almost all other cities and towns of Odisha.
Three-wheeler auto taxis are the most important mode of transportation in this city, with Taxis also on the city's roads. Online "C-cabs" and "ola" taxi-service app is also available. The state government has constructed a new bus station at Haladiapadar, at the outskirts of the city. The
Ganjam
Ganjam is a town and a notified area council in Ganjam district in the state of Odisha, India. Brahmapur, Odisha, Brahmapur, one of the major city of Odisha, is situated in this district on the eastern coastline.
Geography
Ganjam is located at ...
Urban Transport Services Limited (GUTSL) with joint partnership with Odisha State Road Transport Corporation (OSRTC) have an agreement to run a city-bus service for Brahmapur to urban centres on its periphery (
Chatrapur,
Gopalpur and
Hinjili, Taratarini, Bhairabi) since 27 February 2014.
Rail
Brahmapur is served by its own railway station under the Khurda Road division of
East Coast Railway, and is situated in the Howrah - Chennai Main Line.
Air
The city has an airport at
Rangeilunda.
The airstrip was in use during
British Raj
The British Raj ( ; from Hindustani language, Hindustani , 'reign', 'rule' or 'government') was the colonial rule of the British The Crown, Crown on the Indian subcontinent,
*
* lasting from 1858 to 1947.
*
* It is also called Crown rule ...
and
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
. However, post independence, it has lied in a dilapidated condition with no scope of expansion due to its adjacence to
Berhampur University. Demands for a new greenfield airport have been echoing throughout the years but have remained futile due to government inaction.
In 2018, the airport was selected for developing it into a commercial airport by the
government's UDAN scheme. In view of this, in March 2023, it started commercial operations to
Bhubaneswar
Bhubaneswar () is the capital and the largest city of the States and territories of India, Indian state of Odisha. It is located in the Khordha district. The suburban region, especially the old town, was historically often depicted as ''Chakra ...
, with flights operated twice a week.
Sea
The
Gopalpur port was recommissioned after renovation and expansion.
Institutions
*
Berhampur University
*
Binayak Acharya College
*
Ganjam Law College
*
IISER Berhampur
*
Kalam Institute of Technology
*
Khallikote Unitary University
*
Lingaraj Law College
*
Maharaja Krushna Chandra Gajapati Medical College and Hospital
*
NIST University
*
Parala Maharaja Engineering College
*
Roland Institute of Technology
*
Uma Charan Patnaik Engineering School
*
Vignan Institute of Technology and Management
*
Asian Institute of Social Science & Technology (AISST)
*
Berhampur City College
*
Berhampur School of Engineering & Technology
*
Bharat Institute of Engineering & Technology Polytechnic College
*
Biju Patnaik Homeopathic Medical College & Hospital
*
Biswakarma ITI
*
Brundaban Nayak Memorial Industrial Training Centre
*
College of Fisheries, Rangeilunda (
OUAT)
*
College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Mohuda
*
Disha College of Management and Technology
*
Gandhi Academy of Technology and Engineering (GATE)
*
Gandhi School of Engineering (GSE)
*
Gayatri Institute of Science & Technology
*
Government ITI, Brahmapur
*
Imperial College of Hotel Management & Tourism
*
Kaviraj Ananta Tripathy Sharma Ayurvedic Medical College and Hospital
*
Mahamayee Mahila Mahavidyalaya
*
New Hope Society School of Nursing
*
Om Sai College of Pharmacy & Health Science
*
PG Centre For Management Studies
*
Rahul Institute of Technology
*
Roland Institute of Computer and Management
*
Roland Institute of Pharmaceutical Science
*
Royal College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences
*
Samrat College
*
Sanjaya Memorial Institute of Technology
*
Sashi Bhusan Rath Government Women's College
*
School of Nursing & Health Sciences, Bijipur
*
Shalom Institute of Management Studies
*
Sivananda College of Pharmacy
*
Xavier College of Hotel Management
Culture
Brahmapur is famous for its food, markets and also known as the food capital of Odisha.
The most famous markets are Annapurna Market, Bada Bazaar, Sano Bazaar, Bhapur Bazaar, Giri Market, Hanuman Market, Ganesh Market, and Sai Complex. The
mango
A mango is an edible stone fruit produced by the tropical tree '' Mangifera indica''. It originated from the region between northwestern Myanmar, Bangladesh, and northeastern India. ''M. indica'' has been cultivated in South and Southeast As ...
market of Brahmapur is one of the largest wholesale mango markets in India. The Balunkeswara Bana Market here is one of the largest in the state.
Arts
Brahmapur has been an important site of the state's culture due to its unique Odia culture and has held several national level Odia and Telugu literary meets.
Sri Sitaram Vilas Talkies (SSVT) was the first cinema theatre in Odisha.
There has been a critical lack of museums. The open air Scrap Museum near ITI is one of the largest in India.
Festivals
The Thakurani Jatra(biennial) is the most important festival in the city and is one of the state festivals of Odisha.
The cult of Buddhi Thakurani originated along with the emergence of Brahmapur town in and around 1672 AD. The Ghata Yatra was initiated for the purpose of highlighting the tradition of worshiping Thakurani as well as to use it as a platform for sales promotion of silken products.
The date for Thakurani Yatra was fixed by the yatra management committee at the house of Desi Behera, Chief of the Dera community. Buddhi Thakurani is considered as the daughter of the Desi Behera and the deity stays with her father's family during the entire Yatra period.
Politics
Brahmapur is under the jurisdiction of
Berhampur (Lok Sabha constituency)
Brahmapur is a Lok Sabha parliamentary constituency in Odisha, India.
Assembly Segments
Elected Members
Since its formation in 1952, 18 elections have been held till date. It was a two member constituency in 1957.
List of members el ...
. The part of
Berhampur Assembly Constituency and
Gopalpur Assembly Constituency spread over the city.
Notable people
*
Binayak Acharya, former Chief Minister of Odisha
*
V. V. Giri, former President of India
*
Kota Harinarayana, scientist, former Programme Director and Chief Designer of India's Light Combat Aircraft
Tejas programme
*
Celina Jaitly, actress and model, studied at Khallikote College
*
Madhu Sudhan Kanungo, scientist, academician and teacher
*
K Ravi Kumar, won gold in weightlifting at 2010 Commonwealth Games and also participated in 2012 London Olympics.
*
Lisa Mishra, American singer and actress
*
Sisir Mishra, film director (Hindi, Odia)
*
Sidhant Mohapatra, actor and politician.
*
Lingaraj Panigrahi, former Chief Justice of
Orissa High Court and politician
*
Sanjukta Panigrahi, Odissi dancer
*
Sulagna Panigrahi, actress
*
Arun K. Pati, quantum physicist
*
A. P. Patro
Rao Bahadur Sir Annepu Parasuramdas Patro KCIE (1875 or 1876–1946) was an Indian politician, ''zamindar'' and education minister in the erstwhile Madras Presidency.
Patro was born in a rich and powerful family of Berhampur, Madras Presidenc ...
, Minister of Public Works and Education (Madras Presidency) (1921–1926)
*
W. V. V. B. Ramalingam, mathematics teacher and freedom fighter
*
Waheeda Rehman, actress and dancer started her career at Ganjam Kala Parishad, Berhampur.
*
Anchal Sahu, television actress
References
{{Authority control
Cities and towns in Ganjam district
Port cities in India