All about Dhenkanal

Jay Panda's Heijau comes to Dhenkanal town

2018-10-02T15:21:00.002-04:00

With both State and National elections another 7 months away, Dhenkanal is getting attention from Jay Panda. His Heijau initiative is very different and far more people friendly than current leaders of this day and age who prefer to deliver speeches from podium and social media. Looking at the video of the procession, it could be gauged that the movement is gaining momentum in various towns in Odisha. Currently, BJD led by Naveen Patnaik looking at his 5th term as Chief Minister, Congress seem to be losing its 2nd position, BJP lacking fire power to deliver knock out punch, and an emergence of a new group of disgruntled Biju loyalists.

For Dhenkanal Lok Sabha's seat: will Tathagata Satpathy be able to hold on to it against anti-incumbency? Will K P Singhdeo make a come back or his wards make an entry? Will there be new faces? For Dhenkanal Sadar Assembly seat: will there be a new face from BJP? will Nabin Nanda contest as independent? The coming 7 months will certainly through up many new twists and turns in Dhenkanal and Odisha politics. Keep watching the spectacle as it happens once in 5 years !!!

(Source: Twitter, @PandaJay)

Video Link

Dhenkanal School boy going to participate in National level Chess Championship

2018-09-19T13:40:00.000-04:00

Bishnu Beshra, a Class VII student of B B High School, Dhenkanal, is going to partake in the forthcoming National level Chess Championship in Telengana. According FIDE website, Bishnu has an ELO rating of 1031. Best wishes to Bishnu for the championship.

Medical college to be set up in Dhenkanal Parliamentray Constituency

2018-09-13T15:11:00.001-04:00

The Union Minister of State for Health Ashwini Kumar Choubey has announced setting up of a medical college in the Dhenkanal parliamentary constituency. It's noteworthy to mention that Dhenkanal Lok Sabha constituency consists of 7 legislative assembly segments, namely, Dhenkanal, Parjanga, Kamakhyanagar, Hindlo, Angul, Talcher, and Pallahara. The minister has asked the state government to identify land for the purpose. This will be really a boost for the people of the area as their nearest Medical colleges are at ~ 200 KMs away in Sambalapur and Cuttack. Hope the proposal gets going before both, State and Central, governments demit office in May 2019.

Dhenakanl IIMC receives Deemed university status

2018-09-12T04:48:00.001-04:00

The Indian Institute of Mass Communication centers located at Delhi and Dhenkanal, Odisha has been granted deemed university status. Last year, the HRD Ministry had recommended their elevation to UGC. The Commission allowed the status after its commitee visited both campuses recently. Just to add Indian Institute of Mass Communication is the premier Government institite to imart education in journalism. One of its center was set up in Dhenkanal, Odisha in the year 1993 thanks to the effort of erstwhile Information and Broadcasting Minister K P Singh Deo.

News article

Road: How to reach Dhenkanal from Bhubaneswar

2018-09-12T01:12:00.000-04:00

Dhenkanal is about 100 KMs from state capital, Bhubaneswar. The cities are connected through 4-lane National Highways and all-weather road.
There are 2 primary routes to reach Dhenkanal town from Bhubaneswar. The first one takes National Highway 16 (NH 16) from Bhubaneswar- Cuttack-Jagatpur-Manguli Chowk for a distance of ~ 60 KM. The stretch usually sees heavy truck traffic because of its prominence of NH 16 which connects two metropolitan cities Kolkata, Bengal with Chennai, Tamilnadu. At Manguli, it takes a left to NH 55 through Choudwar- Khuntuni to Dhenkanal. This passage with filled picturesque scene of trees, forests and mountains.

Bus:
Buses run between both cities round the clock. People traveling farther can take direct buses from Bhubaneswar to Angul, Talcher, Sambalpur, Rourkela, etc. The long distance buses (to Sambalpur, Rourkela, Jharsuguda) typically run in night time and start from 7:00 PM up to 10:00 PM. One traveling to Dhenkanal can get on the buses and alight either at Dhenkanal Bus Stand or Dhenkanal bypass. They do not spend specified stoppage time at stops. These buses drive fast and the travel time from Bhubaneswar is about an hour or else.
The buses going to Angul and Talcher start running at ~ 5:30 AM from Bhubaneswar and run up to ~ 6:00 PM. These buses invariably go through Dhenkanal Bus Stop and allow 10 minutes for people to alight/enter.
If one is traveling light (few luggage and people), he/can take one bus from Bhubaneswar to Cuttack. And subsequently, switch to another bus to travel to Cuttack. Though quicker for travelling during the day, this assumes that the passenger knows the way around.

Boarding and alighting points:
There are multiple locations for boarding the bus to Dhenkanal. The buses typically start from Bhubaneswar's Master Canteen (or Railway Station) or Baramunda bus stand. They also stop at Cuttack's Bust Stand (also known as Badambadi) and Railway Station (OMP). Their locations are given below Google Maps for easy navigation.

Bhubaneswar:
i. Master Canteen/Railway Station
ii. Baramunda/Khandagiri Bus Stand
iii. Biju Pattnaik International Airport

Cuttack:
i. Badambadi Bus Stand

Dhenkanal:
i. Bus Stand
ii. By-pass Bus Stop
iii. Railway Station

Ola/Uber:
Cab aggregator services, Ola and Uber, have started offering services in Bhubaneswar. One coming to Odisha by air can hail one cab from the airport to travel to Dhenkanal. This option will certainly take least amount time could be expensive.

There are multiple ways one can reach Dhenkanal. While Bus is the cheapest, car/taxi/cab is the expensive and quicker option.

Laxmi Puja 2018: Dhenkanal celebrates Laxmi Puja from October 24-31, 2018

2018-09-08T16:50:00.000-04:00

Dhenkanal is going to celebrate famous Laxmi Puja from October 24-31, 2018 this year. The district administration will also organize the Palishree Mela and Cultural festival during this occassion. Hosted by Ormas and Dhenkanal District Administration, the fair will be organized at the Mahisapat Bypass ground. About 250 stall will be put up by artists from around India showcasing their handwork in the fair.

Find details at http://www.dharitri.com/main/news/69389

Laxmi Puja 2010: Pictures of immersion procession

2010-11-21T19:25:00.001-05:00

Pictures of bhasani procession of Dhenkanal's Laxmi Puja 2010.
Source: dhenkanal.nic.in

Anand Bazar

Chandan Bazar

Deula Sahi

Durga Bazar

Ganesh Bazar

Gudianali

Jawahar Chowk

Kanchan Bazar

Laxmi Bazar

Mahavir Bazar

Padma Bazar

Radhakrushna Bazar

Dhenkanal Laxmi Puja 2010: Pictures of Puja Mandaps

2010-11-20T18:23:00.001-05:00

Here are a few pictures of pandals made during Dhenkanal's famous Laxmi Puja 2010.

Anand Bazar

Baji Chowk

Bus Stand

Chandan Bazar

Ganesh Bazar

Golden Street

Jawahar Chowk

Kanchan Bazar

Laxmi Bazar

Mahabir Bazar

Meena Bazar

Padma Bazar

Source: dhenkanal.nic.in

IIMC, Dhenkanal Launches Mobile News Service

2010-11-19T14:25:00.001-05:00

The IIMC, Dhenkanal has launched a Mobile News Service that will provide real-time news updates on sports, business, politics, and entertainment. This students-operated service will be exclusively meant for the students, and staffs of the institute.

Source: http://orissamatters.com/2010/10/21/3232-mobile-news-service/

Lok Sabha approves Orissa's name as 'Odisha', Oriya as 'Odia

2010-11-09T16:36:00.007-05:00

"On the first day of Parliament's Winter Session, the Lok Sabha here today passed the Orissa (Alteration of Name) Bill and approved the name of Orissa state to 'Odisha', and its language to 'Odia' from Oriya."

Link 1:

Projects under the MPLAD program (Rajya Sabha-Rudra Narayan Pany)

2010-11-06T20:37:00.001-04:00

Here is the list of projects running under MPLAD program funded by Rajya Sabha MP Rudra Narayan Pany. (Source: http://dhenkanal.nic.in/dpo/MPLADS.htm)

SANCTIONED PROJECT LIST UNDER MPLADS IN RESPECT OF

Sj. RUDRA NARAYAN PANY, HON'BLE M.P. (RAJYA SABHA)

FOR THE YEAR 2009-10

Year	Name of District	Executing Agency	Name of Project	Amount Sanctioned	Status
2009-10	ANGUL	BDO PALLAHARA	CONST OF COMM CENTRE NEAR KHAMARA SULIA HINGULA MANDIR,	50000	Ongoing
2009-10	ANGUL	BDO PALLAHARA	CONST OF COMM CENTRE NEAR TARENI MANDIR, KARADAPAL, NETANALA	50000	Ongoing
2009-10	ANGUL	BDO PALLAHARA	CONST OF BOUNDARYWALL OF COMM CENTRE NEAR ITI RADHAKRUSHNA MANDIR	50000	Ongoing
2009-10	ANGUL	BDO PALLAHARA	CONST OF PANIHARA UP SCHOOL, COMPOUNDWALL	50000	Ongoing
2009-10	ANGUL	BDO PALLAHARA	COMPLETION OF KOCHIABEDA COMM CENTRE,	50000	Ongoing
2009-10	DHENKANAL	BDO GONDIA	CONCSTRUCTION OF RAITALA KAMANA MANDAP	100000	Ongoing
2009-10	DHENKANAL	BDO GONDIA	CONST OF NILAMADHABA SABAR SAMAJ MANDAP, JHILLI VILLAGE, BIDHARPUR GP	100000	Ongoing
2009-10	ANGUL	BDO CHHENDIPADA	CONST OF CLASSROOM OF SARASWATI SHISHU MANDIR AT KOSHALA, ANGUL DISTRICT	120000	Ongoing
2009-10	ANGUL	BDO TALCHER	CONSTRUCTION OF CLASSROOM OF VIVEKANANDA VIDYA MANDIR NEAR ASH POND, ANANDA BAZAR, SANTHAPADA, TALCHER BLOCK	180000	Ongoing
2009-10	ANGUL	BDO CHHENDIPADA	CONST OF BOUNDARYWALL OF TUKUDA HIGH SCHOOL, TUKUDA GP, CHHENDIPADA BLOCK	180000	Ongoing
2009-10	ANGUL	COLLECTOR, ANGUL	CONSTRUCTION OF BOUNDARYWALL OF COMMUNITY CENTRE NEAR SWAMI LAXMANANANDA ASHRAM BANARPAL BLOCK	200000	Ongoing
2009-10	DHENKANAL	BDO SADAR	CONST OF CULTURAL MANDAP NEAR RAM MANDIR, REGEDA VILLAGE, UASADIHA GP	200000	Ongoing
2009-10	DHENKANAL	BDO ODAPADA	IMPROVEMENT OF ROAD FROM NADABA TO KADAMA BERENA	200000	Ongoing
2009-10	PURI	BDO NIMAPADA	CONSTRUCTION OF CLASSROOM OF KHELLAR SARASWATI SHISHU MANDIR, NIMAPADA BLOCK	300000	Ongoing
2009-10	DHENKANAL	BDO HINDOL	ELECTRIFICATION IN NIZIGARH AREA	500000	Ongoing
			Total	2330000

List of Projects under Dhenkanal MPLAD program (Loksabha- Tathagata Satpathy)

2010-11-05T20:19:00.001-04:00

I always wondered how are the MPs spending their money obtained under the MPLAD program. Here are the projects (Source: http://dhenkanal.nic.in/dpo/MPLADS.htm).

(15^TH LOK SABHA, 2009-10 )

SANCTIONED PROJECT LIST UNDER MPLADS IN RESPECT OF

Sj. TATHAGAT SATPATHY, HON'BLE M.P. (15^TH LOK SABHA)

Sl. No	Year	Executing Agency	Name of Project	Amount Sanctioned	Expenditure	Status
1	2	3	4	5	6	7
1	2009-10	EE,R&B,DKL	Const of Gate House cum Dressing room of main Stadium (Phase-IV)	499800		Not Started
2	2009-10	BDO, Gondia	Const of Community Centre near Ram Mandir Vill / GP-Poruhakhoj	300000	65000	Ongoing
3	2009-10	BDO, Parjang	Const of Class room of Saptadhara High School, Patharkhamba, GP- Muktapasi	200000		Not Started
4	2009-10	BDO, Gondia	Const of Community Centre near Neelamadhav Temple Vill-Jhilli, GP-Bidharpur	300000		Ongoing
5	2009-10	BDO, Gondia	Const of Community Centre near Dehury Sahi, Vill-Dehury Sahi, GP-Poruhakhoj.	300000		Ongoing
6	2009-10	BDO, Gondia	Const of Community Centre Vill-Nilakanthapur Sasan GP- Mathatentulia.	200000		Not Started
7	2009-10	BDO, Odapada	Const of class room of Malibido UP School, GP-Bido	200000		Not Started
8	2009-10	EE,PHD, Cuttack	Deep Tube well with hand pump at Ward No-2, Kunjakanta, DKL Municipality.	131000		Ongoing
9	2009-10	BDO, Sadar	Const of Community Centre at Oukhama Tala sahi near Maa Mahamai Temple, GP- CS Prasad	200000		Not Started
10	2009-10	BDO, Kamakhyanagar	Const of Maa Kali Jai SHG Mahasangha building at Ichhabatipur, GP- Baruan.	270000		Ongoing
11	2009-10	BDO, Kamakhyanagar	Const of Krushi Krusak Bhawan at Godabhanga near Hadagada, G.P.- Sogar	500000		Not Started
12	2009-10	EO, Angul Municipality	Const of CC Road and Guardwall from Adwait Prasad Pradhan house to Mayadhar Pradhan house in Brahmanideipada in Ward No-4, Angul Municipality.	500000		Not Started
			Total	3600800	65000

Dhenkanal's Laxmi Puja 2010

2010-11-02T11:38:00.001-04:00

Here is a video of Dhenkanal's Laxmi Puja 2010. I miss the fun and excitement of this festival.

Modernization of Dhenkanal Busstand

2010-10-30T18:44:00.001-04:00

The state government has decided to modernize seven buststands, including Dhenkanal, in the next 2 years. The work on the project is going to start in coming 2 months.

The Makers of Modern India

2010-10-28T15:18:00.000-04:00

A must watch for people who love India and its history.

The ‘Beijing Model’ has failed

2010-10-18T03:18:00.000-04:00

The ‘Beijing Model’ has failed

A great article on why freedom is speech, though sometimes leads to chaos, is good for the society.

“Innovation that happens from the bottom up tends to be chaotic but smart. Innovation that happens from the top down tends to be orderly but dumb.”

Sarangdhar bridge in danger

2010-07-27T13:08:00.000-04:00

The Sarangdhar bridge over Brahmani river that connects Kamakhyanagar with the district headquarter was inaugurated in 1993 by the then Chief Minister Biju Pattanaik. Daily 3,000 vehicles ply over the bridge helping people from Kamakhyanagar, Bhuban, Kankadahad, Parjang reach Dhenkanal for their daily activity. After 17 years, the condition of bridge has deteriorated and needs urgent fixing.

Campaign for International Airport in Orissa (text by Prof. Chitta Baral)

2010-07-24T17:10:00.005-04:00

Please send an email to Prime Minister (pmosb@pmo.nic.in), Civil Aviation Mnister (praful@sansad.nic.in), and Chief Minister of Orissa (cmo@ori.nic.in) on this issue. You can use the following text written by Prof. Chitta Baral to register your concern.

Dear all:

To further take Orissa and Bhubaneswar in the path of progress airports and international airports are an important component. For that reason we are currently having the following campaign. Please read the draft below and send it to the following addresses

"Dr. Manmohan Singh" <pmosb@pmo.nic.in>, praful@sansad.nic.in, Chief Minister <cmo@ori.nic.in>, ps.moca@nic.in, secy.moca@nic.in, ctsec@ori.nic.in, "Sonia Gandhi" <soniagandhi@sansad.nic.in>, ortour@orissatourism.gov.in

with copy to whatever journalists that you may know of. A list of Orissa journalists is at http://www.orissa.gov.in/I&pr/pdf/State_lebel_*journalist*.pdf.

You can use the draft below and make changes to your liking.

** Make up a subject line of your choice
** Make sure you sign your name. If possible put your address.

==================================================================================

To: Dr. Manmohan Singh

Prime Minister, Government of India

Mr. Praful Patel

Minister of Civil Aviation

Government of India

CC: Mr. Naveen Patnaik
Chief Minister, Government of Orissa

Dear Dr. Singh and Mr. Patel:

Yet again Orissa is being neglected with respect to infrastructure development. While there are news reports [3] that Visakhapatnam airport will soon become an international airport, *your government is neglecting
the just demands of making Bhubaneswar an international airport even though the later would serve a much bigger population, will be the only international airport in the state, and as per your own data currently has 50% more daily flights than Visakhapatnam.*

Is this because Congress rules in Andhra Pradesh and is in the opposition in Orissa?

Sir: We would like you to think about even development across India and not just about states ruled by the Congress party.

We would like to request you to designate the Bhubaneswar airport as an international airport and have Air India (Express) flights directly connecting Bhubaneswar to international destinations, starting with one or more south East Asian destinations such as Bangkok and Singapore. We would also like you to expedite the establishment and operationalization of a commercial airport in Jharsuguda which will cater to the industrial belt of Sambalpur-Jharsuguda-Sundergarh-Rourkela of Orissa and the Ib valley that encompasses Chhatisgarh and Orissa.

The Bhubaneswar airport caters to the capital area of Orissa and its nearby areas. While the larger metropolitan area of Bhubaneswar [Map1] has a population of 19 lakhs [1], a 200kms radius of around Bhubaneswar consists of 14 of the 21 parliamentary constituencies of Orissa (Berhampur, Aska, Puri, Bhubaneswar, Cuttack, Dhenkanal, Jajpur, Balasore, Bhadrak, Kendrapada, Jagatsignhpur, Mayurbhanj, Keonjhar, Phulbani) with a population of about 3 crores.

This area includes several large population centers [Map2] as well as existing and emerging industrial hubs. These centers and hubs are Berhampur to the south, Puri and Paradeep to the east, Angul-Talcher to the west, Kalinganagar, Dhamara and Balasore to the North. The area also includes top tourist destinations such as Puri, Bhubaneswar, Chilika, as well as the Buddhist monuments of Orissa which are of special interest to East Asia. As you may know Buddhism spread to East Asia and beyond when Emperor Ashoka became Dharmshoka on the bank of the Daya river on the outskirts of Bhubaneswar.

The area is also ripe for a logistic corridor with existing excellent Rail, Road, and Ports connectivity and with a national waterway under works. Thus an international airport would also make it a multi-modal logistic hub.

The Bhubaneswar airport has a runway of 9000 feet and it is being extended to 10,500 feet.

Currently, four airlines have regular flights linking Bhubaneswar, three of which have international operations. They are Kingfisher, Jetlite (of Jet) and Air India. The 4th airline connecting Bhubaneswar is Indigo which
commenced operations in India on 4th August 2006 and would be eligible for international flights in 2011.

The average number of flights operating from Bhubaneswar [2] is 50, which is more than with respect to airports in Calicut – 50, Nagpur – 48, Coimbatore – 42, Mangalore – 30, Patna – 27, Srinagar – 27, Amritsar – 27, Trichy –21, Varanasi – 16, Port Blair – 15, Tirupati – 9, Gaya – 1 all of which have been designated as international or customs airports. In addition, there have been recent reports [3] that Visakhapatnam with an average of 33 flights will soon be an international airport.

In [Map3] we map the international and custom airports of India and as anyone would notice there is a big gap around Bhubaneswar.

With Bhubaneswar emerging as an IT, Knowledge/Education and Tourism hub, and Odisha among the leaders in terms of incoming investments it is imperative that the Bhubaneswar airport be made to an international airport urgently.

We sincerely request you to shed your partisan attitude of neglecting the non-Congress ruled state of Orissa (in favor of Congress ruled states like Andhra Pradesh) and take immediate action on that front and declare Bhubaneswar as an international airport and commence international flights to/from Bhubaneswar.

[1] http://www.orissalinks.com/orissagrowth/archives/1846
[2] http://pib.nic.in/release/release.asp?relid=55629
[3] http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Visakhapatnam/article478992.ece
[4] http://pib.nic.in/release/release.asp?relid=55628

Sincerely,

======================

*APPENDIX 1*

From http://pib.nic.in/release/release.asp?relid=55628

The average number of flights operated in a day from each of the International Airports in the country is as under: Mumbai(MIAL) - 654, Delhi (DIAL) - 666, Chennai - 306, Banglore (BIAL) - 280, Kolkata - 231, Hyderabad (GHIAL) - 219, Cochin - 112, Ahmedabad- 107, Guwahati - 90, Trivandrum - 71, Goa - 64, Calicut - 50, Jaipur - 66, Nagpur - 48, Port Blair - 15, Srinagar - 27, Amritsar - 27, Pune - 66, Indore - 61, Juhu - 60, Bhopal - 59, Lucknow - 56, Vadodra - 54, *Bhubaneswar* - 50, Coimbatore - 42, *Visakhapatnam - 33*, Ranchi - 32, Raipur - 31, Mangalore - 30, Patna - 27, Jammu- 23, Agartala - 23, Trichy - 21, Chandigarh - 21, Udaipur -21, Imphal - 19, Madurai - 20, Bagdogra - 19, Varanasi - 16, Aurangabad - 14, Silchar - 11, Tirupati - 9,Jodhpur - 7, Leh - 6, Rajkot - 6, Gaya - 1.

*APPENDIX 2*
FROM http://pib.nic.in/release/release.asp?relid=55628

So far, seventeen airports in the country have been accorded “International Status”. These airports are Ahmedabad, Amritsar, Calicut, Chennai, Guwahati, Jaipur, Kolkata, Thiruvananthapuram, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Kochi, Delhi, Mumbai, Nagpur, Goa, Port Blair and Srinagar. Of these, eight airports, namely, Ahmedabad, Amritsar, Calicut, Chennai, Guwahati, Jaipur, Kolkata and Thiruvananthapuram belong to Airports Authority of India (AAI) and three Civil Enclaves, namely, Goa, Port Blair and Srinagar are maintained by AAI. AAI provides CNS / ATM services for five airports managed by Joint Venture Companies at Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Delhi, Mumbai and Nagpur and for one private airport at Kochi. At Goa, Port Blair and Srinagar, which belong to Defence, AAI only maintains Civil Enclaves and CNS/ATM services are provided by Defence. In addition, Tirupathi airport has been declared as an international airport subject to the condition that the international airport may be made operational only after requisite facilities have been put in place.

Some airports are notified as Customs airports which can also cater to international flights. The customs airports are Varanasai, Tiruchirapalli (Trichy), Patna, Mangalore, Lucknow, Gaya, Coimbatore and Pune (civil enclave).

*APPENDIX 3 *

From http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Visakhapatnam/article478992.ece

Favourable reply to Rosaiah’s letter to Union Ministry likely next month

International flights may very soon begin to land at the Visakhapatnam airport with the State Government taking firm initiative to get permission from the Union Government to formally declare it an International Airport.

The Department of Investment and Infrastructure now with Chief Minister Konijeti Roshaiah has written to Ministry of Civil Aviation to accord the requisite permission for the airport and a favourable reply was likely in July.

*MAPS*:

*MAP 1: Greater Bhubaneswar area as per the CDP made by IIT Kharagpur*

*MAP 2: Population centers and industry hubs around the Bhubaneswar area (within about 200kms)*

*MAP 3: International and Custom Airports of India (showing the big gap around Bhubaneswar)*

Dhenkanal's Laxmi Puja 2009

2009-11-01T14:37:00.002-05:00

Here is a clip of Dhenkanal celebrating the Laxmi Puja in the year 2009.

Puja celebration ends with immersion of Laxmi idols

2008-10-25T01:22:00.001-04:00

The famous Laxmi Puja celebration came to an end with immersion of Laxmi idols on Friday evening.

Derelict condition of Dhenkanal Railway Station

2008-10-23T19:07:00.003-04:00

This news article highlights the dilapidated condition prevailing at the 81-year-old Dhenkanal railway station.

Puja Celebrations

2008-10-17T22:23:00.008-04:00

A few more news clippings on Dhenkanal's ongoing Laxmi Puja.

- A total of 36 puja pendals constructed in this edition of Puja celebration (Read here)
- Dhenkanal Mahotsav and Gramshree Fair gets underway. (Read here)
- Octopus ride and Nagaland's Giant: major attractions of Laxmi Puja (Read here)

Tons of paper will be spent on eulogizing Tendulkar's feat today. If you have interested in reading another piece on him, please read this article on Tendulkar by one of the most revered Cricket writers, Peter Roebuck.
- Another article on Tendulkar's achievement

Also read ten athletes who changed the face of sport (watch out for Kapil Dev's name)

Dhenkanal in Laxmi-Puja Mode

2008-10-15T21:42:00.003-04:00

Dhenkanal is celebrating the 85th Laxmi Puja with fervor and gusto.

Histroy behind Dhenkanal's Laxmi Puja

2008-10-14T23:34:00.006-04:00

Laxmi Puja in Dhenkanal started way back in 1923 at Kunja Sahu Chowk -presently known as Ganesha Bazaar. Subsequently all other bazars, sahis and organizations constructed their own idols and started celebrating the puja. Currently, 36 puja pratistans participate in this 10-day (sometimes 2 weeks) long celebrations. These pratistans are spread over a 7-km stretch of road starting from College road to Korian Chhak.

Given below are the bazars and the year they joined in the Laxmi Puja celebrations.

1923: Kunja Sahu Chowk (Ganesh Bazar)
1943: Meena Bazar
1948: Jawahar Chowk
1949: Laxmi Bazar
1950: Ganesh Bazar
1951: kanchan Bazar
1952: Anand Bazar
1955: Karigar Sahi
1957: Golden Street (or Gudianali)
1958: Radha Krushna Bazar, Padma Bazar and Kunjakanta
1959: Kaibalya Bazar
1960: Jublee Town II
1963: Arnapurna Puja Santhan and Station Bazar
1965: Ratna Bazar
1967: Chandan Bazar
1969: Gandhi Bazar and Bus Stand
1971: Korian
1975: Durga Bazar
1976: Kalika Nagar
1978: Nehru Bazar
1982: Jublee Town III and Nua Bazar

Dhenkanal's Laxmi Puja

2008-10-14T00:54:00.004-04:00

Dhenkanal celebrates 85th Laxmi Puja in traditional style...

Read more

PS: This is the 7th year in a row that I have been unable to make it to the Laxmi Puja. I am missing all the fun and frolic.