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{{About|the district|its eponymous headquarters|Debagarh}}
{{Infobox settlement
| name = Debagarh district
| native_name =
| native_name_lang =
| other_name = Deogarh district
| nickname =
| settlement_type = [[List of districts of Odisha|District]] of [[Odisha]]
| image_skyline = Deojharan water fall.jpg
| image_alt =
| image_caption = Deojharan waterfall
| mapframe = yes
| mapframe-point = none
| map_alt =
| map_caption = Location in Odisha
| coordinates = {{coord|21.533|N|84.733|E|display=inline,title}}
| subdivision_type = Country
| subdivision_name = {{flag|India}}
| subdivision_type1 = [[States and territories of India|State]]
| subdivision_name1 = {{flagicon image|Orissa Flag(INDIA).png}} [[Odisha]]
| established_title = Established
| established_date = 1 January 1994
| founder =
| named_for =
| seat_type = Headquarters
| seat = [[Debagarh|Deogarh]]
| government_type =
| governing_body =
| leader_title1 = [[District collector|Collector]]
| leader_name1 = Somesh Kumar Upadhyay [[Indian Administrative Service|IAS]]
| unit_pref = Metric
| area_footnotes =
| area_rank =
| area_total_km2 = 2781.66
| elevation_footnotes =
| elevation_m =
| population_total = 312,520
| population_as_of = 2011
| population_rank = 30
| population_density_km2 = 106
| population_demonym =
| population_footnotes = <ref name="districtcensus"/>
| demographics_type1 = Languages
| demographics1_title1 = Official
| demographics1_info1 = [[Odia language|Odia]], [[English language|English]]
| demographics1_title2 = Local
| demographics1_info2 = [[Mundari language|Munda]], [[Kurukh language|Kurukh]]
| timezone1 = [[Indian Standard Time|IST]]
| utc_offset1 = +5:30
| postal_code_type = [[Postal Index Number|PIN]]
| postal_code = 768108
| registration_plate = OD-28
| blank1_name_sec1 = [[Human sex ratio|Sex ratio]]
| blank1_info_sec1 = 976 [[male|♂]]/[[female|♀]]
| blank2_name_sec1 = Literacy
| blank2_info_sec1 = 73.07%
| blank3_name_sec1 = [[Odisha Legislative Assembly|Vidhan Sabha]] constituency
| blank3_info_sec1 = 1, Deogarh
| blank1_name_sec2 = [[Climate of India|Climate]]
| blank1_info_sec2 = [[Climatic regions of India|Aw]] ([[Köppen climate classification|Köppen]])
| blank2_name_sec2 = [[Precipitation (meteorology)|Precipitation]]
| blank2_info_sec2 = {{convert|1014.2|mm|in}}
| website = {{URL|www.deogarh.nic.in/}}
| footnotes =
| area_land_km2 = 2150
}}
'''Debagarh district''', also known as '''Deogarh district''', is a district of [[Odisha]] [[States and territories of India|state]], [[India]]. Located in the north-western part of the state, it is one of Odisha's 30 administrative districts and has its headquarters at [[Debagarh]] (Deogarh) town.

The district covers an area of 2781.66 km² and has a population of 312,520 (2011 Census). As of 2011, it is the least populous district of [[Odisha]] (out of [[List of districts of Odisha|30]]).<ref name="districtcensus">{{Cite web |title=District Census Handbook 2011 - Jharsuguda|url=https://censusindia.gov.in/nada/index.php/catalog/928/download/36580/DH_2011_2104_PART_A_DCHB_DEBAGARH.pdf|website=[[Census of India]]|publisher=[[Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India]]}}</ref>

==History==
{{see also|Bamra State}}
The district was created on 1 January 1994 by bifurcating the erstwhile [[Sambalpur district]]. It is domiciled by both tribal and non-tribal people in almost equal proportion.

[[Debagarh|Deogarh]] is the former capital of Bamanda or [[Bamra]] princely state of British India. The king of this princely state belongs to Ganga vamsi dynasty and one of the extended royal family of Gajapati emperor of Odisha.

Raja Shri Basudeb Sudhal Deb (1869–1903) was an enlightened ruler, he did much to further conditions in princely state and for the cause of Oriya nationalism. His contribution was more towards Literature, Education and Art. He established an educational institution, which is currently well known as [[Raja Basu Dev High School]]. His son had equally contributed to the social, cultural and scientific development of Deogarh. Bamanda was the first princely state to introduce postal, telegraph and electricity in India.

Bamanda is a citadel of creative artists which dates back to 5th century A.D. when [[Mathara dynasty|Mathara]] Royal Family was at the helm of the Administration. After this dynasty, Ganga Rulers came into power and established their capital at Deogarh. Deogarh attained all-round prosperity during the reign of Raja Basudev Sudhal Dev, the most enlightened rulers of this clan. A new horizon was innovated in the field of communication by the foundation of Jagannath Ballav press in 1886 and publication of a weekly magazine the "Sambalpur Hitaishini" in 1889. It was during his rule that the jail, police station, post offices, Dispensaries were established and irrigation system was introduced. He had a telephone line of 78 Miles connecting Bamara and Barkote in 1900 was the longest in India during that period. Bamanda's own postal system was very developed. It got affiliated to the British Postal system in 1895. Sir Sudhal Dev, the then King of Bamanda had coined and issued postage stamps in his own Kingdom. He had promulgated paper currency also in his state.

After him, his son Raja Sachidananda Tribhuban Dev undertook the improvement activities of the erstwhile estate. He introduced a hydro-electric system in Kodarkot Waterfall by which the palace, cloth loom, and sugar factory got power supply. During the reign of Bhanuganga Tribhuban Dev, the estate of Bamra was merged with Odisha i.e. on 1 January 1948 and it became a part of the District of Sambalpur.

==Geography==
{|class="wikitable"
|+Facts and Figures
|-
|Date of formation || 01-Jan-1994
|-
|Area ||2781.66 km2
|-
|Forest Land || 1560.22 km2
|-
|Population(2001)|| 2,74,095
|-
|Males || 1,38,913
|-
|Females || 1,35,182
|-
|Population density || 93 per km2
|-
|Sex Ratio || 980 females per 1000 males
|-
|Literacy Rate || 60.78%
|-
|No. of Sub-Division || 1
|-
|No. of Tehsil ||1
|-
|No. of Blocks|| 3
|-
|No. of Villages || 7744
|-
|Average rainfall ||1014.2 mm
|-
|Postal Code ||768108
|-
| STD Code || 06641
|}

The district consists mainly of hills. The hill system of Deogarh has been categorized mainly under four ranges:
# The Khajuria Range on the north running from west–east in Badbar-Pragana of Deogarh police station having a maximum height of 745 metres.
# The Pradhanpat and Kaidanta Ranges having maximum height of 743 metres and 816 metres on the North.
# The Pawri Range on the eastern side of the [[Brahmani River]] which is 678 Metres in height.
# The Ushakothi Range in Kansar & Reamal police stations. The hill ranges have elevation ranging from 610 metres to 762 metres from the mean sea level.

The soil groups of this district are mainly [[Loam|sandy, loamy soil]] and [[red soil]].

==Economy==
In 2006 the [[Ministry of Panchayati Raj]] named Debagarh one of the country's 250 [[Poverty in India|most backward districts]] (out of a total of [[Districts of India|640]]).<ref name=brgf/> It is one of the 19 districts in [[Odisha]] receiving funds from the [[Backward Regions Grant Fund|Backward Regions Grant Fund Programme]] (BRGF).<ref name=brgf>{{cite web|author=Ministry of Panchayati Raj |date=September 8, 2009 |title=A Note on the Backward Regions Grant Fund Programme |publisher=National Institute of Rural Development |url=http://www.nird.org.in/brgf/doc/brgf_BackgroundNote.pdf |access-date=September 27, 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120405033402/http://www.nird.org.in/brgf/doc/brgf_BackgroundNote.pdf |archive-date=April 5, 2012 }}</ref>

As it is an industry less district the people depend solely upon agriculture. It is a part of the [[Red Corridor]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://intellibriefs.blogspot.com/2009/12/naxal-menace-83-districts-under.html |title=83 districts under the Security Related Expenditure Scheme |publisher=IntelliBriefs |date=2009-12-11 |access-date=2011-09-17 |archive-date=2011-10-27 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111027115807/http://intellibriefs.blogspot.com/2009/12/naxal-menace-83-districts-under.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>

===Tourism===
The government has undertaken a number of efforts to support tourism in the district, based on its natural environment and cultural heritage.{{citation needed|date=February 2019}} There are a number of tourists places listed on the official district website.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://deogarh.nic.in/tourist-places/|title=Enchanting Tourist Places in Deogarh District|access-date=2011-09-17}}</ref>

==Demographics==
{{historical populations|11=1901|12=59,882|13=1911|14=69,341|15=1921|16=72,488|17=1931|18=81,007|19=1941|20=91,241|21=1951|22=98,769|23=1961|24=1,22,634|25=1971|26=1,63,243|27=1981|28=1,97,671|29=1991|30=2,34,238|31=2001|32=2,74,108|33=2011|34=3,12,520|percentages=pagr|footnote=source:<ref>[http://www.censusindia.gov.in/2011census/PCA/A2_Data_Table.html Decadal Variation In Population Since 1901]</ref>|align=center}}

{{bar box
|title=Religions in Debagarh district (2011)<ref name="census2011-religion">{{cite web|title=Table C-01 Population by Religious Community: Odisha|url=https://censusindia.gov.in/nada/index.php/catalog/11387/download/14500/DDW21C-01%20MDDS.XLS|website=Census of India, 2011|publisher=[[Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India]]}}</ref>
|titlebar=#Fcd116
|left1=Religion
|right1=Percent
|float=left
|bars=
{{bar percent|[[Hinduism in Odisha|Hinduism]]|darkorange|94.71}}
{{bar percent|[[Christianity in Odisha|Christianity]]|dodgerblue|4.65}}
{{bar percent|Other or not stated|black|0.64}}
}}

According to the [[2011 census of India|2011 census]] Debagarh district has a [[Demographics of India|population]] of 312,520,<ref name="districtcensus"/> roughly equal to the nation of [[Iceland]].<ref name="cia">{{cite web | author = US Directorate of Intelligence | title = Country Comparison:Population|url = https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/rankorder/2119rank.html|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070613004507/https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/rankorder/2119rank.html|url-status = dead|archive-date = June 13, 2007|access-date=2011-10-01| quote =Iceland 311,058 July 2011 est.}}</ref> This gives it a ranking of 571st in India (out of a total of [[Districts of India|640]]).<ref name=districtcensus/> The district has a population density of {{convert|106|PD/sqkm|PD/sqmi}}.<ref name=districtcensus/> Its [[Family planning in India|population growth rate]] over the decade 2001-2011 was 13.88%.<ref name=districtcensus/> Debagarh has a [[human sex ratio|sex ratio]] of 976 [[Women in India|females]] for every 1000 males,<ref name=districtcensus/> and a [[Literacy in India|literacy rate]] of 73.07%. 7.16% of the population lives in urban areas. Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes make up 16.67% and 35.33% of the population respectively.<ref name=districtcensus/>

{{Pie chart
| thumb = right
| caption = Languages of Debagarh district (2011)<ref name="census2011-langreport"/>
| label1 = [[Odia language|Odia]] | value1 = 89.88 | color1 = saddlebrown
| label2 = [[Mundari language|Munda]] | value2 = 3.31 | color2 = teal
| label3 = [[Kurukh language|Kisan]] | value3 = 2.60 | color3 = limegreen
| label4 = [[Sadri language|Sadri]] | value4 = 1.83 | color4 = burlywood
| label5 = Others | value5 = 2.38 | color5 = Grey
}}

At the time of the [[2011 Census of India]], 89.94% of the population in the district spoke [[Odia language|Odia]], 3.31% [[Mundari language|Mundari]], 2.6% [[Kurukh language|Kisan]], 1.83% [[Sadri language|Sadri]] and 0.91% [[Ho language|Ho]] as their first language.<ref name="census2011-langreport">{{cite web |title=Table C-16 Population by Mother Tongue: Odisha|url=https://censusindia.gov.in/nada/index.php/catalog/10217/download/13329/DDW-C16-STMT-MDDS-2100.XLSX|website=Census of India 2011 |publisher=[[Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India]]}}</ref>

==Education==
There are a number of educational institutes present including [[Raja Basudev High School]]. In 2017 Govt. of Odisha established one Government Polytechnic at Purunagarh in Deogarh district.{{cn|date=February 2024}} Three engineering branches namely civil, electrical and mining are there .

== Transportation ==
Air: – The nearest airports for visiting places of interest in Deogarh District are at [[Jharsuguda]] (98 km), [[Bhubaneswar]] (265 km) and [[Raipur]] (376 km).

Rail: - The nearest rail heads for Deogarh are at Sambalpur (90 km), Bamra on the [[Tatanagar-Bilaspur section]] of [[Howrah-Nagpur-Mumbai line]] (103 km), [[Jharsuguda]] (98 km) and Rourkela (115 km)

Road: - Deogarh is connected with [[National Highway 6 (India, old numbering)|NH6]] (Part of [[AH46]]) ([[Mumbai]]-[[Kolkata]]) and [[NH200]] ([[Raipur]]-[[Chandikhole]]).The city is 90 km from [[Sambalpur]], 115 km from [[Rourkela]] and 265 km from [[Bhubaneswar]].

==Politics==
===Vidhan sabha constituency===
{{main|List of constituencies of Odisha Vidhan Sabha}}
Deogarh have only 1 [[Odisha Legislative Assembly|Vidhan sabha]] constituency.<ref>[http://eci.nic.in/delim/Final_Publications/Orissa/orissa.pdf Assembly Constituencies and their Extent]</ref><ref>[http://eci.nic.in/delim/paper1to7/Orissa.xls Seats of Odisha]</ref>

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
* {{official website|http://deogarh.nic.in/}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20050312123907/http://www.orissagov.nic.in/panchayat/debagarh.htm Debagarh at a Glance]

{{Geographic location
|Centre = Debagarh district
|North = [[Sundergarh district]]
|Northeast =
|East =
|Southeast = [[Anugul district]]
|South =
|Southwest = [[Sambalpur district]]
|West =
|Northwest =
}}
{{Debagarh district}}
{{Western Odisha}}
{{Odisha}}

[[Category:Debagarh district| ]]
[[Category:1994 establishments in Orissa]]
[[Category:States and territories established in 1994]]
[[Category:Districts of Odisha]]

Debagarh district - Revision history

SoftifyInsights at 03:30, 7 January 2026