Khariar

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Khariar
Town
Khadial
Coordinates: 20°17′N 82°46′E / 20.28°N 82.77°E / 20.28; 82.77Coordinates: 20°17′N 82°46′E / 20.28°N 82.77°E / 20.28; 82.77
Country	India
State	Odisha
District	Nuapada
Government
• Type	NAC
• Body	Khariar Notified Area Council
• Chairman	None
• MLA	Sri Aadhiraj Panigrahi (INC)
• MP	Sri Basant Panda (BJP)
Area
• Total	16 km2 (6 sq mi)
Elevation	226 m (741 ft)
Population  (2018)
• Total	18,087
• Density	1,100/km2 (2,900/sq mi)
Languages
• Official	Odia, English
Time zone	UTC+5:30 (IST)
PIN	766107
Telephone code	06671
Vehicle registration	OD-26
Website	odisha.gov.in

Khariar (also called Khadial, Rajkhariar, and Rajakhariar) is a town and a Notified Area Council in Nuapada District of the Indian state of Odisha.

History[]

The region of Khariar was under the rule of the Chauhan dynasty of Patna State which was established by Ramai Deva of the Chauhan dynasty in the 14th cen CE who were vassals of the Eastern Ganga dynasty which was declining following invasions from the northern part of the Indian subcontinent.^[1][2] The Chauhan reign from Patnagarh continued over the region and later expanded through the establishment of their cadet branches extending their rule over areas of Western Odisha and eastern Chhattisgarh.^[3] In 1600 CE, Raja Gopal Rai who belonged to the Chauhan family of Balangir was crowned as the first king of Khariar. This led to the formation of the Khariar zamindari that remained until Indian independence in 1947.^[4]

Economy[]

Nuapada district is located in western part of Odisha in India and Khariar is located in the heart of Nuapada district. Khariar is the one of the major towns in Nuapada district. It is the main business centre in the locality. It has a daily market and a weekly bazaar takes place every Friday.

Geography[]

Khariar town is located at

20°17′N 82°46′E / 20.28°N 82.77°E / 20.28; 82.77.^[5] It has an average elevation of 226 m (741 ft). It is located in the western part of Odisha, close to the border of Raipur District, Chhattisgarh. It comes under a rain shadow belt. It belongs to the Mahanadi basin the Eastern Ghats where mountains are interspersed with wide valleys. The climate is tropical with the rainfall is due to the South West monsoon.

Demographics[]

As of the 2011 Indian census, Khariar has a population of 15,087. Males constitute 51% of the population and females 49%. Khariar has an average literacy rate of 62%, higher than the national average of 59.5%. The male literacy is 72%, and female literacy is 52%. In Khariar, 13% of the population is under 6 years of age.

Odia is the official language of Khariar. Hindi is also spoken in Khariar. English is widely used for official purposes.

Transportation[]

Khariar is a major transportation hub in Nuapada District as people from the three blocks, namely Boden, Sinapali and Khariar, depend on the mode of transportation available in Khariar. Though Khariar is not connected by rail, it is well connected by roads. The major roads passing through Khariar are NH 353 (Khariar-Raipur), NH 59 (Khariar-Gopalpur), SH 16 (Khariar-Sambalpur), and SH 44 (Khariar-Bhawanipatna). The nearest rail head is Kantabanji, which is situated 35 km from Khariar.^[6] Another nearest railway station is Titlagarh (which is also the hottest place in India). The nearest airport is Raipur Airport, situated 195 kilometres (121 mi) from Khariar.

Khariar is connected by bus via the NH 353 & NH 59. The new railway line survey has been completed for Kantabanji to Jeypur via Khariar.^[when?]

Nearby towns[]

Religious places[]

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There are several religious places of different religions in Khariar; this indicates a diversity in religion, culture in Khariar. Some of the temples located in Khariar are:

Places of interest[]

Tourist destinations[]

There are several tourist spots around Khariar, including:

• Patalganga: A tourist spot located approximately 30 km from Khariar which attracts pilgrims from different parts of Nuapada district as well as from neighbouring districts.^[7]
• Tikhali Dam: Officially known as the Lower Indra Irrigation Project, this dam is situated 17 km from Khariar.^{[citation needed]}
• Rusi Pitha: Rusipitha (Risipiti) is located near Tukla.
• Jogimatha-Tukla^{[citation needed]}

Markets[]

• Daily Market (Fresh Market)
• Goru/Sukrabar Bazar (Weekly)
• New Daily Market (Near Old Bus Stand)
• Machh Bazaar (Old Daily Market)
• New Machh/Mansh Bazaar (Boden Chowk-Gadramunda Area)

Culture[]

Khariar's culture is a blend of traditional festivals, food, dance etc.^{[citation needed]} Khariar has a proud^[tone] cultural heritage that arose due to intermingling of different religions.^{[citation needed]} The major language used is Odia, which is widely used in each and every part of Khariar region. Nuakhai is the major festival celebrated in this region. The other festivals like Rathayatra, Dusshera, Holi, Diwali, Eid, Christmas, Chindaguda (Dhanujatra, Anchalika Sanskrutik Utsav) are also celebrated in Khariar. Khariar organises Khariar Mahotsav^[8] every year, which attracts a large number of people from different places.^[9]

The activities of this town include running of schools, shops or very small industries and bus communications. Other than these activities, political activities across the town are also common. In evenings, it is a common sight to see youth playing at various fields (mostly at Raja A.T. High School field, Vidya Mandir field, Bhojpur Field, College Field, and Shanti Nagar Field). Veterans also participate in several fitness activities during evenings, like jogging near Canal Road, Padampur Road, Tukla Road, Nehena Road, College Road, or Junen NH Road.^{[citation needed]}

Notable persons[]

• Sri Jitamitra Singh Deo, present Raja Saheb of Khariar. He is also a poet and historian.^{[citation needed]}

• Prayag Dutta Joshi, father of the Kosli language.^[10]

• Manish Bansal, founder of news portal Newstrend.news.^[11] In 2018, it was among the top 10 most popular websites of India with a position of number 10.^[12]

• Sri Adhiraj Mohan Panigrahi, Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA)^[13] of Khariar (Odisha Vidhan Sabha constituency).

References[]

• Dr Tara Dutt (2015). Odisha District Gazetteers: Nabarangapur (PDF). Government of Odisha. ISBN 978-81-86772-17-1.