Malkangiri district

One etymology of Malkangiri is that of Mallikeshwar, who was worshipped by ancient kings of the area, after whom they named their kingdom: Mallika Nagari. This eventually shortened to Malkangiri. The district was formerly known as Malikamardhangiri, named for Malikamardhana, the name of a king of Jeypore. He took the title after defeating a general of the Golconda Sultanate named Malik Mohammad. He also constructed a fort named Malikamardhanghada: for which the entire area was named.

Local legend claims Valmiki wrote the Ramayana on the banks of the Tamasa river. The region was known as Malyavantagiri in the Ramayana, and it was believed Sitakunda was the bathing-place of Sita, near Mudulipada. Local legend claims the Pandavas spent a year in exile in the dense forests of Malkangiri. Kanamraju, Balaraju and Poturaju are the three famous Lords of this area, who are being worshiped by the people. On every alternative year, Badayatra, the festival of these Lords is celebrated throughout the district.

Prior to 1936, Malkangiri was a part of Koraput district of the Madras Presidency. In 1936, Koraput District was merged into Odisha and Malkangiri Tahasil was included in Koraput District. This Tahasil was a part of Nawarangpur sub-division of Koraput District. On 1 January 1962, Malkangiri subdivision was carved out. In 1958, refugees from East Pakistan were settled in the area in the Dandakaranya Project. This project continued for 30 years until it was declared closed in the year 1988.

Finally on 2 October 1992, Malkangiri was carved out of Koraput District. Today, the district has become known as a hotbed for Maoist activities.[2]

There are 07 Blocks and 07 Tahasils under one Sub-Division in Malkangiri district are listed in the following table.

There are 12 Police Stations under two Police Sub-Divisions in Malkangiri district are listed in the following table.

In 2006 the Ministry of Panchayati Raj named Malkangiri one of the country's 250 most backward districts (out of a total of 640).[3] It is one of the 19 districts in Odisha currently receiving funds from the Backward Regions Grant Fund Programme (BRGF).[3]

According to the 2011 census Malkangiri district has a population of 613,192,[4] roughly equal to the nation of Solomon Islands[5] or the US state of Vermont.[6] This gives it a ranking of 523rd in India (out of a total of 640).[4] The district has a population density of 106 inhabitants per square kilometre (270/sq mi) .[4] Its population growth rate over the decade 2001-2011 was 21.53%.[4] Malkangiri has a sex ratio of 1016 females for every 1000 males,[4] and a literacy rate of 49.49%.[4] 22.6% and 57.8% of the population are made up of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes respectively.

The largest tribes are the Koya and Bhumia. Other major tribes include the Porja, Khond and Gadaba.

At the time of the 2011 Census of India, 41.99% of the population in the district spoke Odia, 23.40% Koya, 21.48% Bengali, 2.97% Telugu, 2.59% Kuvi and 1.36% Halbi as their first language.[7]

• Official website