# Rairangpur

Rairangpur (Odia pronunciation) is a city and a tehsil in the Mayurbhanj district situated on the banks of the river Khadkhai in the state of Odisha, India. It is located 287 kilometres from the state capital Bhubaneswar, 82 kilometres from the district headquarters of Baripada, and about 73 kilometres from Jamshedpur. Rairangpur is the second largest city in the Mayurbhanj district as well as a notable mining area of Odisha, producing iron-ore from the Gorumahisani, Badampahar, and Suleipat mines. The Kharkhai (Suleipat) Dam and the Simlipal Tiger Reserve are among the nearby local attractions, attracting many foreign tourists.
India's 15th and current President Smt. Droupadi Murmu served as a teacher in Rairangpur from 1994 to 1997.

## Etymology

Previously, the town was originally called 'Brahmin Ghati', named after the area's relatively hilly terrain. The term eventually corrupted over time and became 'Bamanghati', anglicised in various Company maps as 'Baumingaut' or 'Baumeen Gaut'. The town was later renamed to 'Rairangpur' in late 1918, named after Rairangpur Garh.

## Geography

Rairangpur is located at 22°16′N 86°10′E﻿ / ﻿22.27°N 86.17°E﻿ / 22.27; 86.17. It has an average elevation of 248 m (814 ft). The city mainly consists of shops, rice paddies and trees and branches out of the National Highway 220. The villages, buildings, and markets on both sides of the road are generally surrounded by vast swaths of farmland.

## History

The first mention of Rairangpur (then Bamanghati) date back to Mughal rule in Mayurbhanj, which began in 1592 under the rule of Sa'id Khan. According to accounts by Raja Man Singh, there were forts located at Bamanghati, among other places in the state. However the earliest recorded mention of Bamanghati is featured in the Map of Bengal and Bahar, 1781 by Rennell, James.
Towards the end of March, 1866, the people of the Bamanghati pargana revolted against the rule of Shrinath Bhanja Deo for his inability to handle the Na Ankha Durvikhya famine, though this was suppressed by the Maharaja's administration shortly after.
Rairangpur Garh was founded by Madhabdas Narendra Mohapatra. In 1878, Bamanghaty was ruled by King Krushna Chandra Bhanjadeo.
In late 1918, Bamanghati was officially renamed after Rairangpur Garh.
In 1919, Rairangpur became the headquarters of the Bamanghaty subdivision, replacing Bahalda.
The Mayurbhanj princely state heavily influenced Rairangpur's culture and politics from the 17th century AD till its accession to the Dominion of India in 1949.
On 24 April 1960, Rairangpur Notified Area of Council (NAC) was formed with 15 wards. Then on 1 May 2014, Rairangpur Municipality was formed under the laws as per the Municipalities Act. 1950 notification released by Government of Odisha.

## Demographics

According to the 2001 Census of India, Rairangpur has a population of 21,682. Males constitute 52% of the population and females 48%. It has an average literacy rate of 72%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 79%, and female literacy is 65%. And 12% of the total population is under 6 years of age.

## Economy

Rairangpur acts as a liaison centre between Jamshedpur in Jharkhand, Durgapur in West Bengal and the iron ore mines in Gorumahisani, Badampahar and Suleipat. The steel factories of Tata and the surrounding areas rely partly on the iron ores extracted from these mines. In addition to freight trains, there is also a DEMU passenger train from Jamshedpur to Badampahar via Rairangpur.
As surrounded by hills, iron ore is abundantly found here. The first iron ore mines of Asia were in Gorumahisani, Suleipat and Badampahar (mother mines of Tata Steel). The first ever trial for setting up a "Ferro Vanadium Plant" was made by Mayurbhanj Maharaja during pre-independence days. Currently, thousands of tonnes of iron ore are exported from here on a daily basis.
The majority of the population is dependent on paddy harvesting (farming) as either their main source or as an alternate source of income. The direct and indirect dependency of the economy of this place is largely influenced by paddy harvesting. The same is again largely dependent on the annual rainfall during May–September. The Kharkhai (Suleipat) Dam and The Bankbal Dam irrigate some of the cultivating lands and helps with the kharif harvesting.
It has the oldest and the largest "Sal Oil Extraction Plant" which has been closed for years. The area suffers due to less attention in the political environment with few resources and funds allocated for development from government or private sources.

## Climate

Climate data for Rairangpur, Odisha :
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 26.0 (78.8) | 31.8 (89.2) | 36.0 (96.8) | 39.0 (102.2) | 40.0 (104.0) | 37.0 (98.6) | 33.0 (91.4) | 32.0 (89.6) | 32.0 (89.6) | 31.0 (87.8) | 30.0 (86.0) | 25.0 (77.0) | 32.7 (90.9) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 13.0 (55.4) | 19.0 (66.2) | 23.0 (73.4) | 26.0 (78.8) | 28.0 (82.4) | 29.0 (84.2) | 27.0 (80.6) | 26.0 (78.8) | 25.0 (77.0) | 22.0 (71.6) | 20.0 (68.0) | 16.4 (61.5) | 22.9 (73.2) |
| Average rainfall mm (inches) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 9.1 (0.36) | 18.6 (0.73) | 36.5 (1.44) | 151.9 (5.98) | 271.5 (10.69) | 297.7 (11.72) | 141.4 (5.57) | 83.9 (3.30) | 2.8 (0.11) | 1.9 (0.07) | 1,015.3 (39.97) |
| Source: World Weather online https://www.worldweatheronline.com/lang/en-in/rairangpur-weather-averages/orissa/in.aspx ||||||||||||||

## Transportation

Rairangpur lies on the Tatanagar-Badampahar branch line of Indian Railways.
Daily passenger train runs from Jamshedpur (Tatanagar) to Badampahar.
And weekly train Badampahar-Rourkela intercity Express runs on Sunday and Badampahar-Shalimar Express runs on Saturday.
Air conditioned luxurious buses to Bhubaneswar, Cuttack, Keonjhar, Rourkela, Tatanagar and Kolkata are available. Local buses and jeeps are there every fifteen to thirty minutes to all small villages and towns. Important traffic points of the city:
* Bazar Golei Chhak
* Biju Pattanaik Chhak (Durga Mandap)
* Raghunath Murmu Chhak
Rairangpur has its local airstrip namely Dandbose Aerodrome (Rairangpur Airport). In most cases celebrities land here by their chopper.

## Culture

Makar Parba is the most popular festival of Odisha, being widely celebrated here with great enthusiasm. As Makar comes once in year, a unique vibe is created among people, they wear new clothes and make Pitha (Rice Cake) in their homes, eat it and distribute to their relatives spreading love and affection.Also village people make Tusu (Cosmic Goddess) represent and them in the nearbyTusu Mela where people gather largely to witness those idols of Tusu.
Other religious festivals : Kumara Purnima, Maha Shivaratri, Raja Parba, Rath Yatra.
During Rath Yatra (Car Festival), people from all sections of the society pull the Ratha (Chariot) of Lord Jagannath, his brother Lord Balabhadra and sister goddess Subhadra to their Mausibadi (Aunt's place) from the temple.
Uda Parba or Uda Jatra, is a festival of Lord Shiva celebrated here on 15 April, Pana Sankranti every year.
Most commonly Deepawali, Durga Puja, Ganesh Puja and Saraswati Puja's are celebrated all over Rairangpur. Popular idols belongs to Ichinda, Bazar, Kucheibudhi, Anladuba, Sakiladihi and Purnaghaty area.
Chhau dance of this Bamanghati Subdivision is famous all over the world. Jhumar is the local genre.

## Places of interest

* Jagannath Temple
* Hanuman Vatika, Bazar
* Birsa Munda Park
* Indira Gandhi Children's Park
* Routhkamar Mini Park
* Gandhi Park
* Asurghati waterfall
* Suleipat Dam (Kharkhai Dam)
* Bankbal Dam
* Simlipal National Park
* Purunia Shivsambhu Temple
* Raghu Nath Jiu Math, Anladuba
* Badampahar Mines
* Gorumahisani Mines

## Sports and entertainment

Cricket is the most widely played sport in the city. "Deepak Kumar Memorial (DKM)", Mahuldiha organizes a cricket tournament every year. Being the most popular cricket tournament here, teams of different parts of the state and nearby participate and perform their talent. Likewise, "Rairangpur Premier League (RPL)" is also organized at Kacheri Stadium (Rairangpur Stadium).
Sports organised by various village youth associations just after Makar Sankranti is one of the age old sports activity promoting youth athletes with very colorful and festive events during January & February every year.
* Park
Children's Park, Kacheri Road Birsamunda Park , Mahuldiha
* VR Center
Odisha has now got its first VR Virtual Reality (VR)center at Mind Shift.

## Lifestyle and language

Rairangpurians follow a moderate lifestyle and they live in peace and harmony and celebrate various religious festivals together.
Odia is the most common language spoken by locals. Hindi, the national language, is also spoken, alongside the Santali language

## Landmarks

Most populated areas belong to:
* Mahuldiha
* Anladuba
* Bazar Area
* Baidaposi
* Bikash Nagar
* Banasahi
* Garh
* Ichinda
* Kucheibudhi
* Purnaghaty
* Pichhilighaty
* Sakiladihi
* Thakuranibeda

## Nationalised banks

* Axis Bank
* Bandhan Bank
* Bank of India
* Canara Bank
* HDFC Bank
* ICICI Bank
* IDBI Bank
* Oriental Bank of Commerce
* Punjab National Bank
* State Bank of India
* Syndicate Bank
* UCO Bank
* Union Bank of India

## Educational institutions

This place is rapidly growing in the educational infrastructure. Some of the Government & Private funded educational institutes are :
* Government Boys High School
* Government Girls High School
* Raghu Nath Jiu High School
* SSDD Girls' High School (Kanya Aashram), Rairangpur
* Pichlighaty High School
* Saraswati Shishu Vidya Mandir
* Rairangpur College (North Orissa University)
* Mahila Mahavidyalaya
* Rairangpur ITI (Technical)
* Kerala Public School
* Little Flower School
* Sparsh Public School
* Sunshine English Medium School
* Madina Public School
* Kalinga English Medium School
* Venketeswar Public School
* Fact Computer Education
* Kendriya Vidyalaya
* Technoworld +2 Sc. College
* Odisha Adarsha Vidyalaya, Sanmouda
* Cosmos International School
* Richard Mission Primary School

## Politics

Mr. Abhishek Pattanaik of Biju Janata Dal (BJD) is the chairperson of the Rairangpur Municipality.
Mr. Jalen Naik of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is the present MLA from Rairangpur Assembly Constituency,
Mr. Nabacharan Majhi of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) who was previous MLA won MP elections in 2024 recently and became a Member of Parliament from Rairangpur (Mayurbhanj).
Previous MLAs from this seat were Mr. Saiba Sushil Kumar Hansdah of Biju Janata Dal (BJD) in 2014. Mr. Shyam Charan Hansdah of Indian National Congress (INC) in 2009, Mrs. Droupadi Murmu of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in 2000, Laxman Majhi of INC in 1995, Chaitanya Prasad Majhi of Janata Dal (JD) in 1990, Bhabendra Nath Majhi of INC in 1985, Sidhalal Murmu of INC(I) in 1980, and Arjun Majhi of Janata Party (JNP) in 1977.
Rairangpur is part of Mayurbhanj (Lok Sabha constituency).

## Notable people

* Droupadi Murmu, 15th President of India.
* Raghunath Murmu, Santali Ol Chiki script inventor, born near Rairangpur