page_title: Bhubaneswar
section_title: Civic administration and utilities
hierarchical_section_title: Bhubaneswar / Civic administration and utilities
caption_attribution_description: ORISSA SECRETARIAT, BHUBANESWAR
context_page_description: Bhubaneswar is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Odisha. Along with the old town, the region historically was often depicted as Ekamra Kshetra. With the diverse ranges of heritage resources, it showcases significant sacred cultural landscape components which have evolved with the support of available natural resource base and cultural trigger.
  Although the modern city of Bhubaneswar was formally established in 1948, the history of the areas in and around the present-day city can be traced to the 7th century BCE and earlier. It is a confluence of Hindu, Buddhism and Jain heritage and includes several Kalingan temples. With many 6th-13th century CE Hindu temples, which span the entire spectrum of Kalinga architecture, Bhubaneswar is often referred to as a "Temple City of India". With Puri and Konark it forms the 'Swarna Tribhuja', one of eastern India's most visited destinations.
  Bhubaneswar replaced Cuttack as the capital on 19 August 1949, 2 years after India gained its independence from Britain. The modern city was designed by the German architect Otto Königsberger in 1946. Along with Jamshedpur and Chandigarh, it was one of modern India's first planned cities.
context_section_description: The Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) oversees and manages civic infrastructure for the city's 67 wards. Residents of each ward elect a corporator to the BMC for a five-year term. Standing committees handle urban planning and maintain roads, government-aided schools, hospitals and municipal markets. As Bhubaneswar's apex body, the corporation discharges its functions through the mayor-in-council, which comprises a mayor, a deputy mayor and other elected members. The executive wing is headed by a Commissioner. BMC responsibilities include drainage and sewerage, sanitation, solid waste management and street lighting. As of 2014, the Biju Janata Dal party controlled the BMC; the mayor was Ananta Narayan Jena and deputy mayor was K. Shanti. The Bhubaneswar Development Authority is responsible for statutory planning and development and building regulation.
  As the seat of the Government of Odisha, Bhubaneswar is home to the Odisha Legislative Assembly and the state secretariat. Bhubaneswar has lower courts: the Court of Small Causes and the District Civil Court decide civil matters; the Sessions Court rules in criminal cases. The Bhubaneswar–Cuttack Police Commissionerate, established in 2008, is a city police force with primary responsibilities in law enforcement and investigation in the Bhubaneswar-Cuttack area. Dr. Sudhansu Sarangi is the police commissioner.
  Citizens of Bhubaneswar elect one representative to India's lower house, the Lok Sabha, and three representatives to the state legislative assembly, through the constituencies of Bhubaneswar North, Ekamra-Bhubaneswar and Bhubaneswar Central.
caption: Odisha State Secretariat building
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