Jeypore: A small haven in this world…

Raja Vikram Dev

Jeypore, also spelled Jeypur and Jaypur, is the largest town in the Koraput District of Orissa, India. Along with Bhubaneswar, Cuttack, Sambalpur, Rourkela, Balasore, Puri and Berhampur, Jeypore is one of the prominent places of Orissa. It is encompassed by hills of the Eastern Ghats and the more famous Araku hills on three sides like a horse shoe, and the other (western) side opens up to Chattisgarh in central India. It is also the business hub for the district and South Orissa.

Geography

Jeypore is located at 18°51′N 82°35′E / 18.85, 82.58^[1]. It has an average elevation of 659 metres (2165 feet).

Demographics

As of 2001 India census^[2], Jeypore had a population of 76,560. Males constitute 51% of the population and females 49%. Jeypore has an average literacy rate of 69%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 76%, and female literacy is 61%. In Jeypore, 12% of the population is under 6 years of age.

Overview

Maliguda Tunnel

Kolab Dam, Jeypore

The town is famous for its ancient forts, palaces, serene temples and pleasant climate. The major language spoken in this region is Oriya. Though Oriya is the dominant language spoken in Jeypore, this town has a diverse cultural mix with significant numbers of people speaking different languages – Oriya, Telugu and Hindi. This town is an amalgam of the culture and traditions of all these and has a unique cuisine, language and lifestyle.

Jeypore is surrounded on all sides with places of breathtaking beauty and hotels serving mouth-watering food. There are many tourist attractions in and around the town. The most famous of them are:

• Jagannath Temple
• The old Dakshin Kali temple at Purunagarh
• The Raj Mahal or royal palace of Vikram Dev Maharaja
• The beautiful Jagannath Sagar
• Upper Kolab Dam site
• HAL Sunabeda and Nalco Damanjodi are 45 km from Jeypore
• Gupteswar Temple is 60 km from Jeypore

Experiencing the age old Ghanta Paraba, a kind of Thakurani Yatra held mostly during summer is unique, with so many people in trance, dancing to the powerful drum beats of the Dombo baido, Singha baido and the Shehnai – some of local musical instruments.

Hotel Hello Jeypore

Jeypore has an airport, which was made non-operational after a few years of inauguration. The nearest functional airport is at Vishakapatnam, 300 km away. One can reach Jeypore from Visakhapatnam by boarding the Kirandul passenger train or take one of the numerous taxis/cabs or buses. The 295 km ride takes approximately seven hours, and is an enthralling experience, covering approximately 250 km of the scenic hills of Araku Valley. It is also possible to reach Jeypore by buses and taxis available at the Vishakapatnam and Vizianagaram RTC bus-stand. The capital of Orissa, Bhubaneswar, is 520 km from Jeypore. Apart from regular bus service, the Hirakhand Express takes you to Jeypore in about 14 hours from Bhubaneswar. It runs daily to and from – Koraput (~14 km from Jeypore) to Bhubaneswar.

Education

Vikram Dev College, Library

Colleges include Vikram Dev College (refer http://vikramdevcollege.org), one of the oldest and a prominent college of Orissa, Women’s College   and Law college. The backbone of school education in Jeypore are the several primary schools scattered across the streets along with Govt Boys and Girls High Schools, Municipal High Schools No. I, II and III(girls).

Vikram Dev College or V D College, an autonomous college, is one of the best colleges in South Orissa. Some of the courses being currently offered by the college are: Post Graduate studies in Chemistry (started in 1993) & Economics. V.D. College has been a value proposition in providing quality education to people of undivided Koraput district for a very long time.

Some of the renowned schools include Jeypore Public School, DAV Model Secondary School,Redwoods English School,Saraswati Sishu Mandir, Modern English School, Deepti Convent School and Siddharth English Medium School.

Tourist Information

Lower Kolab

Nice View of Jagannath Sagar

Blessed with abundant natural resources, beautiful landscapes, chain of hills, scenic waterfalls and lakes, Jeypore is a place of historical, pilgrimage and tourist interest. Jeypore is well linked to Raipur (by road), Visakhapatnam, Rayagada, Howrah (by rail and road) and to the state capital Bhubaneswar (by rail and road). Lodging and boarding facilities are available for outstation tourists by the Lord Jagannath Temple Trust. Jeypore has very scenic surroundings, encompassed by hills on all sides. On the east is the protective hill Nakti Dongar, from where the town actually begins and spreads towards the west. Below Nakti Dongar is the famous place Purunagarh, which has many age od temples buit by ancient rulers of Jeypore. Jeypore is also the business hub for the district and has most of the modern amenities. The town is famous for the ancient palaces. It has a nice cultural mix with significant numbers of people speaking different languages – Oriya, Telugu and Hindi.

Ancient temples still exist in the town. Kali, Dongar Devi, Neelakantheswara, Panchanana, Jagat Janini and Jagannath temples are very famous. A Gurudwara, a Church, a Mosque, an Aiyyappa temple and a Shiridi Sai Baba temple are also famous. There is a lot of sight-seeing nearby Jeypore. Kolab dam (water reservoir) and Machkund dam (water reservoir) are near Jeypore which generate most of the electricity for the state. It has many scenic natural parks, virgin forests and waterfalls in and around. Nalco or National Aluminium Company has its bauxite mines nearby at Damanjodi.

Hotels and restaurants(like Hotel Madhumati, Hotel Princess, Hotel Hello Jeypore, Hotel Trupti Gold at Lal Street, etc.) are amongst the best in the state in their range.

The climate is never harsh but the best time to visit Jeypore is in winter/spring (November – March).

Food

Lokesh Special Dosa

Sahu Gudia's Samose

Girija's Special Egg Roll

The most popular food items you will find at Jeypore are: Idlis, Dosas(particularly Rava Dosa), Puri, Upma, Egg & Chicken roll, Samosa or Singada, Aalu chop, Pesarat and Vada. Evidently, it is a mix of all the good things from North, South and East India. Most of the food/snacks is served with curry (unlike sambar in South India). Sweets include – Rasgulla, Chhena podo, Kheersagar, Chhena gaja, etc., which can only be relished in this place. For lunch, you have both North Indian and South Indian food apart from some very good Gujarati food. You also get authentic Oriya food replete with its famous veg and non-veg dishes at most restaurants. It is notable that the food, be it North or South Indian, is in no way inferior and has the authentic and sometimes even better taste than the original.

Bara

Upma

Some popular restaurants are Konark Hotel, Sahu Tifin Shop, Manis Cafe, Lokesh Hotel, Girija Egg Roll Centre and many Chaat outlets (with unique kachoris) on the main road. One of the best things found in Jeypore is the several ‘Tiffin centres’ dotted along the main road like the Panigrahi Hotel near Raj Mahal Chowk, Biswanath Hotel, Bulu Kumti Hotel near Sadar Police Station, etc. These hotels serve delicious and spicy snacks like Puri, Upma, Idli, Rava Dosa along with Aloo-channa curry, Chutneys and the very special Tomato jholo. Because of the sublime taste, most people prefer to have breakfast at these places rather than other ‘posh’ restaurants.

Entertainment

Nice View In The Kolab Reservoir

Tribal Dance (Dhangdi Nach)

All India Radio – Jeypore, is an old radio station which has many award winning programmes to its credit. Cinema theatres like Sri Krishna Talkies, Laxmi Talkies and Manoj Kumar Talkies are the sources of entertainment for the people of Jeypore. Apart from these, entertainment sources like the boating facility is also available at Jagannath Sagar (a lake situated in the middle of the town), which draws people from far-off places. Various festive celebrations during Ghanta Parba, Chaita Parba, Shiv Ratri and Dussehra are held every year.

References

1. ^ Falling Rain Genomics, Inc – Jaypur
2. ^ “Census of India 2001: Data from the 2001 Census, including cities, villages and towns. (Provisional)“. Census Commission of India. Retrieved on 2007-09-03.
3. ^ “State Elections 2004 – Partywise Comparision for 89-Jeypore Constituency of ORISSA“. Election Commission of India. Retrieved on 2008-09-25.
4. ^ “Assembly Constituencies – Corresponding Districts and Parliamentary Constituencies of Orissa“. Election Commission of India. Retrieved on 2008-09-25.