Angul district
Angul district
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Angul district

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Angul district

Angul district, also known as Anugul district, is one of the thirty districts of Odisha in eastern India. The city of Angul is the district headquarters of Angul district. A major industrial hub of the state, the district hosts numerous industries relating to coal, bauxite and steel apart from extensive forests including the Satkosia Tiger Reserve.

The name "Angul" of the district originates from its headquarters, Angul. According to L.S.S. O’Malley, the name is believed to be a transformation of "Anugol," with a legend attached. In the past, the region was inhabited by Khonds, Savaras, and Gonds, with Khonds being predominant. It was divided into principalities led by Khond chiefs, until the Odisha King established rule, aided by Rajputs and adventurers, over the Khonds who paid tribute. The last Khond chief, Anu, rebelled, and a conspiracy led to his deposition through a struggle called "gol." The conquerors commemorated their victory by naming the land "Anugol," which evolved into "Anugula" or "Anugol" in colloquial language.

The district is actually a conglomeration of various parts with differing administrative history. Angul subdivision, roughly the central part of the district, was initially a feudatory state under the East India Company who had entered into a treaty with its rules after the lapse of Maratha authority in the area around 1803. In 1847, the then raja, Somanath Singh, revolted against the Company and was therefore deposed and exiled. His state was escheated as a Government Estate and was attached to the Orissa Division for administrative convenience. A Tahsildar was appointed in charge of the same. In 1891, the Bengal Presidency Government constituted Angul into a separate district and added the Phulbani subdivision of present day Kandhamal district to it. A Deputy Commissioner cum District Magistrate was appointed with extensive powers. This continued till 1936 when the new state of Orissa abolished the district and merged the Angul portion with Cuttack district. It later formed a part of Dhenkanal district after 1949.

The Pallahara, Athamallik and Talcher subdivisions of the district were also separate feudatory states, known as Garhjats in Odisha. Each had a Raja as the ruler and a different administrative setup under the overall supervision of the Superintendent at Sambalpur. After 1949, like the Angul subdivision, these were all merged to form a part of the Dhenkanal district. On April 1, 1993, these were clubbed together and a new district with Angul as headquarters was constituted.

Angul is located in the centre of the state of Odisha and lies between the latitudes of 20°31′N and 21°40′N and longitudes of 84°15′E and 85°23′E. The altitude is between 564 and 1,187 metres (1,850 and 3,894 ft). The district has an area of 6,232 km2 (2,406 sq mi). It is bounded by Dhenkanal and Cuttack district in the east, Deogarh, Kendujhar and Sundargarh district in north, Sambalpur and Sonepur in west and Boudh and Nayagarh in the south side. The district is abundant with natural resources. Angul, The district headquarters is about 150 kilometres (93 mi) from the state capital Bhubaneswar.

The district administration is headed by a Collector and District Magistrate, usually called the Collector who combines in his office the roles of revenue collection, law and order maintenance and implementation of development programmes. He is assisted at headquarters by two Additional District Magistrates (ADM) and by four Sub Collectors cum Sub Divisional Magistrates posted at Angul, Pallahara, Athamallik and Talcher for the first two roles. Below subdivision level, the district is divided into 8 Blocks which are co-terminus with Tahsils. While the former deals with the development aspect, the latter is a revenue unit. The Block Development Officer (BDO) and Tahsildar cum Executive Magistrate are the respective heads of each. The Collector is usually an officer of the Indian Administrative Service while the other officers belong to the Odisha Administrative Service.

The following is the list of blocks, tehsils and subdivisions in the district of Angul:

Sub-division

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