Sambalpur Town
This article has been extracted from THE IMPERIAL GAZETTEER OF INDIA , 1908. OXFORD, AT THE CLARENDON PRESS. |
Note: National, provincial and district boundaries have changed considerably since 1908. Typically, old states, ‘divisions’ and districts have been broken into smaller units, and many tahsils upgraded to districts. Some units have since been renamed. Therefore, this article is being posted mainly for its historical value.
Sambalpur Town
Head-quarters of the District of the same name, Bengal, situated in 21 28' N. and 83 58' E. It is the terminus of a branch line of the Bengal-Nagpur Railway, 30 miles from Jharsugra junction, and 349 from Calcutta. The town lies along the left bank of the Mahanadi, and is very picturesquely situated, com- manding a beautiful view of the river for several miles, with wooded hills in the background. In flood-time the width of the Mahanadi is more than a mile, and portions of the town have been submerged on one or two occasions, but during most of the year there is only a stream 40 or 50 yards wide. During the open season a pontoon bridge over the Mahanadi is maintained by the Bengal-Nagpur Railway, giving place to a ferry in the monsoon months. The population in 1901 was 12,870, and has risen by more than 30 per cent, since 1891. The town derives its name from the Somlai Devi, its tutelary deity.
There are no buildings of importance \ but the Brahmapura temple of Jagannath has a great reputation for sanctity, and many civil suits are decided by the oaths of parties taken at this shrine. Sambalpur was constituted a municipality in 1867. The municipal receipts and expenditure during the decade ending 1901 averaged Rs. 28,000 and Rs. 29,000 respectively. In 1903-4 the income had risen to Rs. 48,000, mainly derived from octroi, A wing of a native infantry regiment was stationed here until 1902. Sambalpur is the commercial centre for most of the District, and also the States of Sonpur, Patna, and Rairakhol. It contains a depot for cooly emigrants to Assam.
The principal industries are the weaving of tasar silk and cotton cloth by hand. A printing press with Oriya and English type was established in 1902, to celebrate the restoration of Oriya as the court language of Sambalpur. The town possesses a high school with a boarding-house and 33 pupils, a girls' school, and Oriya and Hindi branch schools. It also has a main dispensary and a police hospital.
