Malkangiri

the municipality in Odisha, India

Malkangiri, historically known as Malikamardhangiri, is a town and municipality in Malkangiri district in the Indian state of Odisha. It is the headquarter of the Malkangiri district. Malkangiri has been the new home of the East Bengali refugees from erstwhile East Pakistan (present day Bangladesh), who have been rehabilitated since 1965 under the Dandakaranya Project. Some Sri Lankan Tamil refugees were also rehabilitated in the town, following the armed struggle of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in the early 1990s, although most of them have now returned to their country. Currently, it is one of the most naxalite affected areas of the state, and is a part of the Red Corridor.

Malkangiri, or Malikamardhangiri, as it was historically known, was founded by king Malakimardhan Krishna Dev for his queen. He was the 11th ruler of Jeypore kingdom from 1676 to 1681 CE. He was a valorous military genius who defeated the joint forces of the French and the army of Golconda, and captured fifteen French canons. He killed the general of the Golconda army, Malik Mohammad, and therefore was named Malik mardhan, meaning 'destroyer of Malik'. He also constructed a strong fort named Malikamardhangadha, and it is surmised that the whole area in which the fort was located came to be known in the course of time as Malikamardhangiri, and later the British renamed it as Malkangiri. When the Orissa Province was formed under British Raj in April 1936, the town was a taluka of the Nowrangpur sub division of Koraput district of Orissa (now Odisha). In 1962, it was upgraded to a sub division of Koraput district. The present Malkangiri got its identity as an independent district due to reorganization of districts of Odisha on 1 October 1992, with effect from 2 October 1992. Since 1967, the town along with its district has been one of the worst affected regions due to the Naxalite–Maoist insurgency, although in recent years, the effect has been considerably reduced.

Malkangiri is located at It covers an area of about , and has an average elevation of above the mean sea level. It lies in the area between the hills of Eastern Ghats on eastern and western sides. During monsoons, the town becomes impassably swampy and heavy floods isolate it from the rest of the state.

The climate in Malkangiri is generally cold during winters and hot in summers, with temperatures varying from to as high as The average annual rainfall is about 1700 mm. Relative humidity is generally high, especially in the monsoon and post–monsoon months, due to the interior location of the town amidst the Eastern Ghats.

As of Census 2011, Malkangiri had a population of 31,007. Males constitute 52% of the population and females 48%. The town has an average literacy rate of 57%, lower than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 65%, and female literacy is 48%. In the town, 15% of the population is under 6 years of age.

After 2019 elections, the current MLA from Malkangiri Assembly (ST) Constituency is Aditya Madhi of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). The previous MLA from Malkangiri Assembly (ST) Constituency was Manas Kumar Madkami of Biju Janata Dal (BJD), who won the seat in 2014. Previous MLAs from this seat were Arabinda Dhali of BJP in 2000 and in 1995, Naka Kanaya for Janata Dal (JD) in 1990 and for Janata Party (JNP) in 1977, Nadiabasi Biswas of Indian National Congress (INC) in 1985 and Naka Laxmaya of INC (I) in 1980. Malkangiri is part of Nabarangpur constituency.

The National Highway 326 (NH 326) passes through Malkangiri, which connects it with the rest of Odisha and the neighbouring states of Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Telangana.

The nearest railway line and station from Malkangiri is Jeypore railway station at Jeypore, located around north east from the town. The Bhadrachalam–Malkangiri railway line has been proposed by the Government of India to link the town by rail, and improve connectivity to the remote region of Malkangiri district and other parts of central India.

The Malkangiri Bus Station is located at the centre of the town. There are regular buses that commute to and from the town everyday, like inter state buses under Odisha State Road Transport Corporation (OSRTC), government, private and Odisha Tourism Development Corporation (OTDC) tourist buses, plying to various locations in Odisha and neighbouring states, also to tourist spots around Malkangiri, like Angul, Balangir, Balimela, Bargarh, Bhadrachalam, Bhawanipatna, Bhilai, Bhubaneswar, Brahmapur, Chitrakonda, Cuttack, Dantewada, Durg, Hyderabad, Jagdalpur, Jeypore, Jharsuguda, Keonjhar, Khordha, Nabarangpur, Nayagarh, Puri, Raipur, Raigarh, Rayagada, Rourkela, Sambalpur, Sukma, Sundargarh, Titlagarh and Visakhapatnam.

The nearest airport is Malkangiri Airport, located just around south east from Malkangiri. After two years of construction, it was inaugurated and opened by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on 9 January 2024.