East India · Odisha
Rourkela, Odisha
Sources: wikimedia
About Rourkela
- Riverside
- Hills
Where it is
Rourkela is a planned steel city in the Sundargarh district of northern Odisha, near the Jharkhand border, ringed by hills and rivers where the Koel and Sankh meet to form the Brahmani.
History
Rourkela was a small village in a forested tribal area until the 1950s, when India chose it for its first public-sector steel plant, built with the help of the German firms Krupp and Demag. The plant and its planned township transformed the area, and a regional engineering college set up in 1961 has become today's NIT Rourkela.
People
Odia is the main language and Hindi is widely spoken, while the district's Adivasi communities speak Sadri, Mundari and Kurukh. Hockey has deep roots in the Sundargarh area, which has produced many national players, and festivals include Nuakhai, Karma and Sarhul.
Known for
- Rourkela Steel Plant
- Vedvyas, where the Koel and Sankh meet
- Birsa Munda International Hockey Stadium
- NIT Rourkela
- Hills, dams and forest around the city
Did you know?
Rourkela's Birsa Munda International Hockey Stadium, built for the 2023 Men's Hockey World Cup, is recognised by Guinness World Records as the world's largest fully seated hockey arena.
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