Geography of Odisha (Orissa) ::

Geography of Odisha (Orissa) ::

The state of Odisha (Orissa) covers an area of 1,55,707 sq.km. having a coastline of about 480 km on the Bay of Bengal. It lies between 17° 31' and 22° 31' The Western Rolling Uplands are lower in elevation, 153-305 m and have a bedrock of hard soil and a lot of flora and fauna. 31' N latitude and 81° 31' and 87° 3°' E longitude. Bounded by West Bengal in the northeast, Jharkhand in the North, Andhra Pradesh in the South, Chattisgarh in the West, the State is open to the Bay of Bengal on the East.

Morphologically it can be broadly divided into five major regions. The coastal plains in the East, the middle mountainous and highlands region of north and northwest, the central plateaus, the Western rolling uplands and the major flood plains.

Accounting for about ten percent of total surface area, the coastal plains belong to the post tertiary period and are formed by the alluvial deposits of the six major rivers-the Subarnarekha, the Budhabalanga, the Baitarani, the Brahmani, the Mahanadi, and the Rushikulya. The region stretches from the West Bengal border i.e. from the river Subarnarekha in the north to the river Rushikulya in the South. This region slopes eastwards, maximum width in the middle (the Mahanadi delta), narrow in the North (Balasore plain comprising deltas of the Subarnarekha and the Budhabalanga) and narrowest in the South (Ganjam plain comprising smaller delta of the Rushikulya). The South coastal plain also comprises the laccustrine plains of Chilika Lake. The long stretch of land covers the districts of Balasore, Cuttack, Puri and a part of Ganjam with miles and miles of paddy fields constituting the 'rice bowl' of the State.

The area inland is made of the ancient landmass of peninsular India and covers about three-fourth of the entire state. The Middle Mountainous and Highlands Region mostly comprises the hills and mountains of the Eastern ghats rising steeply in the East and slope gently to a dissected plateau in the west running from northeast (Mayurbhanj) to northwest (Malkangiri). These appear like scattered series of steep ridges interrupted by a number of river valleys and flood plains. The elevation varies between 300-1200m. The entire area very rich in mineral resources in mainly inhabited by tribes.

The plateaus are mostly flat forming the western slopes of the Eastern ghats with elevation varying between 305-310 m. There are two broad plateaus in Odisha (Orissa): the Panposh-Keonjhar-Pallahara plateau comprising the upper Baitarani catchment's basin and the Nabrangpur-Jeypore plateau comprises the Sabari basin.

The Western Rolling Uplands are lower in elevation, 153-305 m and have a bedrock of hard soil and a lot of flora and fauna.