Legacy of Colonial Architecture of Balasore District

The second-largest coastal district in Odisha, Balasore district, spans 3806 square kilometres and is located between latitudes 21° 03' N and 21° 59' N and longitudes 86° 20' E and 87° 29' E. It ranks 20th among the state's districts in terms of area, making up 2.44% of the state's total area. It shares borders with the Bay of Bengal to the east, the West Bengal district of Midnapore to the north, the Mayurbhanj district to the west, the Keonjhar district to the south-west, and Bhadrak to the south. Founded in 1828 alongside Cuttack and Puri, Balasore is a well-known district in Odisha. The town also has an old temple devoted to Load Shiva, and the name itself is a corruption of Baneswar Mahadev. Baneswar, which translates to "lord of forest," denotes an area that was formerly covered by forests. Being a seaside city, it drew merchants for maritime commerce, a practice that dates back to the Roman era. This coast served as a thriving commercial hub for the export of commodities like cotton and silk from the 16th century until the 19th century. Over time, a number of European businesses, including Dutch, French, Danish, and British, came to trade here. Odisha was taken from the Marathas by the British in 1803, and they began to rule the area. They constructed numerous public monuments that combine colonial and indigenous architectural styles and heritage in order to improve administration, transportation, and religious beliefs. Many of them remain operational and serve as a reminder of the colonial past. Among them is the Nuniajodi Bridge, one of the biggest colonial bridges on the Old Jagannath Sadak that still serves as a road connector. The Barabati Girls' High School is still in operational in place of the Pilgrim Hospital in Balasore. The Mission Boys High School, Mission Girls High School, and Mission Girls Primary School are still in operation and continue to carry on the colonial legacy. The rich architectural ornamentation of British architecture can still be seen in the residential bungalows of Samanta Radha Prasanna Das of Sunhat, Raja Baikuntha Nath Deb of Manikhamb, and Sri Madan Das of Barabati. The district administration is still centred in the Family Court Building, the Balasore Sub-Collector office, and the Nilgiri Sub-Collector office. With great bravery, the Nizgarh Palace of Nilgiri Stands to spread the region's rich history. The purpose of the paper is to highlight the architecture of the Balasore district of the colonial era.