Hirakud Dam, Hydroelectric dam in Sambalpur, India

Hirakud is a hydroelectric facility on the Mahanadi River in Odisha, stretching 4800 meters in length and rising up to 61 meters in height. Two observation towers at either end offer visitors sweeping views over the artificial lake and surrounding hills.

Sir Hawthorne Lewis, Governor of Odisha, laid the foundation stone on 15 March 1946, and Jawaharlal Nehru poured the first concrete on 12 April 1948. The dam was completed in 1953 and inaugurated by Nehru on 13 January 1957. Filling the reservoir displaced 22,000 people and submerged 200 temples.

The two observation towers at the ends of the dam are named Gandhi Minar and Jawahar Minar. At Chiplima, 22 km downstream, the river drops 24 to 37 m through a natural fall used for power generation; the area is mostly inhabited by fishermen whose deity is Ghanteswari, revered in the neighbouring area.

The dam lies about 10 km from Sambalpur, with the main section spanning 4.8 km between Laxmidungri and Chandili Dunguri hills; the dykes add 21 km on each side. Two observation towers, Gandhi Minar and Jawahar Minar, stand at either end of the main dam. Power House I sits at the toe of the main dam, while Power Station II is at Chipilima, 19 km southeast.

More than 200 old temples lie beneath the reservoir and partially resurface during dry summer months when the water level drops. Cattle Island in the reservoir is home to wild cattle descended from animals left behind during resettlement.