Rayagada, Odisha, India    (Nov 2022)        

For most visitors, the charms of Rayagada lie in the lovely countryside of Rayagada district which teems with streams, rivers, and hills. In its north is Niyamgiri hills, home to the Dongria Kondh Adivasi tribe made famous for their successful resistance, aided by international celebrities in the wake of the movie Avatar, against the bauxite mining designs of Vedanta corp. Their hilly abode is still mostly forest, with many clearings for rice fields and plantations of banana and pineapple. A forlorn government hospital inside seems yet to earn their trust. Each Wednesday, the Dongria Kondh descend from the hills to Rayagada to sell their goods in a market. Along streams and rivers just outside Rayagada are scenic spots used by townsfolk for picnics. A temple to Maa Majhighariani—a tribal diety, which, as with Kali and Shiva, was co-opted by Brahminism, as an avatar of Durga—draws crowds from far and wide, some with sacrificial chickens. A vista point atop a hill affords nice views of the town and Nagavali river, at least to the extent permitted by the pall of polluted air that now hangs over this region—and over much of India—most of the year.