Sriram Chandra Bhanj Deo

Maharaja Sri Rama Chandra Bhanja Deo (; 17 December 1870 – 22 February 1912) was the Maharaja of Mayurbhanj State of India.

Personal life

Early life Sriram Chandra Bhanja Deo was only eleven years old when his father, Maharaja Krishna Chandra Bhanja Deo, the ruler of the Mayurbhanj State, died. On 29 May 1882, Sriram Chandra Bhanja Deo succeeded to the throne. At that time, the State was under the Court of Wards, governed by a British Commissioner P. Wylly, and the affairs of the state remained under the control of his grandmother, the Dowager Maharani of Mayurbhanj. On 15 August 1892, the Maharaja, having reached the age of 21, came of age and formally assumed the role of Maharaja. The elder daughter was married to the Maharaja of Vizianagaram and the younger daughter, Rani Jyoti Manjari Devi was married to Mahant Sarveshwar Das, the Raja Bahadur of Nandgaon, a princely state of the erstwhile Central Provinces and Berar.

Death

Maharaja died due to an accident, while on a hunting trip, when he was accidentally injured by the bullet fired from the gun of his brother-in-law (brother of Sucharu Devi). He was severely injured and was treated in Calcutta, but died there of his injuries.

Work

Administration He worked for the all around development of Mayurbhanj and implemented various welfare schemes designed to help the people. He was revered as a philosopher king. He constituted the state council for administration in the state and brought about reforms in the sphere of language, health and administration. During his reign 474 miles of road were built in State connecting all divisional towns with Baripada.

He was also a patriot and great patron of the Odia language and presided over the first meeting of Utkal Samilani held on 3 December 1903.

Architecture In 1892, he made major additions to the royal palace of Mayurbhanj, which has 126 rooms. The front of the palace resembles the Buckingham Palace, which was built in 1908. Two colleges, Maharaja Purna Chandra College, and the Government Women's College are now located inside the palace. thumb

Honours

Delhi Durbar Gold Medal – 1903. are widely acknowledged as the makers of modern Orissa. The legacy include; Sriram Chandra Bhanja Memorial Fund was established in 1920 in his memory to support irrigation in Mayurbhanj. Successive rulers of Mayurbhanj continued to contribute an annual sum of 10,000 rupees to it. Maharaja Sriram Chandra Bhanjdeo University, Baripada, a public university location in hometown of the Maharaja.