Bhubaneswar: Hirakud dam, the longest dam in the world is the pride of Odisha and a landmark project in the history of India, post independence. With a length of more than 25 km, it cost Rs. 1000.2 million in 1953.

Governor of Odisha Sir Hawthorne Lewis laid the foundation stone for this project in 1945 and 12 years later, Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru inaugurated this multipurpose river valley project. British Pathé, a multimedia resource archive has a video report on its YouTube channel of this historic event on 13 January 1957.

Hirakud dam, located 15 km from Sambalpur district of Odisha, was built to control river flow, regulate drainage system, generation of hydroelectricity, aid in irrigation facility in surrounding districts and allocate water to industries in nearby areas.