About Sambalpur
Sambalpur is a Municipal Corporation and located in the western part of Odisha, and is one of the largest and oldest cities in the state. It is the headquarters of Northern Revenue Division, Mahanadi Coalfield Limited (MCL) and one of the railway division from East Coast Railway zone. It is situated about 300 km (190 mi) west of the state capital Bhubaneswar, 550 km (340 mi) west of Kolkata in West Bengal and 278 km (173 mi) east of Raipur in Chhattisgarh. It is on the bank of the Mahanadi River.
Sambalpur derives its name from the Goddess Samalei, who is regarded as the reigning deity of the region. The region in which Sambalpur city is located was also known as Hirakhanda from ancient times. In history, it has also been known as "Sambalaka". Claudius Ptolemy described the place as "Sambalak".
Source : Wikipedia