District of Odisha

Dhenkanal District Population 2026

Q: What is the population of Dhenkanal district in 2026?

Our estimate for 1 March 2026 is ≈12,50,000 (12.5 lakh). It is not an official figure: it applies Dhenkanal's 2001–2011 trend, damped, to the official Odisha projection (method M1). Census 2011 counted 11,92,811.

Q: What was the population of Dhenkanal district in Census 2011?

11,92,811: 6,12,593 males and 5,80,218 females, of whom 1,17,506 lived in towns and 10,75,305 in villages.

Population · 1 March 2026

≈ 12.5 lakh Estimate Our estimate, method M1, constrained to the official state projection 1 March 2026 How this is made →

12,50,000 1.25 million 1 March 2026

Dhenkanal district's population is estimated at ≈12.5 lakh (12,50,000) on 1 March 2026. This is our estimate, tied to the official Odisha projection; Census 2011, the last count, recorded 11,92,811.

Estimate: method M1, constrained to the RGI projection for Odisha. Census: ORGI.

Which number do you mean?

District totals include villages. Here is how the 2011 population splits between towns and villages.

District

Dhenkanal district

Census 2011: 11,92,811
2026 Estimate Our estimate, method M1, constrained to the official state projection How this is made →: ≈ 12.5 lakh

Urban population

Towns (urban)

Census 2011: 1,17,506

Rural

Villages (rural)

Census 2011: 10,75,305

Key figures

Population 2026: ≈ 12.5 lakh 12,50,000 Estimate Our estimate, method M1, constrained to the official state projection How this is made →
Census 2011: 11.93 lakh 11,92,811 Census 2011 Final count, Census of India 2011 (ORGI) How this is made →
Density: 268per km² 2011
Sex ratio: 947 Odisha: 979
Child sex ratio (0–6): 877 Odisha: 941
Literacy rate: 78.8% Male 86.2% · Female 71.0%
Urban share: 9.9% Odisha: 16.7%
Growth 2001–11: +11.8% Odisha: +14.1%
Area: 4,452km² Census 2011
Households: 2.79 lakh 4.3 people per household
Villages: 1,208 Census 2011
Towns: 5 Census 2011

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Population · Odisha
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Literacy rate · Odisha
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Density · Odisha

Population over time

Census counts on 2011 boundaries, then our estimate to 2036.

Census
Estimate

12 L 2026

› Show the numbers as a table

Year	Population
1951	4,29,097
1961	5,26,520
1971	6,65,377
1981	7,97,053
1991	9,47,870
2001	10,66,878
2011	11,92,811
2016 *	12,19,000
2021 *	12,39,000
2026 *	12,50,000
2031 *	12,53,000
2036 *	12,47,000

* Estimate

How Dhenkanal's 2011 population was spread

Sub-districts (tehsils, talukas, mandals or blocks) as they were in Census 2011. “Part” means only some of it now lies in this district.

How Dhenkanal's 2011 population was spread
#
1	Dhenkanal Sadar	2,82,828	23.7%	936	82.4%	25.5%
2	Parajang	1,64,482	13.8%	961	77.1%	3.9%
3	Kamakshyanagar	1,17,096	9.8%	948	81.5%	14.4%
4	Gandia	1,04,442	8.8%	962	76.7%	0.0%
5	Bhuban	1,01,051	8.5%	944	80.3%	22.0%
6	Rasol	73,850	6.2%	964	76.9%	0.0%
7	Motunga	62,014	5.2%	920	81.4%	0.0%
8	Kankadahad	61,222	5.1%	980	67.8%	0.0%
9	Tumusingha	53,802	4.5%	943	78.6%	0.0%
10	Nihalprasad	53,452	4.5%	960	77.2%	0.0%
11	Balimi	47,592	4.0%	952	75.7%	0.0%
12	Hindol	44,159	3.7%	962	73.1%	0.0%
13	Bhusan Steel Limited	26,821	2.2%	837	81.3%	0.0%

Largest towns in Dhenkanal (Census 2011)

Dhenkanal 67,414
Bhuban 22,200
Kamakshyanagar 16,810
Saranga CT 6,426
Indipur CT 4,656

How people in Dhenkanal worked (Census 2011)

Cultivators

16.4%

Agricultural labourers

37.6%

Household industry

4.0%

Other work

42.1%

Share of all workers, main and marginal. Work participation: 36.5%.

Age structure of Dhenkanal

Population in five-year age groups, Census 2011. Men on the left, women on the right. Census 2011 Census 2011, as published. How this is made →

MenWomen

80+
75-79
70-74
65-69
60-64
55-59
50-54
45-49
40-44
35-39
30-34
25-29
20-24
15-19
10-14
5-9
0-4

› Show the numbers as a table

Age	Men	Women
0-4	52,164	45,744
5-9	54,269	50,064
10-14	59,558	57,075
15-19	57,172	54,556
20-24	53,578	54,637
25-29	50,673	52,207
30-34	46,279	46,033
35-39	46,575	43,633
40-44	40,490	36,800
45-49	34,507	31,916
50-54	27,906	26,404
55-59	23,357	22,538
60-64	23,638	21,804
65-69	15,637	14,283
70-74	12,758	11,173
75-79	6,032	5,096
80+	6,629	5,143

Children (0–14): 26.8%; Odisha 28.9%
Working age (15–59): 62.9%; Odisha 61.6%
Older people (60+): 10.3%; Odisha 9.5%
Median age: 27.7years; Odisha 26.6
Dependency ratio: 49.8; children and 65+ per 100 aged 15–64; Odisha 53.5

Languages spoken in Dhenkanal

Share of people by mother tongue, grouped into languages as the Census does. 39 languages recorded. Census 2011 Census 2011, as published. How this is made →

Odia 96.2%
Munda 1.2%
Santali 0.9%
Juang 0.5%
Hindi 0.3%
Ho 0.3%
Urdu 0.2%
Others 0.2%
All other languages 0.3%

Largest mother tongues

Odia96.2%
Munda1.2%
Santali0.9%
Juang0.5%
Hindi0.3%
Ho0.3%
Urdu0.2%
Bengali0.1%

Housing and amenities in Dhenkanal

Share of households, Houselisting Census 2011. Census 2011 Census 2011, as published. How this is made →

Basic services

Electricity for lighting 42.1%

Odisha 43.1%
Tap water 6.2%

Odisha 13.9%
Water source within premises 19.6%

Odisha 22.5%
Toilet within premises 18.3%

Odisha 22.1%
Open defecation (no latrine) (Lower is better for this one.) 80.6%

Odisha 76.5%
Bathing area within premises 15.5%

Odisha 19.7%
Closed drainage 1.5%

Odisha 4.4%
Cooking with LPG/PNG 7.1%

Odisha 9.9%
Cooking with wood, crop waste or dung (Lower is better for this one.) 89.5%

Odisha 84.5%

What households own

Mobile phone 34.0%

Odisha 38.1%
Television 23.8%

Odisha 26.8%
Scooter or motorcycle 13.0%

Odisha 14.5%
Computer or laptop 3.9%

Odisha 5.1%
Car, jeep or van 1.3%

Odisha 1.8%
Use banking services 38.6%

Odisha 45.1%
None of the listed assets (Lower is better for this one.) 30.6%

Odisha 25.5%

The home itself

Own their home 94.7%

Odisha 90.3%
Rent their home 3.5%

Odisha 6.7%
Permanent (pucca) house 43.2%

Odisha 42.4%
House in good condition 25.5%

Odisha 29.6%
Concrete roof 32.5%

Odisha 23.6%
Cement or tiled floor 38.7%

Odisha 36.3%
One room or less (Lower is better for this one.) 43.7%

Odisha 38.8%

Odisha

What the numbers say

Dhenkanal district held 2.8% of Odisha's population in 2011, 18th of 30 districts.
Literacy is 78.8%, 5.9 points above the Odisha average of 72.9%.
The gender gap in literacy is wide: 86.2% of men but only 71.0% of women could read and write in 2011.
The sex ratio of 947 females per 1,000 males is lower than the state's 979.
The child sex ratio was just 877 girls per 1,000 boys aged 0–6, among the more skewed in India (national: 918).
9.9% of residents lived in towns in 2011, more rural than Odisha as a whole (16.7%).
The population grew 11.8% in 2001–11, slower than Odisha's 14.1%.
Our 2026 estimate, ≈12.5 lakh, implies growth of about 5% since 2011; it is tied to the official Odisha projection.
Its largest town, Dhenkanal, had 67.4 thousand people in 2011, 5.7% of the district.

Compare with

All districts of Odisha →

Census 2027 status

Results pending

Phase I: houselisting

Done (16 April 2026 – 15 May 2026)
Phase II: counting people

February 2027 (reference date 1 March 2027)
Results

Not yet released. In 2011, first figures came about a month after counting ended.

When the Registrar General publishes Census 2027 figures for Dhenkanal, they will appear on this page, at this address. Census 2027 explained →

Population by religion in Dhenkanal (Census 2011)

Official figures as published by the Office of the Registrar General. Shown without commentary. Census 2011 Census 2011, as published. How this is made →

Population by religion in Dhenkanal (Census 2011)
Religion	Persons	Share	Odisha
Hindu	11,85,542	99.4%	93.6%
Muslim	4,805	0.4%	2.2%
Christian	727	0.1%	2.8%
Sikh	124	0.0%	0.1%
Buddhist	366	0.0%	0.0%
Jain	39	0.0%	0.0%
Other religions and persuasions	139	0.0%	1.1%
Religion not stated	1,069	0.1%	0.2%
Total	11,92,811	100%

Frequently asked questions

What is the population of Dhenkanal district in 2026?

Our estimate for 1 March 2026 is ≈12,50,000 (12.5 lakh). It is not an official figure: it applies Dhenkanal's 2001–2011 trend, damped, to the official Odisha projection (method M1). Census 2011 counted 11,92,811.

What was the population of Dhenkanal district in Census 2011?

11,92,811: 6,12,593 males and 5,80,218 females, of whom 1,17,506 lived in towns and 10,75,305 in villages.

What is the literacy rate and sex ratio of Dhenkanal?

Literacy was 78.8% in 2011 (men 86.2%, women 71.0%). The sex ratio was 947 females per 1,000 males, and 877 among children aged 0–6.

Which is the largest town in Dhenkanal district?

Dhenkanal, with 67,414 people in Census 2011.

How many villages and towns are in Dhenkanal district?

On today's boundaries the district contains 1,208 Census 2011 villages and 5 towns.

⤓ Download Odisha district data (CSV)

Sources and method

Data updated: 4 October 2026 · Report a correction