Balasore (Oriya: ) (also known as Baleshwar) is a strategically located city in the state of Orissa, about 194 kilometres (121mi) north of the state capital Bhubaneswar, in eastern India. It is the administrative headquarters of Balasore district. It is best known for Chandipur beach. It is also the site of the Indian Ballistic Missile Defense Program's Integrated Test Range, located 18km. south of Balasore. The Defence Research and Development Organisation developed many different missiles such as Nag, Brahmos, Agni missile among others here. The lingua franca is Oriya. The English settlement of Balasore, formed in 1642, was an early trading port for British, French and Dutch ships in the early age of Enlightenment and became a colonial part of first Danish India, later British India. In 1763 Balasore became a Danish possession, governed from Tranquebar, as part of Danish India. Due to the shallowness of its bay, the trading post was abandoned, leaving behind only a small...
