The Bali Jatra, an annual festival recalling ancient sea voyages to Bali, is held at which place?

The Bali Jatra is an annual festival held in Cuttack, Odisha, on the banks of the river Mahanadi, near the Gadagadia Ghat and the Barabati Fort. It begins on Kartika Purnima, the full moon day of the month of Kartika (October-November), and lasts for about a week or more. The name means "voyage to Bali".

The Bali Jatra commemorates the glorious maritime history of ancient Kalinga (Odisha). In ancient times, the merchants of Kalinga, called Sadhabas, sailed in large boats called boitas to distant lands, such as Bali, Java, Sumatra, Borneo, Sri Lanka and Myanmar, for trade. They set sail on Kartika Purnima, when the winds were favourable. Their voyages helped spread Indian culture, religion, art and language to South-East Asia, which is why Hindu and Buddhist influences are still seen in countries such as Indonesia and Cambodia.

Today, the Bali Jatra is one of the largest open-air trade fairs in Asia. Hundreds of stalls sell a huge variety of goods, such as handicrafts, handloom, clothes, household items, toys and food, and there are amusement rides, cultural programmes, folk dances and music. Lakhs of people visit the fair. On the morning of Kartika Purnima, people across Odisha float small boats made of paper, cork, banana bark or thermocol, with lighted lamps inside, in rivers, ponds and the sea, a ritual called Boita Bandana. In 2022, the Bali Jatra set a Guinness World Record for the largest display of origami boats, with more than 22,000 paper boats made by people at the festival.

Cuttack, the former capital of Odisha, is known as the "Millennium City" and the "Silver City" because of its famous silver filigree work (tarakasi).

Why not the other options?

• ✗Puri is famous for the Rath Yatra.
• ✗Konark is famous for the Sun Temple and the Konark Dance Festival.
• ✗Sambalpur is famous for Nuakhai and Sambalpuri textiles.