Nayagarh: The world-famous ‘Chhenapoda’, a sweet delicacy having close links with Jagannath culture, has its origins in this district. While the whole state, especially Nayagarh and Odisha capital Bhubaneswar, celebrated ‘World Chhenapoda Day’, Thursday with fanfare, persistent demands for a Geographical Indication (GI) tag for this popular dessert have not borne any fruit yet.
People have expressed dissatisfaction over the lack of recognition for ‘Chhenapoda’. Several institutions and outfits have met Nayagarh District Collector Swadha Dev Singh and the Minister of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, Industries and Energy, Pratap Keshari Deb for this purpose but to no avail. However, after ‘Kanteimundi Brinjals’ of Kantilo in this district got GI recognition, hopes have been rekindled that ‘Chhenapoda’ will soon get the much-awaited tag.
However, concerns have been expressed over the inordinate delay in GI tagging of the sweetmeat. The district administration has proposed the same to the head office of GI Registry in Chennai. After applying through ORMAS, the application for the GI tag status to ‘Chhenapoda’ has been sent to Chennai on behalf of ‘Krishna Chhenapoda Producer Group’ in Machhipada. The district administration informed that a proposal received from the ‘Madhu Baishya Samaj’ has also been sent to the MSME, Industries and Energy departments. This district is known for its ‘Chhenapoda’. The delicacy was originally made here taking inspiration from the traditional ‘podapitha’. With this, the late Sudarshan Sahu of Satapatna village in Daspalla area in this district attained the limelight.
Locals said Sudarshan’s father Bidyadhar used to run a breakfast shop at Daspalla market square. Bidyadhar was assisted by Sudarshan. In the shop, some cottage cheese would go to waste every day. To prevent wastage, the family tried out a new way to bake it like ‘podapitha’ and the famed ‘Chhenapoda’ was born. Six years after Sudarshan’s death, the people of this district celebrated ‘Chhenapoda Dibasa’ to remember him on his birthday in 2022. Nayagarh’s ‘Chhenapoda’ has now become gradually a mouth-watering delicacy not only in Odisha but even outside the state.
However, at this juncture, disputes have cropped up over the real creator of the sweet. After the district administration celebrated ‘Chhenapoda Day’ in 2023, the dispute intensified. Some of the family members claimed that the real creator of ‘Chhenapoda’ was not Sudarshan, but his father Bidyadhar. With Chhenapoda being sold at prices even lower than cottage cheese, questions have risen over the quality of the delicacy. It is being made and sold at different places in this district. Along with its growing popularity, criticism has also surfaced both inside and outside the state over its quality. While the price of the main ingredient, cottage cheese is Rs 130-250 per kilogram, the rate of ‘Chhenapoda’ varies from Rs 90-300/kg in markets and shops, thereby creating apprehensions about its quality. Approximately 110 families are making ‘Chhenapoda’ in Machhipada village which can be called the origin of the dessert. Similarly, 90 families in Solapata of Odagaon block, 30 in Darpada, 15 in this town, and more than five families in Nabaghanapur are preparing ‘Chhenapoda’ on a daily basis.
Similarly, more than 20 families in Fatehgarh area of Bhapur block are preparing this much-loved delicacy. For this purpose, ‘Chhenapoda’ kilns have been set up where special confectioners have been employed. Once ready, the famed sweet is sent to Jharsuguda, Rourkela, Sundargarh, Berhampur, Keonjhar, Sambalpur, Koraput, Rayagada, Baliguda, Joda, Barbil and Bhubaneswar daily by buses.