Nayagarh district is one of the 30 districts of Orissa State in eastern India. It was created in 1995 when the erstwhile Puri District was split into three distinct districts. It is home to the Baisipali Wildlife Sanctuary.

The district is currently a part of the Red Corridor. On 15 February 2008 A number of police facilities across the district came under attack from maoist rebels resulting in the death of 13 police officers and 1 civilian. During the raid the rebels stole a number of weapons. Targets of the attack were the police training school the police armoury and a police station. The fighting lasted about one and a half hours.

The District is located towards the west or Puri District surrounded by Cuttack District in the North, Phulbani District in the West, Ganjam District in the South and Khurda District in the East. The district covers an area of 3890 km².

This district is situated in the hilly ranges in the West and its North Eastern parts has formed a small well cultivated fertile valleys intersected by small streams. The river Mahanadi flows in the Eastern boundary. The climate of the District carries a high temperature in hot months and cooler in winter. The headquarters of the district is located in the town of Nayagarh.

Nayagarh (ନୟାଗଡ଼) is a town and a notified area council (NAC) in Nayagarh district in the Indian state of Orissa. It is the headquarters of Nayagarh district.

Nayagarh is located at 20°08′N 85°06′E / 20.13°N 85.1°E / 20.13; 85.1. It has an average elevation of 178 metres (583 feet). This town has Rukhi mountain to the south and Balaram mountain in north. These mountains mitigated the effects of the 1999 Orissa cyclone on Nayagarh.

As of 2011^[update] India census, Nayagarh had population of 962,215 of which male and female were 502,194 and 460,021 respectively. There was change of 11.30 percent in the population compared to population as per 2001. In the previous census of India 2001, Nayagarh District recorded increase of 10.46 percent to its population compared to 1991.

The initial provisional data suggest a density of 247 in 2011 compared to 222 of 2001. Total area under Nayagarh district is about 3,890 km².

Average literacy rate of Nayagarh in 2011 were 79.17 compared to 70.52 of 2001. If things are looked out at gender wise, male and female literacy were 86.63 and 71.08 respectively. For 2001 census, same figures stood at 82.66 and 57.64 in Nayagarh District. Total literate in Nayagarh District were 681,522 of which male and female were 387,632 and 293,890 respectively. In 2001, Nayagarh District had 529,840 in its total region.