Kandhamal (Oriya: କନ୍ଧମାଳ) is a district of the state of Orissa, India. The district headquarters of the district is Phulbani.

The Kandhmal district was created on 1 April 1993 from the former Boudh-Kandhmal district as a result of district reorganization in the state of Orissa.

On 25 December 2007, unrest broke out between Christians and Hindus and Kandha tribe and Pana caste people.

On 23 August 2008, Sri Lakshmananda Saraswati - a leader of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad - was murdered by unidentified gunmen under mysterious circumstances. Maoist rebels were initially blamed by the police and some Hindu organisations suspected collusion of Christian missionaries amongst the Pana caste. This led to large scale riots between the indigenous Hindu Kandha tribe and the Christian minority amongst the Pana caste. The underlying causes are complex and cross political, religious and ethnic boundaries. Land encroachment perceived or otherwise being a particular source of tension between the communities. In April 2010, a special "fast track" court in Phulbani convicted 105 people. Ten people were acquitted due to lack of evidence.