Mayurbhanj Palace, Baripada

Mayurbhanj Palace, locally called Rajbadi, was the royal seat of the Bhanj dynasty in Baripada, once the capital of Mayurbhanj State. Work began in 1804 on the orders of Maharani Sumitra Devi Bhanj Deo, and later rulers kept adding to it; Sriram Chandra Bhanj Deo made major additions in 1892 and, in 1908, built the front that resembles Buckingham Palace. Six generations lived here until 1956, when the last ruler, Pratap Chandra Bhanj Deo, sold it to the government of Odisha for ₹4.75 lakh.

The brick-built, double-storey palace has 126 rooms, Doric-Corinthian columns and a blend of Greek and Victorian styles, with wooden doors carved with the royal insignia. It stands in acres of green ground and now houses two colleges, one of which uses the covered-over royal bathing ghat as a reading room. A leaking roof and decaying walls have prompted calls since 2011 for the Archaeological Survey of India to take over its care.