city
A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...
in the state of
Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh (, abbr. AP) is a state in the south-eastern coastal region of India. It is the seventh-largest state by area covering an area of and tenth-most populous state with 49,386,799 inhabitants. It is bordered by Telangana to the ...
, India. It formerly served as the capital of
Andhra State
Andhra State (IAST: ; ) was a state in India created in 1953 from the Telugu-speaking northern districts of Madras State. The state was made up of this two distinct cultural regions – Rayalaseema and Coastal Andhra. Andhra State did not incl ...
(1953–1956). The city is often referred to as "The Gateway of Rayalaseema".Kurnool is also known as The City of Gem Stones. It also serves as the district headquarters of its Kurnool district.
census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses incl ...
state
State may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Literature
* ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State
* ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States
* ''Our S ...
with a population of 484,327. It is located on the banks of the Tungabhadra river. Although the area has been inhabited for thousands of years, modern Kurnool was founded in the 16th century CE with the construction of the
Konda Reddy Fort
Konda Reddy Fort, also known as Kondareddy Buruju is a fort situated in the city of Kurnool in Andhra Pradesh, India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and depende ...
.
Etymology
The original name of Kurnool is found in historical records as ''Kandanavōlu'' or ''Kandanōlu''. It used to be a crossing on the Tungabhadra River, where the bullock cart caravans are believed to have greased their wheels ("''kandana''" being a reference to grease). The city is often referred to as "The Gateway of Rayalaseema".
History
Palaeolithic era
The Ketavaram
rock painting
In archaeology, rock art is human-made markings placed on natural surfaces, typically vertical stone surfaces. A high proportion of surviving historic and prehistoric rock art is found in caves or partly enclosed rock shelters; this type also ...
s from the Paleolithic era and are (18 kilometres from Kurnool).
Also the Jurreru Valley, Katavani Kunta and
Yaganti
Sri Yaganti Uma Maheswara Temple or Yaganti is a temple of Shiva in Nandyal district in the India state of Andhra Pradesh. It was built according to Vaishnavaite traditions.
History
This temple was constructed by King Harihara Bukka Raya of ...
rock art
In archaeology, rock art is human-made markings placed on natural surfaces, typically vertical stone surfaces. A high proportion of surviving historic and prehistoric rock art is found in caves or partly enclosed rock shelters; this type also ...
and paintings in the vicinity, may be dated from 35,000 to 40,000 years ago.
Belum Caves are geologically and historically important caves in the district. There are indications that Jain and Buddhist monks were occupying these caves centuries ago. Many Buddhists relics were found inside the caves. These relics are now housed in Museum at
Ananthapur
Anantapur, officially Anantapuramu, is a city in Anantapur district of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It is the mandal headquarters of Anantapuru mandal and also the divisional headquarters of Anantapur revenue division. The city is locat ...
.
Archaeological survey of India
The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) is an Indian government agency that is responsible for archaeological research and the conservation and preservation of cultural historical monuments in the country. It was founded in 1861 by Alexande ...
(ASI) found remnants of vessels and other artifacts of pre-Buddhist era and has dated the remnants of vessels found in the caves to 4500 BC. Show Caves of India: Belum Caves
Vijayanagara era
Little was known about Kurnool town before the 11th century. The earliest knowledge of this settlement dates from the 11th century. It has developed as transit place on the southern banks of the river Tungabhadra.
Ruled by the Cholas in 12th Century and later taken over by the
Kakatiya dynasty
The Kakatiya dynasty (IAST: Kākatīya) was an Indian dynasty that ruled most of eastern Deccan region comprising present day Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, and parts of eastern Karnataka and southern Odisha between 12th and 14th centuries. Th ...
in 13th century. Kurnool developed into a transit point on the southern banks of the Tungabhadra River. It eventually fell under the rule of a jaghirdar before becoming a part of the Vijayanagar dynasty. King Achyuta Raya, successor of Sri Krishnadeva Raya constructed the Kurnool Fort during the 16th century.
Mughals Rule
The Abyssinian, Abdul Wahab Khan, defeated King Gopal Raja of the
Vijayanagar
The Vijayanagara Empire, also called the Karnata Kingdom, was a Hinduism, Hindu empire based in the region of South India, which consisted the modern states of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Goa and some parts of Telangana an ...
Kingdom in the 17th century and went on to rule the land for 16 years until his death.
In 1686, Kurnool fell under the influence of the Mughals who were ruled by Emperor Aurangzeb. Later on in Kurnool's history, it was ruled by the Nawabs until the British Government took over in 1839.
Nawabs
Ghulam Rasul Khan Bahadur (died on 12 July 1840) was the last
of Kurnool, Andhra Pradesh. He ruled from 1823 to 1839 until the kingdom was defeated by the
East India Company
The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (the Indian subcontinent and Southea ...
. On 12 October 1839, a war broke out between
British Indian Army
The British Indian Army, commonly referred to as the Indian Army, was the main military of the British Raj before its dissolution in 1947. It was responsible for the defence of the British Indian Empire, including the princely states, which co ...
and the kingdom and continued for six days until the king was detained on 18 October. He was subsequently sent to
Tiruchirappalli Central Prison
Tiruchirapalli Central Prison is located in Tiruchirapalli, India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most ...
where he died on 12 July 1840.
Post independence
Kurnool was the capital of erstwhile
Andhra State
Andhra State (IAST: ; ) was a state in India created in 1953 from the Telugu-speaking northern districts of Madras State. The state was made up of this two distinct cultural regions – Rayalaseema and Coastal Andhra. Andhra State did not incl ...
Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh (, abbr. AP) is a state in the south-eastern coastal region of India. It is the seventh-largest state by area covering an area of and tenth-most populous state with 49,386,799 inhabitants. It is bordered by Telangana to the ...
with
Hyderabad
Hyderabad ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana and the ''de jure'' capital of Andhra Pradesh. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part ...
as the state's capital on 1 November 1956. Presently Kurnool is in the divided Andhra Pradesh state.
Geography
Kurnool is located at . It has an average elevation of 273 metres (898 feet). Kurnool lies on the banks of the Tungabhadra River. The Hundri and Neeva rivers also flow through the city. The K.C.Canal (Kurnool–Cuddapah) was built by the Dutch for transportation, but later used for irrigation.
Cityscape
Landmarks in and around the city include ''Konda Reddy Fort'' Formerly called ''Kondareddy Burj'' is the Historical Monuement and Major Tourist Attraction of Kurnool located at the north east part of the city. Orvakal rock Garderns is the Sculpture Garden with Ancient cave lies on the South East of the city.
Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include:
* Bernd Köppen (born 1951), German pianist and composer
* Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan
* Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author and ...
''BSh'') with temperatures ranging from to in the summer and to in the winter. The average annual rainfall is about .
Demographics
As per final data of 2011 census, Kurnool urban agglomeration had a population of 484,327, making it the fifth largest city in the state of Andhra Pradesh. The literacy rate of Kurnool was 77.37 per cent at the time of the 2011 census.
Religion
As per final data of 2011 census, Hindus formed the majority in the Kurnool urban agglomeration. Other religious groups found in Kurnool are
Muslims
Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abraha ...
,
Christians
Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...
, and Jains.
Language
Telugu
Telugu may refer to:
* Telugu language, a major Dravidian language of India
*Telugu people, an ethno-linguistic group of India
* Telugu script, used to write the Telugu language
** Telugu (Unicode block), a block of Telugu characters in Unicode
S ...
(67.91%) is the official and most spoken language.
Hindi
Hindi (Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been de ...
(1.02%) are also spoken.
Government and politics
Kurnool serves as the district headquarters of its Kurnool district. The city is administered by Kurnool Municipal Corporation.
Education
The primary and secondary school education is imparted by Government, aided and private schools of the ''School Education Department'' of the state.
Notable institutions located in the city include:
*
Kurnool Medical College
Kurnool Medical College, established in 1956, is one of the oldest medical schools in India, located in Kurnool, Andhra Pradesh.
History
When Andhra State was formed in October 1953, the Government of Andhra decided to start a medical colleg ...
*
Osmania College
Osmania College is a provincial school in Jaffna, Sri Lanka. It was once a prominent educational institution for the city's Muslim community.
History
Osmania College, located in Jaffna's Moor Town suburb, conducted classes ranging from kinderga ...
*
Rayalaseema University
Rayalaseema University is a state university
A state university system in the United States is a group of public universities supported by an individual state, territory or federal district. These systems constitute the majority of public ...
Silver Jubilee Government College
Silver is a chemical element
A chemical element is a species of atoms that have a given number of protons in their atomic nucleus, nuclei, including the pure Chemical substance, substance consisting only of that species. Unlike chemica ...
Transport
Roadways
National Highway 44 (India)
National Highway 44 (NH 44) is a major north–south National Highway in India and is the longest in the country.
It passes through the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir, in addition to the states of Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, ...
which runs from Srinagar to Kanyakumari and also highway of
Bangalore
Bangalore (), officially Bengaluru (), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan population of around , making it the third most populous city and fifth most ...
to
Hyderabad
Hyderabad ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana and the ''de jure'' capital of Andhra Pradesh. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part ...
Srisailam
Srisailam is a census town in Nandyal district of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It is the mandal headquarters of Srisailam mandal in Atmakur revenue division. It is located about from the district headquarters Nandyal, from Kurnool, an ...
,
Vinukonda
Vinukonda is a town in Palnadu district of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It is a municipality and the headquarters of Vinukonda mandal and administered under Narasaraopet revenue division.
Etymology
The town was formerly known as ''Vis ...
,
Guntur
Guntur () is a city and the administrative headquarters of Guntur district in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. Guntur is spread across 168.49 km square and is the third-largest city in the state. It is situated to the west of the Ba ...
,
Vijayawada
Vijayawada, formerly known as Bezawada, is the second largest city in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh and is a part of the state's Capital Region. It is the administrative headquarters of the NTR district. Its metropolitan region comprises NT ...
Chittoor
Chittoor is a city and district headquarters in Chittoor district of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It is also the mandal and divisional headquarters of Chittoor mandal and Chittoor revenue division, respectively. The city has a popu ...
, are the major highways passing through the city.
The city has a total road length of 519.22 km State owned bus transport system,
APSRTC
Andhra Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation (APSRTC) is the state-owned road transport corporation in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. Its headquarters is located at NTR Administrative Block of RTC House in Pandit Nehru bus station of ...
, operates buses from Kurnool bus station to other parts of the state.
Railways
Kurnool City railway station lies on the Bengaluru – Hyderabad railway line. It is classified as an ''A–category station'' in the
Hyderabad railway division
Hyderabad railway division is one of the three divisions of South Central Railway zone of the Indian Railways. The headquarters of the Division is at Secunderabad and its zonal headquarters is at Secunderabad. Even though Hyderabad has its ow ...
of
South Central Railway zone
The South Central Railway (abbreviated SCR) is one of the 19 zones of Indian Railways. The jurisdiction of the zone is spread over the states of Telangana, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh. It has three divisions under its administrati ...
. Another railway station name Kotla lies in the middle of the city.
Airport
Kurnool Airport, officially known as Uyyalawada Narasimha Reddy Airport, is located at Orvakal and is situated on the National Highway 40, about from Kurnool and from
Nandyal
Nandyal is a city and District headquarters of Nandyal district of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It is a municipality and the headquarters of Nandyal mandal in Nandyal revenue division.
Demographics
In the 2011 census of India, Nandya ...
. Commercial operations of the greenfield airport were started in March 2021.
Economy
Kurnool is endowed with good mineral resources. The important minerals are Iron ore, dolomite, limestone, ochre, quartz and silica.
Arcot Ramasamy Mudaliar
Sir Arcot Ramasamy Mudaliar (14 October 1887 – 17 July 1976) was an Indian lawyer, diplomat, and statesman who was the first president of the United Nations Economic and Social Council and the 24th and last Diwan of Mysore. He also served as ...
- Founder of Justice party, Diwan of Mysore and the First President of UNESCO
*
Kotla Jayasurya Prakasha Reddy
Kotla Jayasurya Prakasha Reddy (born 18 September 1951) was a member of the 15th Lok Sabha of India. He represented the Kurnool constituency of Andhra Pradesh and is a member of Indian National Congress.
Early life
He was born in Hyderabad to ...
, former member of parliament and Union minister, Railways
*
Kotla Vijaya Bhaskara Reddy
Kotla Vijaya Bhaskara Reddy (16 August 1920 – 27 September 2001) served as the chief minister of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh in 1983 and then from 1992 to 1994. Reddy was a member of the Indian National Congress and was elected t ...
, former Chief Minister, United Andhra Pradesh
*
Damodaram Sanjivayya
Damodaram Sanjivayya (14 February 1921 – 7 May 1972) was an Indian politician who served as the chief minister of United Andhra Pradesh from 11 January 1960 to 12 March 1962.
, former Chief Minister, United Andhra Pradesh
* Machani Somappa, industrialist and recipient of Padma sri honour
* T. G. Venkatesh, Indian businessman and politician
See also
*
List of cities in Andhra Pradesh by population
This article is about the list of most populated cities in Andhra Pradesh state of India as per ''2011 Census of India'', conducted by ''The Office of the Registrar General and Census Commissioner,'' under ''Ministry of Home Affairs, Government o ...
*
List of Urban Agglomerations in Andhra Pradesh
In the 2011 Census of India, an urban agglomeration was defined as "An urban agglomeration is a continuous urban spread constituting a town and its adjoining outgrowths, or two or more physically contiguous towns together with or without outgrow ...