Kurnool

This article is about the municipality in India. For its namesake district, see Kurnool district.
Kurnool
కర్నూలు
Kandanavolu
City

View of Rajvihar Center, one of the busiest centers in Kurnool City
Nickname(s): The Gateway of Rayalaseema
Kurnool

Location in Andhra Pradesh

Coordinates: 15°50′N 78°03′E / 15.83°N 78.05°E / 15.83; 78.05Coordinates: 15°50′N 78°03′E / 15.83°N 78.05°E / 15.83; 78.05
Country India
State Andhra Pradesh
District Kurnool
Government
  Type Municipal corporation
  Body Kurnool Municipal corporation
Area[1][2]
  City 65.91 km2 (25.45 sq mi)
Area rank 105
Elevation 274 m (899 ft)
Population (2011)[3]//
  City 460,184
  Rank 106th (India)
5th (Andhra Pradesh)
  Density 7,000/km2 (18,000/sq mi)
  Metro[4] 484,327
Languages
  Official Telugu
Time zone IST (UTC+5:30)
PIN 518001,518002,518003,518004
Vehicle registration AP 21
Website Kurnool Municipal Corporation

Kurnool is city and the headquarters of Kurnool district in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh.[5] The city is often referred as The Gateway of Rayalaseema.[6] It was the capital of Andhra State from 1 October 1953 to 31 October 1956. As of 2011 census, it is the fifth most populous city in the state with a population of 460,184.[1][2]

Etymology

The name Kurnool is derived from Kandanavolu.[7]

History

Palaeolithic era

The Ketavaram [8] rock paintings from the Paleolithic era and are (18 kilometres from Kurnool). Also the Jurreru Valley, Katavani Kunta[9] and Yaganti in Kurnool District have some important rock art's and painting's in the vicinity, may be dated from 35,000 to 40,000 years ago.

History

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. It was ruled by Cholas and later by Kakatiya kings in the 12th and 13th centuries. Later on it became an independent part of the country under Jagirdars. Late it came under the influence of Vijayanagar kings and it was during the 16th century that Achyuta Raya built the Kurnool Fort. During the 17th century it was ruled by Gopal Raja. Abdul Wahab conquered king Gopal Raja and ruled over the country for 16 years. The town came under the influence of Moghal emperor Aurangazeb in 1686. Later the town was ruled by Nawabs from Dawood Khan to Gulam Rasool Khan (1823). In 1839 the British Government took over control. In 1858 it was made over to a Collector under the General regulations.

Post independence

The city served as the capital of Andhra State from 1953–1956, until in 1956, the Telangana region was merged with Andhra State to form Andhra Pradesh state, and its capital was shifted from Kurnool to Hyderabad.[10][11]

Geography and climate

Kurnool is located at 15°50′00″N 78°03′00″E / 15.8333°N 78.05°E / 15.8333; 78.05.[12] 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.

The climate is tropical with temperatures ranging from 26 °C (78.8 °F) to 46 °C (114.8 °F) in the summer and 12 °C (53.6 °F) to 31 °C (87.8 °F) in the winter. The average annual rainfall is about 705 millimetres (28 in).

Climate data for Kurnool (1981–2010)
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 37.3
(99.1)
39.9
(103.8)
43.3
(109.9)
44.8
(112.6)
45.6
(114.1)
45.6
(114.1)
38.5
(101.3)
37.8
(100)
38.7
(101.7)
38.4
(101.1)
38.8
(101.8)
34.4
(93.9)
45.6
(114.1)
Average high °C (°F) 31.7
(89.1)
34.8
(94.6)
38.2
(100.8)
40.1
(104.2)
40.5
(104.9)
36.2
(97.2)
33.6
(92.5)
32.5
(90.5)
32.9
(91.2)
32.5
(90.5)
31.2
(88.2)
30.5
(86.9)
34.6
(94.3)
Average low °C (°F) 17.9
(64.2)
20.3
(68.5)
23.8
(74.8)
26.7
(80.1)
27.5
(81.5)
25.5
(77.9)
24.5
(76.1)
23.9
(75)
23.8
(74.8)
22.8
(73)
20.1
(68.2)
17.8
(64)
22.9
(73.2)
Record low °C (°F) 8.3
(46.9)
11.1
(52)
12.8
(55)
15.5
(59.9)
19.4
(66.9)
17.6
(63.7)
19.2
(66.6)
19.9
(67.8)
17.0
(62.6)
13.0
(55.4)
9.3
(48.7)
6.7
(44.1)
6.7
(44.1)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 4.0
(0.157)
2.2
(0.087)
9.8
(0.386)
26.4
(1.039)
50.4
(1.984)
93.6
(3.685)
121.4
(4.78)
143.4
(5.646)
145.0
(5.709)
114.1
(4.492)
23.0
(0.906)
3.9
(0.154)
737.2
(29.024)
Average precipitation days 0.3 0.2 0.7 1.6 2.7 5.7 7.6 9.0 7.7 5.2 1.9 0.3 43.0
Source: India Meteorological Department (record high and low up to 2010)[13][14]

Demographics

Others include Sikhs & Parsis

Religion in Kurnool[15]
Religion Percent
Hinduism
 
67.19%
Islam
 
29.21%
Christianity
 
2.49%
Others
 
1.11%

As per final data of 2011 census, Kurnool urban agglomeration had a population of 484,327. The literacy rate was 77.37 per cent.[16] note: The Office of Registrar General & Census Commissioner of India. note: UA = Urban Agglomeration.

Politics

It is the headquarters of the mandal, the revenue division and the district of the same name. From 1 October 1953 to 31 October 1956, Kurnool was also the state capital of Andhra State (not Andhra Pradesh), which was carved out of Madras State in 1953. Tanguturi Prakasam was the chief minister of Andhra State during this period. The present day District court buildings were used by the State Assembly.

Education

Central Institutes Map of Andhra Pradesh

There are good number of government and private educational institutions in the city. Some of the universities and colleges are

Transport

State owned bus transport system, APSRTC, operates buses from Kurnool bus station to other parts of the state.[17][18] National Highway 7 (India) connects Kurnool to Hyderabad. The State Highway 51 connects to Srisailam, Vinukonda, Guntur, Vijayawada. National Highway 18 runs from Kurnool to Chittoor. Kurnool railway station lies on the Hyderabad – Guntakal railway line.

Economy

Kurnool is endowed with good mineral resources. The important minerals are Iron ore , Dolomite,lime stone, ochre, quartz stealite and silica.[19]

Cityscape

Front View of Kondareddy Buruju.

Landmarks in and around the city include Konda Reddy Fort (or Kondareddy Burj) is the remnant of Kurnool fort on the north east part of the city.[20] Orvakal rock Garderns with a cave museum lies on the south east of the city.[21]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 http://ourkmc.com/Circulars/files/50__Binder1.pdf
  2. 1 2 "KURNOOL MUNICIPAL CORPORATION STATUS REPORT". Docslide.us.
  3. //"Andhra Pradesh (India): Districts, Cities, Towns and Outgrowth Wards – Population Statistics in Maps and Charts". citypopulation.de.
  4. "Andhra Pradesh (India): State, Major Agglomerations & Cities – Population Statistics in Maps and Charts". citypopulation.de.
  5. "District Census Handbook : Kurnool" (PDF). Census of India. p. 50. Retrieved 21 August 2015.
  6. Sarkar, Siddhartha (2011). International Journal of Economic and Political Integration: Vol.1, No.1. Universal-Publishers. p. 15. ISBN 978-1-61233-544-5. Retrieved 18 July 2015.
  7. "Heritage in Kurnool". AP Tourism Department. Retrieved 10 August 2014.
  8. http://www.aparchaeologymuseum.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/Kurnool.pdf
  9. Petraglia, Michael. "New rock art discoveries in the Kurnool District, Andhra Pradesh, India". academia.edu. Retrieved 28 May 2014.
  10. "The Indian Express - Google News Archive Search". google.com.
  11. Somasekhar, Ch RS Sarma / M. "Capital loss: Madras, Kurnool, now Hyderabad". The Hindu Business Line. Retrieved 2016-04-11.
  12. "Maps, Weather, and Airports for Kurnool, India". fallingrain.com.
  13. "Kurnool Climatological Table Period: 1981–2010". India Meteorological Department. Retrieved 27 May 2015.
  14. "Ever recorded Maximum and minimum temperatures up to 2010" (PDF). India Meteorological Department. Retrieved 27 May 2015.
  15. "Census of India – Socio-cultural aspects". Government of India, Ministry of Home Affairs. Retrieved 2 March 2011.
  16. "Bus Stations in Districts". Andhra Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation. Retrieved 8 March 2016.
  17. Krishnamoorthy, Suresh (22 April 2015). "Several bus stations lack CCTV surveillance". The Hindu (Hyderabad). Retrieved 8 March 2016.
  18. http://dcmsme.gov.in/dips/Kurnool%20dip%20%20amended%20march.pdf
  19. "Gopal Darwaza stands as a witness to history". The Hindu (Kurnool). 22 April 2014. Retrieved 28 February 2016.
  20. Kurmanath, K.V (22 June 2006). "A rocky, solid gift from nature". The Hindu Business Line (Orvakal (Kurnool district)). Retrieved 28 February 2016.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Kurnool.
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Thursday, May 05, 2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.