Amaravathi (village), Guntur district

Amaravathi
Amareswaram
Village

Clockwise from top left:Dhyana Buddha, Replica of Mahachaitya, Amareswara Ghat, Mahachaitya Relief, Amaravathi Main Road, Amareswara Temple, Mahachaitya Ruins
Amaravathi
Amaravathi

Location in Andhra Pradesh, India

Coordinates: 16°34′23″N 80°21′29″E / 16.573°N 80.358°E / 16.573; 80.358Coordinates: 16°34′23″N 80°21′29″E / 16.573°N 80.358°E / 16.573; 80.358
Country India
State Andhra Pradesh
District Guntur
Mandal Amaravathi
Area[1]
 • Total 11.70 km2 (4.52 sq mi)
Elevation[2] 38 m (125 ft)
Population (2011)[3]
 • Total 13,400
 • Density 1,100/km2 (3,000/sq mi)
Languages
 • Official Telugu
Time zone IST (UTC+5:30)
PIN 522 020
Telephone code 08645
Vehicle registration AP 07

Amaravathi is a village in Guntur district of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It is located on the banks of Krishna River in Amaravathi mandal of Guntur revenue division.[1] The village is a part of Andhra Pradesh Capital Region, located 35 km (22 mi) west of the foundation stone of Amaravathi laid at Uddandarayunipalem. Amaravati, the capital of Andhra Pradesh derives its name from the village.[4] It is a heritage town[5] and was the capital of the Satavahana Kingdom.[6] Amaralingeswara temple in the village is a Pancharama Kshetra for the Hindus. It is also a historic Buddhist site, and the Amaravathi Mahachaitya stupa was built here between the 2nd century BCE and the 3rd century CE.[7][8] It is one of the sites for Heritage City Development and Augmentation Yojana (HRIDAY) scheme of Government of India.

Etymology

The word Amaravathi translates as The place for Immortals.[9] It is also referred as Amareswaram, due to the presence of Amareswara temple of Lord Shiva, one of the Pancharama Kshetras.[10]

History

Pic displaying history of Amaravathi at Dhyana Buddha Museum

The recorded history of Amaravathi and nearby Dharanikota dates to the 5th century BCE. It was the capital of Satavahanas who ruled from the 3rd century BCE to the 3rd century CE. After the decline of Satavahanas, Andhra Ikshvakus and later Pallava kings ruled Krishna river valley. Subsequently, Eastern Chalukyas and Telugu Cholas held sway over the region. Kota Kings were in control of Amaravathi during the medieval times. Kota kings were subdued by Kakatiyas in the 11th century CE and Amaravathi became part of the unified Telugu empire. The Skanda Purana gives a picture of the place and the Siva temple located here.[11]

Amaravathi was part of Delhi Sultanate, Musunuri Nayaks, Bahmani Sultanate, Vijayanagara Empire, Sultanate of Golconda and Mughal Empire successively before the founding of the Nizam of Hyderabad in 1724. It was ceded to France in 1750 but was captured by England in 1759. Guntur returned to the Nizamate in 1768 but was ceded to England again in 1788. It was briefly occupied by Hyder Ali. It was part of Madras Presidency during the British colonial period.

The stūpa or mahācaitya

The most important historic monument in Amaravathi village is the Mahachaitya. It is protected by the Archaeological Survey of India which maintains a site museum beside the ruins.

Geography

The city is located at 16°34′N 80°22′E / 16.567°N 80.367°E / 16.567; 80.367[12] on the south bank of Krishna river.

Demographics

As of 2011 Census of India, the town had a population of 13,400 with 3,316 households. The total population constitute, 6,432 males and 6,958 females —a sex ratio of 1,082 females per 1,000 males. 1,321 children are in the age group of 0–6 years, of which 647 are boys and 674 are girls —a ratio of 1,042 per 1,000. The average literacy rate stands at 71.34% with 8,617 literates, higher than the state average of 67.41%.[3][13]

Gram panchayat office in Amaravathi

Government and politics

Amaravathi gram panchayat is the local self-government of the village.[14][15] The panchayat has a total of 16 wards and each ward is represented by an elected ward member.[16] The present sarpanch of the village is Gudise Nirmala Devi.[17] The village as a part of Amaravathi mandal is represented by Pedakurapadu assembly constituency of Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly.[18] The present MLA representing the constituency is Kommalapati Sridhar of Telugu Desam Party.[19]

Culture

Panorama of a cultural heritage museum
Panorama of Amaravathi Cultural Heritage Museum

The town is a centre of pilgrimage to both Hindus and Buddhists. The inscriptions on the walls of the Amareswara temple depicts the reign of Vasireddy Venkatadri Nayudu who ruled before the advent of the British rule. He was well known for his benevolence, munificence and for the construction of a large number of temples and education centres in the Krishna river delta.[20] It also hosts 125 ft tallest Buddhist statue in India.[21] The ancient structures and replicas can be found at Kalachakra museum, renamed as Amaravathi Heritage Centre and Museum.[22] The ruined Buddhist stupa and other remains are one of the centrally protected monumemts of national importance.[23] The main Hindu festivals celebrated are Mahasivaratri and the Navaratri. The 30th Kalachakra festival, a popular Buddhist ritual was held at Amaravathi in the first week of January 2006. It is the home for the oldest tourist places for Buddhists.[24]

Transport

Amaravathi bus station

The only means of connectivity for the village is by road. The Vijayawada–Amaravathi Road connects the village with city of Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh capital city areas of Undavalli, Penumaka, Rayapudi.[25] While, the Guntur–Amaravathi Road connects it with the district headquarters, Guntur.[26] It also has road connectivity from Sattenapalle, Mangalagiri and Krosuru. APSRTC operates buses from major bus stations like, NTR bus station of Guntur and Pandit Nehru bus station of Vijayawada.[26][27][28] The village has no rail connectivity.

A waterway categorised as class–III is planned from Pulichintala to Prakasam Barrage, which connects the nearby villages of Harishchandrapuram and Vykuntapuram.[29]

Education

The town plays a major role in education for the rural students of the nearby villages.The primary and secondary school education is imparted by government, aided and private schools, under the School Education Department of the state.[30] As per the school information report for the academic year 2015–16, the town has more than 3,543 students enrolled in over 16 schools.[31][32]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "District Census Handbook – Guntur" (PDF). Census of India. p. 14,252. Retrieved 18 January 2015.
  2. ↑ "Elevation for Amaravathi". Veloroutes. Retrieved 31 July 2014.
  3. 1 2 "Census 2011". The Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India. Retrieved 25 July 2014.
  4. ↑ "After 18 centuries, Amaravati set to become a 'capital' again". The Times of India. 22 October 2015.
  5. ↑ "Spotlight to shift on intangible heritage". Retrieved 7 August 2017.
  6. ↑ ":::- WELCOME TO GUNTUR DISTRICT OFFICIAL WEBSITE -:::".
  7. ↑ "Buddha – Amaravathi".
  8. ↑ "Forget the Kohinoor, could we have the Amaravathi Stupa sculptures back please?".
  9. ↑ Ravikumar, Aruna (13 August 2016). "A river of talent". The Hans India. Retrieved 1 May 2017.
  10. ↑ "Other name of Amaravathi". Guntur district website. Retrieved 31 July 2014.
  11. ↑ Skanda Purana In: Puranic Encyclopedia, 1975, Vettam Mani, Motilal Banarsidas, New Delhi
  12. ↑ "redirect to /world/IN/02/Amaravati.html". fallingrain.com.
  13. ↑ "Literacy of AP (Census 2011)" (PDF). Official Portal of Andhra Pradesh Government. p. 43. Archived from the original (PDF) on 14 July 2014. Retrieved 5 September 2014.
  14. ↑ "Amaravathi Village Panchayat". National Panchayat Portal. Retrieved 6 May 2016.
  15. ↑ "Gram Panchayat Identification Codes" (PDF). Saakshar Bharat Mission. p. 22. Retrieved 5 July 2016.
  16. ↑ "Elected Representatives". National Panchayat Portal. Retrieved 6 May 2016.
  17. ↑ "List of elected Sarpanchas in Grampanchayat of Guntur district, 2013" (PDF). State Election Commission. Retrieved 5 June 2016.
  18. ↑ "Delimitation of Parliamentary and Assembly Constituencies Order, 2008" (pdf). Election Commission of India. p. 22. Retrieved 11 October 2014.
  19. ↑ "Member's Report". Andhra Pradesh Legislature Assembly. Retrieved 12 October 2014.
  20. ↑ Sri Raja Vasireddy Venkatadri Nayudu, 1973, K. Lakshminarayana, Ponnuru <http://www.openlibrary.org/details/rajavasireddyven022548mbp>
  21. ↑ "Tallest Dhyana Buddha to be ready in Amaravathi".
  22. ↑ Varma, P. Sujatha (25 July 2016). "Kalachakra Museum regains lost sheenKalachakra Museum regains lost sheen". The Hindu. Retrieved 23 September 2016.
  23. ↑ "Centrally Protected Monuments". Archeological Survey of India. Retrieved 27 May 2017.
  24. ↑ "India forgot Buddha for 1,000 years: Sircar". The Times of India.
  25. ↑ "Four lane road to Andhra Pradesh new capital soon".
  26. 1 2 Srinivas, Rajulapudi (25 October 2013). "25 passengers rescued from stranded APSRTC bus in Narsaraopet". The Hindu. Guntur. Retrieved 8 March 2016.
  27. ↑ "RTC to introduce bus services in Guntur city". Deccan Chronicle. 26 November 2014. Retrieved 4 June 2016.
  28. ↑ "Bus services to Amaravathi from Guntur".
  29. ↑ "River Route Planned for Amaravathi". The New Indian Express. 26 November 2015. Retrieved 4 June 2016.
  30. ↑ "School Education Department" (PDF). School Education Department, Government of Andhra Pradesh. Archived from the original (PDF) on 27 December 2015. Retrieved 7 November 2016.
  31. ↑ "School Information Report".
  32. ↑ "Student Information Report". Commissionerate of School Education. Child info 2015–16, District School Education – Andhra Pradesh. Retrieved 10 November 2016.
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