Anantapur district

Anantapur district, officially Ananthapuramu district, is one of the eight districts in the Rayalaseema region of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. The district headquarters is located in Anantapur city. It is one of the driest places in South India. In the year 2022, as part of re-organisation of districts, Sri Sathya Sai district was carved out.

Etymology

The name Ananthapuramu was named after a reservoir called Anantasagaram, a big tank, which means "Endless Ocean". The villages of Ananthasagaram and Bukkarayasamudram were constructed by Chikkappa Wadeyar, the minister of Bukka Raya I. Some authorities assert that Anaantasagaram was named after Ananthamma, wife of Bukka Raya I, one of the founders of the Vijayanagar empire.
, while some contend that it must have been known after Anantarasa Chikkavodeya himself, as Bukka-Raya had no queen by that name.

History

The region comprising present-day Anantapur district has a rich and layered history, with its earliest significance emerging as a hub for Buddhist culture and trade. From the 3rd century BCE to the 3rd century CE, the area around Anantapur was part of ancient trade routes. Archaeological evidence suggests that Gooty was a known Buddhist site, and the district lay along ancient trade and pilgrimage routes that connected Vengi to other Buddhist establishments.
The region's strategic importance is underscored by the Gooty Fort, one of the oldest hill forts in India. Following the decline of Buddhism, the region fell under the control of successive Hindu dynasties, including the Chalukyas, and the Vijayanagara Empire. During the Vijayanagara period, the area was administered by Nayaka dynasties. After the fall of Vijayanagara in 1565, the area was controlled by various Nayaka clans. In the 18th century, Gooty Fort became a strategic stronghold of the Marathas before being captured by Hyder Ali. In 1789 it was ceded by his son Tipu Sultan to the Nizam of Hyderabad. In 1800 the Nizam ceded the surrounding districts to the British in payment for a subsidiary British force.
In 1882, Anantapuram district was formed by carving out from Bellary district. Revenue mandals of Kadiri, Mudigubba, Nallamada, N.P.Kunta, Talupula, Nallacheruvu, O.D.Cheruvu, Tanakal, Amadagur and Gandlapenta from erstwhile YSR Kadapa District were added in the year 1910. In the year 1956, the revenue mandals of Rayadurg, D.Hirehal, Kanekal, Bommanahal and Gummagatta of Bellary District were added, with the formation of Andhra Pradesh.
census of India, it was the largest district in the state by area and had a population of 2,241,105. As per the Gazette notification No.122 dt 26 January 2022, Sri Sathya Sai district was formed from Ananthapuramu district.
census of India, the undivided Anantapuramu district has a population of 4,081,148 with 9,68,160 households, ranking it as the 7th most populous district in the state. It is the largest district in the state with an area of. Anantapur has a sex ratio of 977 females for every 1000 males, and a literacy rate of 64.28%. Urban population in the district is 28.9% of total population.
The Gross District Domestic Product of the undivided district for FY 2013-14 is and it contributes 6.8% to the Gross [State Domestic Product of Indian states|Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP)]. For the FY 2013–14, the per capita income at current prices was. The primary, secondary and tertiary sectors of the district contribute, and respectively to the GDDP.

Geography

It is one of the largest districts of Andhra Pradesh spanning an area of. It is bounded on the north by Kurnool district and Nandyal district, on the east by Kadapa district, and south by Sri Sathya Sai district and on the southwest and west by Chitradurga district and Bellary district in Karnataka state. It is part of Rayalaseema region on the state.
The northern part of the district has large areas of black cotton soil, while the southern part has mainly poor red soil. There are two major hill ranges namely Mutchukota hills Nagasamudram hills, accounting for 70% of forest area.
Penna, Chithravathi, Pedda Hagari, Chinna Hagari, Thadakaleru and Pandameru are the main rivers.
The average elevation is about 1300 feet above the mean sea level. The annual normal rainfall of the district is 508.2 mm. Thus it secures least rainfall when compared to other parts of Andhra Pradesh.

Demographics

Based on the 2011 census, the district had a population of 2,241,105, of which 753,354 lived in urban areas. The district had a sex ratio of 978 females per 1000 males. Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes make up 3,34,142 and 70,161 of the population respectively. Hinduism is the major religion with 88.45% followers, while Islam has 10.37%.
Based on the 2011 census, 84.59% of the population spoke Telugu, 9.64% Urdu, 3.03% Kannada and 1.42% Lambadi as their first language.

Politics

There are two parliamentary constituencies in the district namely, Anantapuram Parliament constituency, Hindupuram parliament constituency.
Legislative assembly constituencies in the district are given below.

Constituency number	Name	Reserved for	Parliament
155	Raptadu	-	Hindupuram
148	Rayadurgam	-	Anantapuram
149	Uravakonda	-	Anantapuram
150	Guntakallu	-	Anantapuram
151	Tadpatri	-	Anantapuram
152	Singanamala	SC	Anantapuram
153	Anantapuram Urban	-	Anantapuram
154	Kalyandurgam	-	Anantapuram

The district is divided into 3 revenue divisions: Anantapuramu, Guntakal and Kalyandurg, which are further subdivided into a total of 32 mandals, each headed by a sub-collector.

Mandals

The list of 31 mandals in Anantapuramu district, divided into 3 revenue divisions, is given below.

Cities and towns

There are one municipal corporation and five municipalities, one nagar panchayat in the district.

Town	Civic Status of Town	Population
Anantapur	Municipal Corporation	3,40,613
Guntakal	Municipality Selection Grade	1,28,142
Tadipatri	Municipality Special Grade	1,20,990
Rayadurgam	Municipality Grade - 2	61,749
Gooty	Municipality Grade - 3	48,658
Kalyanadurg	Municipality Grade - 3	39,855
Pamidi	Nagar Panchayat	26,886

Economy

Agriculture
The economy is principally agrarian with a developing industrial sector. The district receives very less rainfall due to its location in the rain shadow area of Indian Peninsula. Prominent crops include groundnut, sunflower, rice, cotton, maize, chillies, sesame, sugarcane and Silk
Industries
Industries like Constructions, Manufactures and Electricity are major contributors for GVA.
Minerals
Gold, Diamonds, Limestone, Iron ore, Quartz, Asbestos, Dolomite, Barytes, Steatite, Granite, Clay, Share are found in the district.
Power plants
Solar thermal power plant of 50 MW was commissioned at Nagalapuram village in Peddavadaguru mandal of the district occupying an area of 600 acres under Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission which was named as Megha Solar Plant. It is one of the 7 solar thermal plants in the country.
Tadipatri region in Anantapur is an industrialised town famous for Granite and Cement production. Ultra Tech Cements a unit of Industrial major Larsen & Toubro has a major Cement production unit near the town.

Transport

passes through the district via Anantapur. The major railway stations are, and.
Kempegowda International Airport, Bengaluru is the nearest international airport at 190 km from the district headquarters. Other small-scale domestic airports are there in neighbouring districts of Kurnool and Kadapa which are around 150 km and 200 km away respectively.

Education

As per the year 2019-20, there were 3085 schools, 143 junior colleges, 42 degree colleges. There is 1 medical college, 14 engineering colleges, 23 ITI, 11 polytechnic and 18 degree colleges.
Some of the institutions include Sri Krishnadevaraya University, JNTU Ananthapur, Sri Sathya Sai University, Government Medical College, Government polytechnic anantapur, Srinivasa Ramanujan Institute of Technology, Government Polytechnic Hindupur, Gates Institute of Technology, Central University of Andhra Pradesh,

Tourism

is a historical fort on a hill dating to 11th century. It is at a distance of 52 kms from Anantapur. Penna Ahobilam is famous for Lakshmi Narasimhaswamy temple. It is at a distance of 36 km from Anantapur.

Notable people

born in Illur village, Garladinne mandal, rose to became President of India after serving in other roles such as Lok sabha speaker, chief minister of Andhra Pradesh and central minister. T. Nagi Reddy born in Tarimela village of Singanamala mandal. He was a freedom fighter and popular communist leader.