Venkatagiri

Venkatagiri is the fourth largest town and muncipality in Nellore district in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh.Venkatagiri's old name is "Kali Mili".It is famous for its Handloom Cotton Sarees.Venkatagiri is a place for history and handlooms. It was part of a small kingdom that was integrated into the Indian Republic. Venkatagiri is well connected by Road and Rail Transport. Famous pilgrimage places like Kalahasti, Kanipakam and Tirupati are with in a short distance and can be easily reached by Railways and Roadways. It is also notably close to Chennai, major port city of India .

Venkatagiri trekking trail is still in wraps and untouched, not yet a regular destination for the trekkers. You need to trek up hill to reach the Venkatagiri Peak. Venkatagiri Hills trek is close to the Tirupati. The hills are almost parallel to Tirmula hills. Palem Kota is the base. There is a fort like structure atop which is believed to be built by robbers for keeping their stolen money and gold. On the summit, there is also a small temple structure perched on cliff. The summit provides you a spectacular view of the surrounding. The trekking path is covered with small to medium sized pebbles, and you pass through thick thorny bushes, beautiful mountains, steep rocky mountains and waterfalls.

Venkatagiri Samsthanam

History

Venkatagiri was a small village near Kalivelamma temple with the name Kali Mili during Vijayanagar times which was ruled by Gobburu Jaggaraju .He was defeated by Sri Krishnadevaraya's representative and Velugodu ruler Venkatadri Naidu in 16th Century .He renamed Kalimili with Vaishanava name "Venkatagiri".Venkatagiri was again recaptured by Pedda Yachama Naidu when he was ruling Podili with Madurantakam as capital granted by Venkatapathi Raya II of Aravidu dynasty of Vijayanagar who ruled from Chandragiri. Later Venkatagiri Rajas ruled some territories with North Mallur in Chitoor district as their capital.Raja Bangaru Yachama Naidu was murdered in 1693AD by Zu-l-faqar khan,chief of vellore during reign of Aurangazeb. Later on 14 taluks were granted to Sarwagna Yachedra, son of assassinated King with Venkatagiri as capital by Khan with the approval of Emperor in order to prevent heirs of the rajah from complaining to emperor about the murder.Venkatagiri rajas clan was initiated in Nalgonda Dist in Amanagallu village by Chevi reddi around 1198AD - 1208 AD with the sacrifice of life by Rechadu,servant of Chevireddi.The "Gotram" of Venkatagiri rajas was named after him.As per oath gave to him Venkatagiri rajas are celebrating Jatara of Poleramma who is the chief deity of Rechadu's community.The celebration of Jatara in Venkatagiri traced to this tradition.Chevi Reddi also named as Pillalamarri Bethala Naidu was a close associate of Kakatiya King Ganapathi Deva.Rajas of Venkatagiri,Pitauram,Jetprole and Bobbili are his descendents. Thus Chevireddy was the origin person of Venkatagiri Velugoti dynasty of Padma Nayaka Velama Tribe. As per the permanent settlement made with Britishers an "Isthimiral" dated 24th August,1802 was issued to Rajah fixing an annual Periskash of Rs,4,44,232. Thus estate became part of British India.Venkatagiri samsthanam when it was a part of erstwhile Madras Presidency consisted of 736 Villages in addition to that it consisted 617 majara villages.

Notable Venkatagiri Kings

Nirvana Rayappa Naidu surnamed Pedda Rayudu, 15th descendant, is an important member, for he was the founder of the place and the Dynasty known as Velugodu. He was a contemporary of the great Carnatic Ruler Krishna Deva Raya living in the sixteenth century and was in the earlier part of his life-time a subject Prince and Commander-in-Chief of Krishna Raya

Kumara Rangappa Naidu,21st descendent, was the foun- der of a line of kings at Bobbili,granted Rajam Estate in 1652 by Sher Muhammed Khan, Nawab of Chicacole, in whose honour it was renamed Bebbooly, later corrupted into Bobbili.

Velugoti Sri Raja Kumara Yachendra Naidu (1848–1878), 27th Raja of Venkatagiri. Three of his seven sons were given in adoption to Pithapuram, Bobbili and Jetprole.He was awarded "Stars of India" by British Queen for his great administration.He proposed and propogated "Manasakhyam Principle",a principle saying intuition is God.

Velugoti Sir Raja Gopala Krishna Yachendra (1878–1916), G.C.I.E. [1915], K.C.S.I. [cr.1888], Member of Legislative Council (Madras) 1888, Kaiser-i-Hind Medal [1900].

Velugoti Sir Govinda Krishna Yachendra (1916–1937), K.C.I.E. [1922]

Raja Venugopala Krishna Yachendra, born on 11th February, 1874, founded the Veterinary Hospital in Madras, and was the recipient of a First-class Kaiser-i-Hind Gold Medal from the Government of India. He was also known for his love on riding and sports. In 1893 he went to England with his brother, the Maharajah of Bobbili and had an inter- view with His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales ; he died unmarried on 25th June, 1920.

Raja Velogoti Muthu Krishna Yachendra is the person who promoted education in the area.He undertook RVM High School,Venkatagiri established in 1860 for developing it and established Venkatagiri Gymkhana Club in 1891AD.

After the end of Indian Freedom struggle in 1947, Venkatagiri became a part of India Republic and Kingdom is dissolved. The Velugoti Family still commands a great respect and influence in the region. The 32nd raja of Venkatagiri who officially had the coronation was passed away in 2010.

Literary Works of Venkatagiri Samsthanam

BhanumatiParinayamu ,Vishnupuranamu,Parijatamu,Sabharanjani,Manssakshyamu,Srimadramayanamu,Brahmavaivartapuranamu,Sringarakalpavalli, Krishnajanmakhandamu, Brahmananda Satakamu,Halasya Mahatmyamu,Sivaratri Mahatmyamu,Radhakrishna Samvadamu ,Gopikathsudhalahari and Vinodakathakalpavalli

Location

State: Andhra Pradesh

Location: Venkatagiri is a municipality and mandal headquarters.

District: Nellore.

Nearest City: Tirupati (50 km)

Distance from Chennai: 170+ km.

Geography

Venkatagiri is located at . It has an average elevation of 60 metres (197 feet).

Demographics

India census, Venkatagiri Mandal had a population of 75,236. Venkatagiri Rural consists of 58 Revenue Villages.Venkatagiri became municipality in 6-1-2005.Then,total population of municipality is 48,341.Venkatagiri has an average literacy rate of 54.61%,lower than the national average of 59.5%.Total area of municipality is 23.13 Sq.Kms.

Transportation

The nearest international airport is at Chennai which is 170 kms away.International Airport in Renigunta is under construction which is just 45kms away. Reaching here, one can hire a taxi to reach Venkatagiri. Nellore has a railhead and the railway station is located between Gudur Junction and Renigunta Junction.

Venkatagiri is not connected with National Highway 5 (NH 5) which serves major towns like Gudur, Nellore and Kavali in the district.It is located on the way to Tirupathi from Nellore. For local transportation, taxis and auto-rickshaws are easily available.For transportation to Chennai apart from APSRTC Buses,Sri Bramrambha Motor Transport and Bharathi Transport run buses daily.Direct train route is not there from Venkatagiri to Chennai.

Assembly constituency

Venkatagiri is an assembly constituency in Andhra Pradesh. There are 1,46,035 registered voters in Venkatagiri constituency in 1999 elections.

List of Elected Members:

1955 - Padileti Venkataswamy Reddy and Kamatham Shanmugam(INC)

1962 - Allam Krishnaiah(INC)

1967 - Orepalli Venkata Subbaiah(INC)

1978 - Nallapareddy Sreenivasulu Reddy(INC)

1983 - Nallapareddy Chandrasekhar Reddy(TDP)

1985 - Velugoti Bhaskara Saikrishna Yachendra(TDP)

1989 - Nedurumalli Janardhan Reddy(INC)

1994 - Raja VVRK. Yachendra Velugoti(TDP)

1999 - Nedurumalli Rajyalaxmi(INC)

2004 - Nedurumalli Rajyalaxmi(INC)

2009 - Kurugondla Ramakrishna(TDP)

Notable attractions

Venkatagiri is a very famous place for sarees and saree designs."GI" Chairman Kuriyan said that Venkatagiri Sarees are eligible to get Geographical Identification.

"Poleramma Jatara" is celebrated with grandeur. Poleramma is the village goddess and this festival is conducted in her honour.

Venkatagiri Durgam,a rock fort about 8 miles West of Venkatagiri Town was a defensive arrangement made by Rajah of Venkatagiri..

Venkatagiri Fort built in 1775AD attracts visitors from all over the district.Front portion of the fort namely "Indra Mahal" was built in 1883AD.

Venkatagiri is surrounded by a dense forest extending to the Tirupati Hills. This forest houses many sensual places of natural beauty like "Kona Malleshwara Kona".Here one can see water falls falling from 80 ft. height and also 300 years old "Shiva Lingam".

Kasi Viswanadha temple was built by Bangaru Yachama Naidu in 1760AD on the banks of Kaivalya river.The street in which the temple located derived the name Kasipet because of this reason.

9th Battalion of Andhra Pradesh Special Police is also located in Vallivedu Village of Venkatagiri mandal.

There is temple of Sri Gowrabathini Rudra Murthy Swamy belonging to 1676AD in Manulalapet.He is the follower of Veerahusenayya(sisya of Veerabramhendra Swamy).Every year his birthday named "Rudrayya Orutu" is being celebrated in the Village.

There is a cricket stadium at Venkatagiri known as "Tarakarama Krida Pranganam" built by Sri Raja Ram Prasad Yachedra which hosts Zonal Matches in the state.Venkatagiri hosted ranji match in 1960.

Economy

Handloom Industry

Venkatagiri Town is famous for the Jari Cotton handloom sarees. It has got its own unique weaving excellence and one need not compare with any other technique whether it is hand woven or machine made.Even today one can specify and get a designer sarees for a price and that will be made for only one person one time.In fact in the earlier days these weavers used to weave very few sarees for the Kings, and the return they get from them was sufficient for whole of the year.Venkatagiri is famous for "Jindani" design which was imported from Bangladesh.Four Venkatagiri weavers won President award for weaving this design.The looms used in Venkatagiri are mostly pit looms. Pit looms are looms which are fixed in the ground level and there will be a pit in which looms peddle will be placed and the weaver will sit on the floor and use his hands and legs to weave.The handlooms in Venkatagiri are famous for its softness and durability. The handloom fabrics are soft and comfortable to wear and also suites all the climates. Mainly Venkatagiri looms manufacture sarees, but now as per demand dress materials are also weaved.Around 20000 people in Venkatagiri are depended on weaving.Sarees are mainly weaved in areas like Manulalapet,Bangarupet,NTR Colony,BC Colony,Mallamma Temple Area and Sivalayam Street in the town. Famous Cloth Showrooms in Venkatagiri :

Parameswara Vastralayam

Parameswara Saree House

Donthu Sarees

Mada Sarees

Balaji Sarees

Nakka Venkataramanayya Sarees

Kasula Krishnaian and Sons

Devi Dresses

R.C.Cloth Show Room

Sri Padmavathi Chenetha Vastralayam

NTPC-BHEL Project

NBPPL has a plan to establish manufacturing facility at Mannavaram in Sri Kalahasthi Mandal(Just 8 kms away from Venkatagiri) for Balance of Plant,such as Coal Handling, Ash Handling Plant and also for the manufacture of main power plant equipment, such as Turbine, Generator, Boiler to meet the growing demand of power in the country.The JV Company will also work as a EPC company (Engineering, Procurement & Construction) to take up turn-key jobs of power plant with a view to provide total business solution to the customer from concept to commissioning.The manufacturing facility for BOP will be ready by 2011-12 followed by manufacturing facility for equipment like Turbine, Generator and Boiler likely to be established by 2014-15. Once fully established, installed capacity of the plant will be 5000 MW per year at an estimated total investment of Rs. 6000 crores.

Agriculture Division

Major crops grow around Venkatagiri are Sugarcane,Lemon,Rice and Groundnut.Considering the importance of Lemon Plantation Lemon Research Centre was started in Venkatagiri by Ex - Chief Minister N.Janardhan Reddy. Venkatagiri is one out of twelve agricultural divisions in Nellore district. Kandeleru reservoir built on Kandeluru river born in Veligondalu is in Rapur mandal. It serves Venkatagiri mandal irrigation requirements also. Kandaleru reservoir is one of the checkpoints to the Telugu Ganga project. The Telugu Ganga project office is located in Venkatagiri. Kaivalya river flows through the Venkatagiri which is one of the tributary of Pennar River.

Banks and Financial Institutions

SYNDICATE BANK

ANDHRA BANK

STATE BANK OF INDIA

ANDHRA PRAGATHI GRAMEENA BANK

NELLORE DISTRICT CO-OPERATIVE CENTRAL BANK LIMITED

MUTHOOT FINANCE

KAPIL CHITS

KAMADHENU FINANCE

Cinema Theaters

Sri Bramarambha Movie Land(DTS)

Jyothi Mahal (6 Track Ultra Fonic Sound System)

Tribhuvani Deluxe (Dolby Digital System)

Sri Venkateswara Digital Movie Land

Boarding and Lodging

Brundavanam Lodge

CMR A1 Grand A/C Lodge

DVS Lodge

Sri Krishna Lodge

Sri Maruthi Deluxe Lodge

Sri Sai Rest House

Hotel Dwaraka

Annapurna Restaurant

Since Venkatagiri is not a regular destination for the trekkers and not connected to National Highway,hotel industry is not much developed in Venkatagiri.Even in the absence of good hotels several messes,Biryani Points and Tiffin/Fast Food Centres serve the local people and visitors needs.

Function Halls

TTD Kalyana Mandapam

Satya Sai Function Hall

DVS Kalyana Mandapam

Velama Kalyana Madapam

Kanyakaparameswari Kalyana Mandapam

Padmasali Kalyana Mandapam

Tripura Sundari Kalyana Mandapam

Sathyavathi Kalyana Mandapam

Hospitals

Seshama Naidu Hospital

Govt. General Hospital

Christian Missionary Eye Hospital

Govt.Gosha Maternity Hospital[Queen Empress Mary Gosha Hospital - Established in 1917]

Praja Vaidyasala

Vamsi Nursing Home

Sadhana Hospital

Hitesh Children Hospital

Indiramma Hospital

Sajeevarayudu Hospital

Putturu Rajula Salya Vaidyashala

Vandana Dental Hospital

Narendra Reddy Super Speciality Dental Hospital

Sri Sai Eye Hospital

Aruna Clinic

Educational Institutions

Schools :

Kendriya Vidyalaya ( Website: http://kvvenkatagiri.ap.nic.in)

AP Residential School

Raja Velugoti Mudhu Krishna Yachedra(RVM) High School[Established in 1860]

Zilla Parishad Boys High School

Zilla Parishad Girls high School

St.Francis Integrated EM School

SriSaiBaba English Medium School

Mother Academy

BNS English Medium School

Navabharath High School

Allam Krishnaiah Memorial School

Gouthami Vidyaniketan

Visvodaya English Medium School

ABC(Akshara Brilliant Concept)School

Adarsha High School

SBN High School

Vidhya Bharathi School and Educational Trust

M.K.G.M High School

Bhasyam High School

Sri Chaitanya Techno School

Narayana Techno School

Audisankara Techno School

Colleges:

Sri Pragada Kotaiah Memorial Indian Institute of Handloom Technology,Venkatagiri

There are Six institutes of Handloom Technology, at present in the country situated at Salem (TN), Varanasi (UP), Guwahati (Assam), Venkatagiri (AP), Jodhpur (Rajasthan) and Gadag-Betgeri (Karnataka).The foundation stone for IIHT,Venkatagiri was laid by Honorable Sri N. Janardhan Reddy, then Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh on 01-8-1991.The institute, initially started to function in a rented building in Kasipet area of Venkatagiri. Later a part of the institute was constructed in Cross Road of Venkatagiri i.e. a weaving shed was opened by the former Chief Minister Sri N. Janardhan Reddy on 30-10-1992.A three-year Diploma course in Handloom Technology is imparted in this institute the syllabus, scheme of examinations, etc are same for all the six institutes. The course usually commences on 1st July and closes on 30th April every year for summer vacation. Every year 60 students are admitted as per quota of seats allotted for each state.

Visvodaya Govt Junior and Degree College

ESS Degree College

Gowtham Vocational Degree College

Narayana Junior College

Sri Vigna Raja Junior College

SBN Junior college

A.P.R.J.C

Industrial Training Institute

SBPM Mahila Junior College

References

Category:Cities and towns in Nellore district Category:Railway stations in Nellore district Category:Mandals in Nellore district Category:Forts in Andhra Pradesh