Lepakshi

Lepakshi is a small village in Mandal in the Anantapur District of Andhra Pradesh, India. It is located 15 km (9.3 mi) east of Hindupur and approximately 120 km (75 mi) north of Bangalore. Lepakshi is culturally and archaeologically significant as it is the location of shrines dedicated to Shiva, Vishnu and Veerabhadra which were built during the Vijayanagara Kings' period (1336–1646). The temples are the location of mural paintings of the Vijayanagar kings and Kannada inscriptions. Near the temple complex is a large granite Nandi bull. On a hillock known as Kurma Saila, "tortoise shaped hill", are other temples to Papanatheswara, Raghunatha, Srirama, and Durga.

Ramayana mythology

In the Ramayana, Rama meets the dying Jatayu. They help him to attain moksha by uttering the words "le pakshi", which is Telugu for "rise, bird". Hence the name, Lepakshi.

Veerabhadra temple

The Veerabhadra temple of Lepakshi, which was built by the brothers Viranna and Virupanna, is dedicated to Veerabhadra. It is an example of the Vijayanagar architectural style. Points of interest in the temple include a rock chain, Vastu Purush, the Padmini race lady, the hanging pillar, Durga Paadam, the eyes of Viroopaakshanna and Lepakshi saree designs. The paintings on the roof are made with natural pigments. Several stories like the Mahabharatha and the Ramayana; Vijayanagara murals and Kannada inscriptions on the walls.

Anantapur district

Anantapur District is a district in the Rayalaseema region of Andhra Pradesh, India. The district headquarters is located at Anantapur city. As of 2011 Census, the district had a population of 4,083,315, of which 28.09% is urban and a literacy rate of 64.28%. It is the largest district in terms of area in Andhra Pradesh and 7th largest district in India respectively.

History

Area which comes under Ananthapuram district was once a crucial part of the Vijayanagara Empire. After the fall of the Vijayanagara rulers. British India took control. Ananthapuram district created in 1882 with Sir Thomas Munro as its first Collector.

Geography

It is the largest district of Andhra Pradesh spanning an area of 19,130 square kilometres (7,390 sq mi), comparatively equivalent to Japan's Shikoku Island. It is bounded on the north by Kurnool District, on the east by Kadapa District, on the southeast by Chittoor District, and on the southwest and west by Karnataka state. It is part of Rayalaseema region on the state. Its northern and central portions are a high plateau, generally undulating, with large granite rocks or low hill ranges rising occasionally above its surface. In the southern portion of the district the surface is more hilly, the plateau there rising to 2,000 ft (610 m). above the sea. Six rivers flow within the district: Penna, Chithravathi, Vedavathi, Papagni, Swarnamukhi, and Thadakaleru. The district receives an average annual rainfall of 381 millimeters.

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh (/ˌɑːndrə prəˈdɛʃ/)( pronunciation ) is one of the 29 states of India, situated on the southeastern coast of the country. The state is the eighth largest state in India covering an area of 160,205 km² (61,855 sq mi). As per 2011 census of India, the state is tenth largest by population with 49,386,799 inhabitants. On 2 June 2014, the north-western portion of the state was bifurcated to form a new state of Telangana. In accordance with the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2014, Hyderabad will remain the de jure capital of both Andhra Pradesh and Telangana states for a period of time not exceeding 10 years. The new river-front proposed capital in Guntur district is Amaravati, which is under the jurisdiction of APCRDA. Economically, the Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) of Andhra Pradesh at today's prices stood at ₹2359.3 billion (US$35 billion) and the Gross State Domestic Product at the prices for the 2013 financial year were ₹4193.91 billion (US$62 billion). The average income of the state rose 62.6% from ₹25,959 (US$380) (2004–05) to ₹42,186 (US$620) (2012-13).

Temple

A temple (from the Latin word templum) is a structure reserved for religious or spiritual activities such as prayer and sacrifice. A templum constituted a sacred precinct as defined by a priest, or augur. It has the same root as the word "template," a plan in preparation of the building that was marked out on the ground by the augur. Templa also became associated with the dwelling places of a god or gods. Despite the specific set of meanings associated with the religion of the ancient Rome, the word has now become quite widely used to describe a house of worship for any number of religions and is even used for time periods prior to the Romans.

Hindu temples

Hindu temples are called by many different names, varying on region and language, including mandir, mandira, ambalam, gudi, kavu, koil, kovil, déul, raul, devasthana and devalaya.

Hindu temples are large and magnificent with a rich history. There is evidence of use of sacred ground as far back as the Bronze Age and later the Indus Valley Civilization. However, it was not until Today, Hindu temples have been built in various countries around the world, including India, Nepal, Mauritius, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Great Britain, the United States, Australia, South Africa and Canada.

Pension tax simplification

Pension tax simplification, often simply referred to as "pension simplification" and taking effect from A-day on 6 April 2006 was a policy announced in 2004 by the Labour government to rationalise the British tax system as applied to pension schemes. The aim was to reduce the complicated patchwork of legislation built-up by successive administrations which were seen as acting as a barrier to the public when considering retirement planning. The government wanted to encourage retirement provision by simplifying the previous eight tax regimes into one single regime for all individual and occupational pensions.

Main changes

Broadly the new regime allows considerable freedom in the tax relievable contributions that may be made to pension schemes, and the assets in which they may be invested. It also however caps the size of tax favoured pension fund that may be accumulated by an individual. This 'lifetime allowance' was set at £1.6M for 2007–08. Funds accumulated in excess of the lifetime allowance are subject to a tax charge of 55%. Transitional protection provisions were made for individuals who had already accumulated pension funds in excess of this amount.