Rajahmundry

Rajahmundry is one of the major cities in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It is located on the banks of the Godavari River, in East Godavari district of the state. The city is the mandal headquarters to both Rajahmundry (rural) and Rajahmundry (urban) mandals. It is also the divisional headquarters of Rajahmundry revenue division and one of the two municipal corporations in the district, alongside Kakinada. As of 2011 census, it is the sixth most populous city in the state, with a population of 341,831.

The city is most notable for its historic agricultural, economic and cultural backgrounds. Hence, the city is also known as the Cultural Capital of Andhra Pradesh. One of the longest road cum rail bridges is on the Godavari River, connecting Kovvur and Rajahmundry.

Etymology

In its earlier days, it was called Rajamahendravaram. But later, it was referred as Rajahmundry. On 10 October 2015, the government made the official announcement to rename the city with its original name, Rajamahendravaram.

History

The city can be traced back to the rule of the Eastern Chalukya king Raja Raja Narendra who reigned around 1022 AD, after whom it is named – Rajamahendri or Rajamahendravaram. Remains of 11th century palaces and forts still exist. However, new archaeological evidence suggests that the town may have existed much before the Chalukyas.

Rajahmundry was established by Ammaraja Vishnuvardhana the First (919–934 AD). Some people believe in this theory as Vishnuvardhana had the title "Rajamahendra". His predecessor Ammaraja Vijayaditya the Second (945–970 AD) also had the same title, "Rajamahendra".

Ruler timeline:

• Raja Raja Narendra (1020–1061 AD)
• Kakatiya Rule (1323 AD)
• Reddy and Gajapathi (1353–1448 AD)
• Vijayanagar
• Nizam
• Anglo – French (1758 AD)

In the Madras Presidency, the district of Rajahmundry was created in 1823. The Rajahmundry district was reorganised in 1859, bifurcated into the Godavari and Krishna districts. During British rule, Rajahmundry was the headquarters of Godavari district. Godavari district was further bifurcated into East and West Godavari districts in 1925. Rajamahendravaram was renamed Rajahmundry during the rule of the British, for whom the city was the headquarters of the Godavari district. When the district was split into East and West, Kakinada became the headquarters of East Godavari.

Rajahmundry is acclaimed as the birthplace of the Telugu language — its grammar and script evolving from the pen of the city-born poet, Nannayya. Also known as 'Adi Kavi' (the first poet) of Telugu, Nannayya, along with Tikkana and Yerrana, translated the Sanskrit version of Mahabharata into Telugu. Kandukuri Veeresalingam — a social reformer and the author of Rajashekhara Charithra, the first Telugu novel — was also from Rajahmundry.

Rajahmundry was one of the biggest cities in South India in the 19th century. It was the hotbed of several movements during India's freedom struggle and acted as a base for many key leaders. When the Indian National Congress had its first meeting in Bombay (Mumbai), two leaders from Rajahmundry, Nyapathi Subba Rao and Kandukuri Veeresalingam participated in it. Subba Rao, founder of Hindu Samaj in Rajahmundry, was also one of the six founders of India's noted English daily, The Hindu.

The rebirth of culture in Andhra Pradesh started in Rajahmundry. Kandukuri Veeresalingam Pantulu is known as the father of reforms in Andhra Pradesh. He started a monthly magazine, Vivekavardhini, a school for girls at Dowleswaram in 1874. The first widow remarriage took place on 11 December 1881. A society with 16 members was started on 22 Jun 1884, which used to look after widow remarriages in Rajahmundry. The town hall in Rajahmundry was established in 1890 by Veeresalingam.

Annie Besant visited Rajahmundry twice. First, she came when the foundation of a branch of the Divya Gyan Samaj building at Alcot Gardens was being laid. She came again during the opening ceremony of the building.

Ramakrishna Mission was established in 1950–51 near Kambal tank. The place is now the Ayakar Bhavan (Income Tax Office).

Independence movement and Rajahmundry: (1885–1905 AD)

Vande Mataram Movement was started in the year 1905 against the partition of Bengal. Bipin Chandra Paul visited Rajahmundry in April 1905 for the same. During his visits to Rajahmundry, he used to address the public in "Paul Chowk" (the present-day Kotipalli Bus Stand).

Fort Gate (Kotagummam)

The area comprising the Old Godavari Railway Station, the statue of Mrityunjaya (Lord Siva), the statue of Potti Sriramulu and Hotel Ajanta is called Fort Gate. Today, the Fort Gate is not there, but a wall (only a part) covering the main street (through which elephants, horses etc. were taken for a bath) is found. This wall is slanted on both sides.

During the construction of the Havelock Bridge (named after the then Madras Governor) in 1900, one of the fort walls was demolished. The fort was constructed between the 8th and 11th centuries during the reign of the Chalukyas. Even today, we see the Kandakam Street (Kandakam – moat or a big canal dug around a fort and filled with water to stop the enemy entering – generally 20 feet (6.1 m) deep and 50 feet (15 m) wide).

The present municipal water works department (formerly Municipal High School) was famous as Ratnangi and Chitrangi palaces and was an underground escape route (Surangamu or way to escape when enemy forces attack the palace from all the sides).

The fort of the Dutch

Rajahmundry was under Dutch rule for some time. In 1602, the Dutch constructed a fort here. In 1857, the British conquered the Dutch. They converted it into a jail in 1864 and, then, elevated it to a central jail in 1870. The jail is spread over 196 acres (79 ha) out of which the buildings occupy 37.24 acres (15.07 ha).

Geography

Rajahmundry is located at 16°59′N 81°47′E / 16.98°N 81.78°E / 16.98; 81.78. with an average elevation of 14 metres (46 ft). There is paddy and sugarcane cultivation in the area. River Godavari flows through the west of Rajahmundry.

The Rajahmundry traps, part of the Deccan Traps, are located on the Godavari river and are of particular interest to geologists.

Transport

Roadways

Rajahmundry is well connected to all parts of the state. NH-5 passes through Rajahmundry providing road connectivity to all major cities and towns. The city has a total road length of 472.28 km. The Andhra Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation operates bus services from Rajahmundry bus station.

Railways

Rajahmundry is an A–category station in the Vijayawada railway division. It is located on the Howrah-Chennai main line of South Central Railway zone.

Waterways

National Waterway 4 was declared on 24 November 2008, which connects the Indian states of Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, and the union territory of Puducherry. It passes through Kakinada, Eluru, Commanur, Buckingham Canal and also part of Krishna and Godavari rivers rivers. It is being developed by Inland Waterways Authority of India, and is scheduled for completion in 2013.

Airways

Rajahmundry Airport, situated near Madhurapudi 18 km away from the heart of the city. Jet Airways, Spicejet, and TruJet are major airliners. A new terminal building was inaugurated on 16 May 2012. Runway is being expanded from the 1,749 m to 3,000 m to facilitate the landing and takeoff of bigger aircraft.

Tourism

The river Godavari and its bridges, Sir Arthur Cotton museum etc. are some of the attractions in the city. Rajahmundry is a major Hindu pilgrimage sites, with a number of temples. It hosts holy congregations called Pushkaram held once every 12 years and considered auspicious to take sin-ridding holy dips—with the last in July 2015, when around 100 millions are said to have taken the bath. Krishna temple constructed by the ISKCON foundation on the banks of Godavari. Popularly called as Gowthami Ghat, it is a major attraction for young people as a recreational centre.

Sir Arthur Cotton Museum in Dowleswaram (beside barrage) is the only museum for Civil engineering in the state. The Museum houses several rare photographs of Sir Arthur Cotton and of the construction of the dam. The tools used to construct the dam are still preserved here. The Dowleswaram Barrage is an irrigation structure which is built on the lower stretch of the Godavari River before it empties into the Bay of Bengal.

Culture

Durga Cinetone was the first south Indian film studio, to be built in Rajahmundry in the year 1936 by Nidamarthi Surayya.

Art and crafts

Damerla Rama Rao Art Gallery of the city has various paintings such as, Krishna Leela, Godavari of Eastern Ghats and Milkmaids of Kathiawar etc.