VISAKHAPATNAM
Visakhapatnam, the District Head Quarters of the District, the revenue Division and the Mandal of the same name is situated on the Madras-Howrah broadguage line. The name Visakhapatnam is named after “VAISAKHA’ or ‘KARTIKEYA’ the lord of Valour. The city is built along the seashore of the Bay of Bengal and it is bounded and broken by the Bold headland called the ‘Dolphin’s Nose’. This place is also known as Black Mores hill. It is a bustling Industrial and commercial centre surrounded by hills, beautiful beaches and lush green nature. The undulating terrain within the city is emphasised by three hills – the Ross Hill housing a Roman Catholic Church, the path way leading to which is strewn with Catholic icons. The Second hillock Dargakonda has a mosque and the tomb of Muslim saint who was revered for his prophecies and the third hill is called Sri Venkateswara Konda with a temple built by Captain Blackmoor in 1886. It has its own importance educationally because it is the seat of Andhra University. The places of interest in the city include the Dolphin’s Nose, Light House with 7 Million Candle power covering 64 Kms., range harbour, BHPV, Hindustan Shipyard, HPCL, Coramondal Fertilizers Factory, KGH, Circuit House on the Hill, a beautiful beach near Ramakrishna Mission and an airport etc.
HERITAGE/ARCHEALOGY/MONUMENTS
GEO PARK (ERRAMATTI DIBBALU)
Erra Matti Dibbalu also called as Red Sand Hills, a notified National Geo-heritage Monument, is situated at the outskirts of Visakhapatnam City. It is located very near to the Bay of Bengal and is one of Visakhapatnam’s many heritage sites.
These Erra Matti Dibbalu are nature’s assets to Visakhapatnam. The Geological Survey of India is helping to make these sites attain geo-heritage site status and absolutely suitable to develop a Geo Park and is an ideal spot for film shooting.
THOTLAKONDA
The name Totlakonda has been derived from the presence of rock cut through hewn in the bed rock of various shapes, sizes with 4 to 8 steps in the hillock by which water has been drawn for drinking water purpose. Thotlakonda lies about 15 Km. from Visakhapatnam in beach road located 128 meters high above sea level. The archaeological excavations reveals antiquities like Maha stupa Viharas, Votive stupas, Chaitya Gruhas, pillared hall, congregation hails, tiles, finials Buddapadas, Eppatra pieces, engraved with Brahmelipi recovered from the site of Mangamaripeta hill and reflects the Kalinga and Andhaka schools of Buddism.
BAVIKONDA
Bavikonda is a hill on the North west of Timmapuram is situated in between Visakhapatnam and Bheemunipatnam Beach road and located at 2 Kms. Interior from the beach road point. On the hill noticed a Buddist site in the middle of the plain with antiquities
PAVURALA KONDA
Pavurala konda is a local name of the hillock lying to the west of Bheemunipatnam is located at about 24 Km. from Visakhapatnam. This is situated at a height of 168 meters high above sea level. It covers an area of 10 to 12 Acres. It is situated at a very imposing
SANKARAM
Sankaram is a small village which is over six Kilometers from Anakapalli. There are two low contiguous rock hills running east and west which are locally known as Bojjannakonda. They contain some notable Buddhist remains. Three huge stupas at three different places were cut with great difficulty from the rocks in these hills. The biggest of these is about nine meters in diameter. On the eastern side of the hills is a rock cut temple with numerous Buddhist Sculptures and also a life size statue of Budda. Sankaram is a place of archaeological importance.
Dutch Cemetry
The coastal town of Bheemunipatnam, 24 km. north of Visakhapatnam, has a rich history. It was one among the major Dutch settlements in the 17th century with a flourishing port (though only few remnants are left today). The town was ransacked by the Marathas in 1754 and destroyed twice during the Anglo-Dutch wars in 1781 and in 1795. It is the second oldest municipality in the country and hosts the oldest Christian cemetery in this part of the country. However, little remains today to speak of its glorious past except for a few cold granite tombstones in a dilapidated state. In an effort to restore the lost glory of the place and make it an important tourist centre
VICTORY AT SEA
This War Memorial (Victory at Sea) was built in 1996 by Eastern Naval Command to Commemorate the Indian Navy Victory at Sea in 1971. The beautiful landscape and colored fountain around the monument is further beautiful by the elegant war tanker Ajanta and War Flight.
KURUPAM TOMB
The 100 year old Tomb near beach was built in memory of Rani of Kurapam. Its architectural style is spectacular with an amalgamation of the sikara and the dome in the same monument the structure has carvings of the Acanthus leaf, deities and floral motifs
