GENERAL:
Krishna district was one of the oldest British administrated areas of Andhra Pradesh. It was formerly called Masulapatnam district and in 1859 when the ten Guntur district was abolished, certain taluks thereof were added to this district which was renamed as Krishna district, after the mighty river Krishna.
PHYSICAL CHARACTRISTICS:
Latitude : 15° 43’ N and 17° 10’ N
Longitude : 80° 0’ and 81° 33’ of E.
AREA : 8,727 Sq. Kms.
Coastal Line : 88 Kms.
Boundaries :
East:Bay of Bengal and West Godavari district
West:Guntur and Nalgonda districts
North:Khammam district
South:Bay of Bengal
HILLS :
The main hill range of the district known as Kondapalli runs between Nandigama and Vijayawada with a length of about 24 Kms. The other impart hills are Jammalavoidurgam, Mogalrajapuram and Indrakiladri hills. On the Indrakiladri hills at Vijayawada stands the famous temple of Kanakadurga.
RIVERS:
The chief rivers of the district are the Krishna (length 1,280 kms) Muniyeru (Muneru), the Tammileru and Budameru. Krishna river debouches in to the Bay of Bengal at Hamsala Divi and Nachugunta in this district. The district contains small hillstreams viz., Jayanthi, Kattaleru, Ippalavagu, Upputeru, Telleru, Ballaleru, Nadimeyeru.
FLORA:
The district has no worth mentioning forests. However, it contains Reserved Forest areas in Nandigama, Vijayawada, Tiruvuru, Nuzvid, Gannavaram, Bandar and Divi taluks. A type of lightwood known as ‘PONUKU’ (Gyrocapus Jacquini) is found on the Kondapalli hills. The wood is used for the manufacture of the well known Kondpalli toys. The most noticeable trees are pterocarpus, Terminalia, Anogeissus and Logustroeinai and Casuarina.
FAUNA:
In Krishna district the fails also merge at one time tigers and sambar were found on the Medasala Durga – ridge and on the Kondapalli and Jamalavayi hills. But they are very rare now. Panthers, Hyaena, Jungle cat, fox and bear are the carnivorous mammalian fauna represented. Among the herbivorous animal’s deer, spotted deer sambar and blackbuck are sometimes found in the interior inland forests. A migrant gray billed pelican is a protected bird in the Kollair lake boarding the Krishna district. The district possesses a large number of Murrah buffaloes and cows with Murrah stain.
CLIMATE:
The climatic conditions of the district are of extreme kind with hot summers and cold winters and may be classified as tropical. The period starting from April to June is the hottest.
RAINFALL: The average normal rainfall is 1028.1 mm.
SOIL: Three types of soils viz.,}
1. Black Cotton (57.6%)
2. Sand clay loams (22.3%)
3. Red loams (19.4%)
AGRICULTURE: Endowed with a rich variety of soils, the district occupies an important place in Agriculture, which is the most important occupation, and Paddy is the main food crop produced.
LITERACY: Krishna district has recorded a literacy rate of 70.03. The district is well advanced in field of education.
AVAILABLITY OF MINIRAL SOURCES:
ChromiteKondapalli hills and adjoining areas
DiamondsParitala, Ustepalls, Kondavatikallu, Ramannapet,
Suryavaram, Kothapet, Nemalipuram, Mugaluru, Putrela etc.
Iron OreJaggayyapet area
Lime StoneJaggayyapet area
MicaTiruvuru area
SalphurKona in Machilipatnam Mandal.
TRANSPORTATION AND COMMUNICATIONS: Vijayawada City is the largest commercial centre of this district and also
there is an important railway junction being connected to Delhi, Calcutta,Madras, Hubli, Gudivada and Machilipatnam.
It has an Aerodrome at Gannavaram about 16 Kms away and a minor sea port at Machilipatnam.
The second largest Bus Station complex in the state is also located in Vijayawada.