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Pratapgiri Fort

Pratapgiri Fort   is located on Pedda gutta near prathapgiri village, Kataram Mandal, Jayashankar Bhupalpally district, Telangana State, India. The undated six-line inscription available on the fort wall tells that the fort was constructed by Muchanayanimgaru, also known as Muppa Nayakudu lieutenant of Prola Raja-I.  Since Prataparudra, the last king of Kakatiya dynasty, who faced the might of Delhi Sultanate, used the fort frequently; it acquired the name of Pratapagiri fort. The ramparts of Pratapagiri hill fort nestled in the impenetrable jungle 240 kilometres northeast of Hyderabad is one such a fortification aimed at foiling enemies' invasions especially the Muslim armies on Kakatiya capital, Warangal. Afar and tough to reach even today, the Pratapagiri fort, believed to have built by Kakatiya king Prola Raju-I, located on a hillock locally known as Pedda Gutta, is said to be the first line of defence before the invading forces make any surge onto the terra...

Zaffergadh Fort and Velpugonda Narasimha Swamy Temple

Zaffergadh Fort is located in Zaffergadh village and a mandal in Jangaon district of Telangana state in India. The original name of Zaffargadh was Velpugonda.  Zaffergadh got its name from a Muslim ruler Zaffarudhaula who made this place capital of his dynasty. The village of Zaffargadh is situated in the valley between the hills on eastern and western sides. The hills are known as Chinnagutta and Peddagutta. There is a self manifested Lakshminarasimha Swamy Temple on Peddagutta.  The village and the hills are surrounded by a rampart, 5 km in circumference. Around the rampart there is a deep moat. Three darwazas (inlets) were constructed to regularize the incoming and outgoing traffic. The darwazas are namely the Khammam darwaza Patnam darwaza and Hanamkonda darwaza. The doors of the darwazas are 10 feet wide and 20 feet in height. The bastions and gates are mounted with huge iron cannons. According to a Rashtrakuta inscription carved on the rock wall of the tank of the Lakshm...

Kapuram Fort

Kapuram Fort or Kapuram Khilla is located in Kapuram village, Malhar Rao mandal in Jayashankar Bhupalpally district, Telangana State, India. Situated in the dense forest about 42 km away from the district headquarters, Kapuram Guttalu (hillocks) also known as Kapuram Khilla is calling for the attention of tourism officials. While there are three hillocks with a height ranging between 200 to 250 feet, people can scale only one of them with difficulty, for a jaw-dropping experience. The hillocks resemble landscapes of Utah, Colorado, in the USA. From October to June, people can visit these hillocks. But one should take the help of local residents (Nayakaopodu tribals) during this expedition. The hillocks are not accessible during the monsoon season,” he said, adding that it was not safe to visit the place without the help of the locals as these hillocks are the habitat of some wild animals like sloth bears and others. A stream also flows adjacent to these hillocks. According to archa...

Komaram Bheem Asifabad District History

Kumuram Bheem Asifabad District is carved out of erstwhile Adilabad District. It is surrounded by Adilabad, Mancherial, Nirmal districts and the boarders of Maharashtra state. Kumuram Bheem Asifabad District comprises 15 mandals and has two revenue divisions – Asifabad and Kaghaznagar. Known as Jangam or Jungam in the early years of the last century, Asifabad town was the headquarters of the district by the same name before it became part of Adilabad district with Adilabad town as its headquarters in 1905. Sirpur-Tandur was originally a district in Maratwada region. Later it was merged with Adilabad district of Telangana. In 2016, Komaram Bheem district was carved out of Adilabad district, and consequently, Sirpur now is in Komaram Bheem district. 1199 AD : Kakatiya king Ganapatideva granted land to a certain Brahmin named Manchibhattopadhyaya for establishing Sirpur taluk in Adilabad district by Chennur Allumprola Raja. The Gonds of Chanda originated from Sirpur in what is now northe...

April 20, 1981 Indervelly or Indravelli massacre

The Indravelli or Indervelly   massacre was an incident on April 20, 1981 in Indervelly village Adilabad District.  The Gond tribals of the agency area were largely dependent on agriculture, podu cultivation and collection of the forest produce for their livelihood. In the absence of legal rights on the lands cultivated by the tribals, the landlords held sway over them through their henchmen. The innocent tribals were left with no option except selling their produce to the landlords at throwaway prices. The landlords amassed riches by fleecing the tribals. Hundreds of poor tribals who borrowed money from the landlords for their family needs were caught in a debt trap. The rally was organised to demand land certificates for Adivasis, and to protest encroachments by non-Adiviasis. The meeting was called by the Radical Youth League's Girijan Rythu Coolie Sangham led by Kondapalli Sitarayamayya sometime in March and a massive poster campaign was ...

Dandari-Ghusadi Festival

The Dandari-Ghusadi or Gussadi festival of Telangana is celebrated by the tribal communities of the Raj Gond and Kolam tribes. The Dandari-Ghusadi season is all about a robust dance festival that is celebrated for about 10 days during Deepavli.  The festival ends on Diwali day with the Ghusadi tado taking off their attire ritualistically. The celebrations usually begin with the tribals visiting the Padmalpuri Khako shrine at Gudirevu village of Dandepalli mandal in Mancherial district, on the banks of the Godavari river. On the occasion, the Adivasis present offerings to the river. They also end the festival at the Padmalpuri Khako as the shrine is of great importance for the people belonging to ethnic groups It starts on the day we see a crescent moon and end on the dark moon day. We start the festival by performing the Sakshe Akadi and end it on the Devadi day. Once the Sakshe Akadi is performed, the tribals would attain the festive spirits and the entire week would witness the f...

Sirpur Fort

Sirpur Tandur or Sarbar or Sirbar, formerly known as Suryapuram, is a town and a mandal in Komaram Bheem district of the Indian state of Telangana. In very early days, a great Hindu city Bhadravati, dedicated to Bhadra (a name for the god Shiva), the capital of the Vakataka kings. Hiuen Tsang a Chinese Buddhist pilgrim thought fit to give of it when writing in A.D. 639. One hundred monasteries are here and ten thousand Buddhist priests are among its inhabitants and in due course Kosala, and its Buddhist rulers, faded away, to be replaced by the Manas or Nagvansi (snake worshippers) kings of Wairagarh. 1199 AD : Kakatiya king Ganapatideva granted land to a certain Brahmin named Manchibhattopadhyaya for establishing Sirpur taluk in Adilabad district by Chennur Allumprola Raja. The Gonds of Chanda originated from Sirpur in what is now northern Telangana and were said to have overthrown the previous rulers of the country, called the Mana dynasty According to Gond legends, a Gond chief, ...