Vijayawada
is also known as Bezwada or Vidyalawada or Burning
city (because of its hotness).Vijayawada is the
commercial city of Andhra Pradesh and the third largest after Hyderabad and Visakhapatnam,
with an area of 261.88 km2. The population of Vijayawada on
January 1st 2012 is approximately 1,595,720. (Extrapolated from a population of
957,000 in 2008 and a population of 1,491,202 on October 8th 2011.). The city
has originated on the northern bank of the river Krishna. It is also the
home of education thats why it is also called as vidhyalawada
Important things to know about vijayawada
1. First Theater of the state
"Maruthi talkies" was built in the year 1921 at One town
2. Vijayawada has the second biggest
and busiest bus terminal in the Asia, It was inaugurated on 23 September 1990
3. APSRTC is running more than 450
city busses in city to various destinations.
4. second biggest railway junction
in India
5. Vijayawada Junction is
the largest railway junction on the South Central
Railway network
6. Vijayawada Junction is the
biggest railway junction in India and contributes the highest revenues in the
South Central Railway region
7. The
city was named "The Educational Sahara" by a foreign ambassador
8. The NTR University of Health Sciences is the first medical university in
India( It started functioning 1
November 1986.)
9. The
first private engineering college in Andhra Pradesh,Velagapudi Ramakrishna
Siddhartha Engineering College
10. The
first college built in Vijayawada was SRR & CVR Government College
11. Andhra Loyola College was established in 1953 with Rev.
Francis Theo
12. The
Jawahar Lal Nehru Auto Nagar Industrial Estate in Vijayawada is one of the
largest hubs of automobile industry of Asia(There are about 1500 automobile accessory units in
the city and near about 100,000 workers are employed in these industries)
13. Property
prices in Vijayawada are very high and are comparable with top cities of India.
14. Vijayawada
is well connected by air. The domestic airport at Gannavaram
15. Dr NRS Government Ayurvedic College
is located in Vijayawada, Krishna District. Dr NRS Government Ayurvedic College
was established in the year 1956 and is affiliated to NTR University of Health
Sciences
16. Regional
Research Center of the Central Institute of Fresh Water Aqua Culture is located
here
17. One international
cricket match was played between India and West
Indies on 24 November 2002 at
Indira Gandhi stadium
18. Vijayawada is one of the three
cities in Andhra Pradesh to be provided with its own police commissionerate.
19. The Municipality of Vijayawada
was constituted on 1 April 1888 and was upgraded as a selection grade
municipality in the year 1960
20. It is estimated that
nearly INR 10 crores of garment business takes place in the
Vastralatha building alone in One Town daily. Garments are mainly sold
in Besant Road and Governor Pet
21. The second largest wagon workshop
of Indian railways is at Rayanapadu near Vijayawada.
22. 159th fastest developing city in
the world, It is also India's most promising city for the future
23. Kondapalli is famous for
wooden toys . soft wood is found in the
forest of kondapalli
24. 1800MW Vijayawada thermal power
project (VTPS) and 368.144 MW gas-based LANCO power plant which is under
expansion to 768.144 MW
The city
includes many tourist attractions. Some famous landmarks and places to visit in
Vijayawada are:
·
Prakasham Barrage:
Built across the river Krishna connecting Guntur District, Prakasham Barrage has created a panoramic lake. Its
three canals that run through the city give Vijayawada a Venetian look.
·
Kanaka Durga Temple:
One of the most popular temples in Andhra Pradesh, it is located on
Indrakeeladri hill overlooking the city as well as the River Krishna. It was
built after 12th century by Maharaja Poosapati Madhava Varma, the ancestor of Vijayanagaram Poosapati Kings, according to History. He is the
builder of Modern Vijayawada kingdom.
·
Gandhi Hill:
The first Gandhi Memorial with seven stupas in the country was constructed on
this hill at a height of 500 ft (150 m). The 52 ft (16 m) stupa was
unveiled on 6 October 1968 by Dr. Zakir Hussain, the President of India. Gandhi
Memorial Library, a Sound and Light Show on Mahatma Gandhi's life and a
planetarium are the other attractions.
·
Mogalarajapuram Caves:
These caves are said to be excavated in 5th century A.D. The caves are reputed
to be the first of their kind in South India. The idols of Lord Nataraja,
Vinayaka & Arthanareeswara are carved here, but none of the statue are
available here.
·
Victoria Museum: A
place for archaeology lovers, Victoria Museum has a carefully preserved
collection of ancient sculptures, paintings, idols, weapons, cutlery, and
inscriptions.
·
Hazarat Bal Mosque: A
holy relic of the Prophet Mohammed is kept here which is displayed once a year.
A large number of non-Muslims too join the celebrations.
·
Rajiv Gandhi Park:
Created by the Vijayawada Municipal Corporation with great care, this park
welcomes the tourists at the entrance of the city with its impressive
horticultural network. A mini zoo and a musical water fountain are added to it.
·
Gunadala Matha Shrine: In
1925, Rf. Arlati, the Rector of St. Joseph's Orphanage at Gunadala, installed a
statue of Our Lady and later a church was built and consecrated in 1971, now
popularly known as St. Mary's church. Since then the Feast of Our Lady of
Lourdes became an annual event here, attended by hundreds of people. The church
is situated on a hillock on the eastern side of the city.
·
Bhavani Island:
Perhaps one of the largest islands on a river, Bhavani Island is in Krishna
River close to the city. AP Tourism is converting this 133-acre (54 hectare)
island into an attractive tourist spot and a riverfront resort. The island has
some cottages to stay in and some good adventure and fun sports. The journey to
the island by boat is very pleasant.
·
Mangalagiri:
Mangalagiri is a near by town which is a famous pilgrim centre for its Panakala
Lakshmi Narasimha Swami Temple which is one among the tallest temple towers of
the India. Mangalagiri is also famous for its traditional textiles.
·
Namburu:
Namburu is a suburban of Vijayawada and Guntur . Though a village, it gives an
ornate urban living because of well-established townships. Nambur is famous for
spiritual centres namely Kaligardens, Hreenkar theerth (Jain temple) which is
one of the master piece for its architecture. Acharya Nagarjuna University is
in Nambur.
Vijayawada dosa makes to
Guinness Book of Records
1.
The city hotel owners' association got in 30 chefs from
different hotels who took an hour to prepare the perfect 38.2 feet long dosa,
breaking the previous record (32.5 ft) held by Hotel Sankalp of Ahmedabad in
Gujarat.
The industrial estate in Kondapalli
An industrial suburb, is spread
over 450 acres (1.8 km2) and is base to more than 800
industries.
1. In addition a 1800MW Vijayawada
thermal power project (VTPS)
2. 368.144 MW gas-based LANCO power
plant which is under expansion to 768.144 MW are located here
3. In March 2011 Bharat Heavy
Electricals Limited (BHEL) announced that it signed an
agreement with APGENCO for setting up a 182 MW plant at Vijayawada as a
technology demonstration project.
4. Kondapalli suburb also
houses Andhra Pradesh Heavy Machinery & Engineering Limited (APHMEL)
factory besides being a hub for storage, bottling and transportation of
petroleum products.
