Chirala
Kshirapuri
City
Clock Tower Centre in Chirala
Clock Tower Centre in Chirala
Nickname(s): 
Chirala;Kshirapuri;Chinna Bombay or Small Mumbai
Chirala is located in Andhra Pradesh
Chirala
Chirala
Location in Andhra Pradesh, India
Coordinates: 15°49′29″N 80°21′08″E / 15.8246°N 80.3521°E / 15.8246; 80.3521
CountryIndia
StateAndhra Pradesh
DistrictBapatla
Government
 • TypeMunicipal council
 • BodyChirala Municipality
Area
[1]
 • Total13.26 km2 (5.12 sq mi)
Elevation
[2]
3 m (10 ft)
Population
 (2011)[3][4]
 • Total120,000
 • Density9,000/km2 (23,000/sq mi)
Languages
 • OfficialTelugu
Time zoneUTC+5:30 (IST)
PIN
523 155
Telephone code+91–8594
Vehicle registrationAP-27
WebsiteChirala Municipality

Chirala (pronunciationⓘ), is a city in Bapatla district of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It is a municipality and the headquarters of Chirala mandal in Chirala revenue division.[5][6] As of 2011, it had a population of above 170,000.[3]

Chirala is the most populated city in Bapatla Lok Sabha Parliamentary Constituency.

Etymology

The city was also known as Kshirapuri, (క్షీరపురి, Telugu) which means "sea of milk" in Sanskrit.The city was carved out of Sudhanagaram, original name of Patha Chirala, that was granted to Chirala Anantharaju by Goparaju Ramanna, Minister of the Kakatiya king, Ganapati Deva, during Saka 1067 (1145 AD) as mentioned in the records obtained from the Madras Oriental Library. His descendant, Chirala Venkata Krishnudu, leased out the present Chirala area for raising a new township. Thus, present-day Chirala was born on 1604 AD.

Independence Movement- Chirala Perala Movement

Chirala name was carved in Independence struggle

The then British government has laid taxes which was very higher and to protest same people under leadership of Duggirala Gopalakrishnayya left their homes and town and erected temporary huts outside town limits. They led this non violent protest for almost 11 months.

Geography

The coordinates of the city are 15°49′29″N 80°21′08″E / 15.8246°N 80.3521°E / 15.8246; 80.3521 and is located at an altitude of 3 m (9.8 ft) from the coast of Bay of Bengal.[2]

Climate

The City experiences tropical climate with the average annual temperature records at 28.5 °C (83.3 °F). Hot summers and cool winters are observed due to its proximity to the coast of Bay of Bengal. It receives both South west monsoon and North-east monsoon as well. The precipitation is very high with an annual rainfall of about 200 millimetres (8 in) and the month of October receives a maximum rainfall of 197 millimetres (8 in).[7]

Governance

Chirala retained its position as municipal town since 1871 As of 1981 census of India except for a short period of about town years from 1938 to 1940 when it was suspended and it was converted in to Panchayat, due to political reason. Its position as municipal town was again restored in December, 1940.At present Chirala Municipality is the civic governing body of the city. It is a first grade municipality, constituted on 1 December 1940 and has a jurisdictional area of 13.57 km2 (5.24 sq mi) with 33 election wards.[1][8] The present Municipal Commissioner of the city is P.Sreenivasa Rao.[9] The constituents of Chirala urban agglomeration include, Chirala Municipality, census City of Chirala, Vetapalem; out growths of Ipurupalem, Ramakrishna Puram and Kothapeta.[10]

Economy

Fishing boats near Chirala beach
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Handloom weaving industry is one of the main occupation the city.[11] Several Cloth Market Complexes are situated in Chirala. Chirala is known as Small Bombay.

Chirala is famous tourist place for several beaches, Vadarevu is shortest distance beach from Hyderabad and Telangana via Nagarjuna sagar and Macherla route. Every weekend lot of IT folks from Hyderabad City visiting Vadarevu beach for boat amusement and seafood food. Chirala has several beach resorts like Ramapuram Beach, Vadarevu Beach and New Vadarevu beach. AP Govt. sanctioned Fish harbour to Vadarevu Beach

Chirala has ITC Factory which process cigarette raw materials.

Demographics

As of 2011 census of India, the city had a population of 172,826[12] with 23,070 households. It shows 2.04% growth in population, compared to 2001 Census of India which was recorded as 100,455.[13] The total population constitute, 52,927 males and 47,528 females —a sex ratio of 1031 females per 1000 males, higher than the national average of 940 per 1000.[14] 8,389 children are in the age group of 0–6 years, of which 4,253 are boys and 4,136 are girls —a ratio of 973 girls per 1000 boys. The average literacy rate stands at 78.80% with 62,099 literates, higher than the national average of 73.00%.[5][15]

The urban agglomeration population of the city is 162,471.[16][17]

Transport

Chirala railway station main entrance

See also: Chirala railway station

The town is also well connected with National and State highways. The National Highway 216 passes through the town, which connects Ongole with Kattipudi . State Highway 48, also referred as Guntur-Bapatla-Chirala Road, connects the city with Guntur.[18] National Highway 167A connects it with Piduguralla, which passes through Narasaraopet and Chilakaluripet.[19]

Public transport includes the buses operated by state-run APSRTC services. Chirala railway station is an A–Category station in Vijayawada railway division of South Central Railway zone and it is located on the Howrah-Chennai main line of Indian Railways.[20]

Municipal office

Education

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The primary and secondary school education is imparted by government, aided and private schools, under the School Education Department of the state.[21][22] The medium of instruction followed by different schools are English and Telugu. VRS & YRN College is a famous college in Chirala. It has provided education requirements for decades now.

Chirala is an educational hub in Bapatla District, its Engineering colleges include St. Ann's College of Engineering and Technology, Chirala Engineering College and VRS & YRN College of Engineering. St Ann's Pharmacy College and Polytechnic College.

See also

List of towns in Andhra Pradesh

References

  1. ^ a b "Municipalities, Municipal Corporations & UDAs" (PDF). Directorate of CIty and Country Planning. Government of Andhra Pradesh. Archived from the original (PDF) on 28 January 2016. Retrieved 29 January 2016.
  2. ^ a b "Maps, Weather, and Airports for Chirala, India". fallingrain.com.
  3. ^ a b "Census 2011". The Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India. Retrieved 25 July 2014.
  4. ^ "Statistical Abstract of Andhra Pradesh, 2015" (PDF). Directorate of Economics & Statistics. Government of Andhra Pradesh. p. 44. Archived from the original (PDF) on 14 July 2019. Retrieved 27 April 2019.
  5. ^ a b "District Census Handbook – Prakasam" (PDF). Census of India. pp. 16–17, 44. Retrieved 18 January 2015.
  6. ^ "Guntur District Mandals" (PDF). Census of India. pp. 141, 175. Retrieved 19 January 2015.
  7. ^ "CLIMATE: CHIRALA". Retrieved 28 February 2016.
  8. ^ "Municipality Profile". Commissioner & Director of Municipal Administration. Commissioner and Directorate of Municipal Administration, Andhra Pradesh. Archived from the original on 20 December 2019. Retrieved 6 August 2014.
  9. ^ "Key Contacts". chirala.cdma.ap.gov.in. Retrieved 9 July 2017.
  10. ^ "Name of Urban Agglomeration and its State constituent Units-2011" (PDF). Census of India. p. 23. Retrieved 9 July 2017.
  11. ^ Murali, S (14 October 2015). "Chirala weavers upbeat over heavy procurement orders". The Hindu. Chirala. Retrieved 2 March 2016.
  12. ^ "Census of India: Search Details". Archived from the original on 13 November 2015. Retrieved 6 July 2019.
  13. ^ "Census of India 2001: Data from the 2001 Census, including cities, villages and towns (Provisional)". Census Commission of India. Archived from the original on 16 June 2004. Retrieved 1 November 2008.
  14. ^ "Sex Ratio". The Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India. Retrieved 29 August 2014.
  15. ^ "Chapter–3 (Literates and Literacy rate)" (PDF). Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India. Retrieved 29 August 2014.
  16. ^ "About Chirala Municipality". chirala.cdma.ap.gov.in. Archived from the original on 23 November 2019. Retrieved 1 July 2017.
  17. ^ "Chirala Metropolitan Urban Region Population 2011 Census". census2011.co.in. Retrieved 1 July 2017.
  18. ^ Samuel Jonathan, P (8 October 2015). "Nizampatnam backwaters beckon adventure geeks". The Hindu. Guntur. Archived from the original on 27 June 2020. Retrieved 29 February 2016.
  19. ^ "Road Maps". Roads and Buildings Department. Government of Andhra Pradesh. Archived from the original on 23 February 2016. Retrieved 28 February 2019.
  20. ^ "Vijayawada division – A Profile" (PDF). South Central Railway. Archived from the original (PDF) on 28 January 2016. Retrieved 29 February 2016.
  21. ^ "School Education Department" (PDF). School Education Department, Government of Andhra Pradesh. Archived from the original (PDF) on 27 December 2015. Retrieved 7 November 2016.
  22. ^ "The Department of School Education – Official AP State Government Portal | AP State Portal". www.ap.gov.in. Archived from the original on 7 November 2016. Retrieved 7 November 2016.
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