Bellary
Encyclopedia
Bellary is a historic city in Bellary District in Karnataka state, India
.
Numerous neolithic
archeological sites have been discovered around Bellary, such as the ash mounds at Sanganakallu, Budhihal, Kudithini, Tekkalakote, Hiregudda and Kupgal
. The Sanganakallu settlement, spread over an area of 1000 acres (4 km²), is one of the largest neolithic complexes known around Bellary.
Some of the events in the Ramayana
have been related to places around Hampi
, the celebrated capital of the Vijayanagara empire
.
Historically, the Bellary area has been known by many names, such as Kuntala Desha, Sindavadi-nadu (ಸಿಂದವಾಡಿ-ನಾಡು) and Nolambavadi-nadu (ನೊಳಂಬವಾಡಿ-ನಾಡು).
Bellary was ruled in succession by the Mauryas, Satavahana
s, the Pallava
s, the Kadambas, the Badami Chalukyas, the Rashtrakuta
s, the Kalyani Chalukya
s, the Southern Kalachurya
s, the Sevuna Yadava
s, and the Hoysalas, and also ruled briefly by the Cholas during the wars between Kalyani Chalukyas and the Cholas.
After the Sevuna Yadavas and the Hoysalas were defeated by the Islamic sultanate
s of Delhi
, the Vijayanagara Empire
arose under Harihara I
and Bukka I who dominated the Bellary area. Bellary itself was ruled by the family of Hande Hanumappa Nayaka
, a Palayagara of the Vijayanagara rulers. After the fall of the Vijayanagara empire, the Hande Nayakas of Bellary were successively subsidiary to the Adilshahi sultanate, the Mughal
s, the Nizam
, Hyder Ali
and Tipu Sultan
, and finally the British Empire
after the Nizam ceded
a large part of the southern Deccan to the British East India Company
. The Hande Nayakas ceased to be rulers of Bellary after Major Thomas Munro disposed of
the palayagars of the ceded districts
and established the Ryotwari
land revenue system.
In 1808 AD, the ceded districts were split into Bellary and Kadapa districts, and in 1867 AD, the Bellary Municipal Council was created. Further in 1882 AD, Anantapuram district was carved out of the Bellary District. The Maratha princely state
of Sandur
was surrounded by Bellary district.
As of 1901 AD, Bellary was the seventh largest town in Madras Presidency
, and was one of the chief military stations in Southern India, garrisioned by British and native Indian troops under the British Indian Government. The town included a civil railway station to the east of the Bellary Fort, the cantonment and its railway station on the west, the Cowl Bazar and the suburbs of 'Bruce-pettah' (currently spelt Brucepet) and 'Mellor-pettah', named after two British officers once stationed in the town. The industries in the town included a small distillery and two steam cotton-presses. The steam cotton-spinning mill established in 1894 had 17,800 spindles, and employed 520 hands.
On 1 October 1953 AD, the Bellary district of Madras State
was divided on linguistic basis. Areas with significant Kannada speaking population were transferred to Mysore state
, which would later become Karnataka
state. Areas of the district with significant Telugu
speaking population were merged into Anantapuram and Karnulu districts in what would later become Andhra Pradesh
state. Bellary city itself, with both Kannada and Telugu speaking populace in large numbers, was included into Mysore state after a protracted debate and controversy.
The Bellary City Municipal Council was upgraded to a City Corporation in 2004.Bellary Population as of 2011 409,000
. Summer temperatures can reach a scorching 45 degrees Celsius and as low as 11 degrees Celsius in winter.
rocks and hills form a prominent feature of Bellary, and granite quarrying is big business. The city is spread mainly around two huge rocky granite hills, the Ballari Gudda (ಬಳ್ಳಾರಿ ಗುಡ್ಡ) and Kumbara Gudda (ಕುಂಬಾರ ಗುಡ್ಡ) (Gudda – hill in Kannada). These two hills are dominant features of the city, and are visible from every part of the city.
is built on top of Ballari Gudda or the Fort Hill. The Fort was built round the hill during Vijayanagara times by Hande Hanumappa Nayaka. Hyder Ali, who took possession of the Fort from the Hande Nayaka family in 1769, got the fort renovated and modified with the help of a French engineer. The lower fort was added by Hyder Ali around the eastern half of the hill. Legend has it that the unfortunate French engineer was hanged, for overlooking the fact that the neighbouring Kumbara Gudda is taller than Ballari Gudda, thus compromising the secrecy and command of the fort. His grave is believed to be located near the east gate of the fort, though some locals believe it to be the grave of a Muslim holy man.
The fort was classified as 1st class by the British Administration. This fort gave Bellary its ancient importance, and led to its selection by the British rulers as the site of a cantonment.
The fort is divided as the Upper Fort and the Lower Fort.
Situated in a naturally arid
region with semi-desert flora
, the city has slowly accumulated greenery over the past few decades due to the collective efforts of the city residents, the regional Forest Department and the Municipal Council/Corporation. The following is a short list of major green spaces in the city:
and Visvesvaraya Technological University
. The following is an abridged list of educational institutions of historical importance in the city:
ore
in the Sanduru hill ranges and surroundings. The following is an abridged list :
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
.
Origins of the city's name
There are several legends about how Bellary (ಬಳ್ಳಾರಿ) got its name.- One of them is that a few devout travelling merchants halting in Bellary, could not find a ShivaShivaShiva is a major Hindu deity, and is the destroyer god or transformer among the Trimurti, the Hindu Trinity of the primary aspects of the divine. God Shiva is a yogi who has notice of everything that happens in the world and is the main aspect of life. Yet one with great power lives a life of a...
Linga for their worship. They then installed a balla (ಬಳ್ಳ) (a measuring cup or seru (ಸೇರು) used to measure grain) upside down as a Shiva Linga and worshiped it. Eventually, that place was turned into a temple dedicated to Balleshwara (ಬಳ್ಳೇಶ್ವರ) or Shiva, which got distorted to Malleshwara (ಮಲ್ಲೇಶ್ವರ), and Bellary derives its name from this temple. This temple can still be found in the Fort area of the city, and an annual festival and fair dedicated to Shiva is conducted at the temple premises even today.
- Another legend is that the city is named after IndraIndra' or is the King of the demi-gods or Devas and Lord of Heaven or Svargaloka in Hindu mythology. He is also the God of War, Storms, and Rainfall.Indra is one of the chief deities in the Rigveda...
, the king of Gods, who slew a RakshasaRakshasaA Rakshasa or alternatively rakshas, is a race of mythological humanoid beings or unrighteous spirit in Hindu and Buddhist religion...
(demon) named Balla who lived nearby. Balla-ari means 'enemy of Balla' (ari – enemy in SanskritSanskritSanskrit , is a historical Indo-Aryan language and the primary liturgical language of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.Buddhism: besides Pali, see Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Today, it is listed as one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and is an official language of the state of Uttarakhand...
).
- The third legend derives the city's name from the old Kannada word Vallari and Vallapuri.
History
Neolithic
The Neolithic Age, Era, or Period, or New Stone Age, was a period in the development of human technology, beginning about 9500 BC in some parts of the Middle East, and later in other parts of the world. It is traditionally considered as the last part of the Stone Age...
archeological sites have been discovered around Bellary, such as the ash mounds at Sanganakallu, Budhihal, Kudithini, Tekkalakote, Hiregudda and Kupgal
Kupgal petroglyphs
The Kupgal petroglyphs are works of rock art found at Kupgal in Bellary district of Karnataka, India. Thousands of petroglyphs have been found at Kupgal, which date to the neolithic or even the old stone age. The site, which includes examples of rock gongs, was discovered first in 1892, but...
. The Sanganakallu settlement, spread over an area of 1000 acres (4 km²), is one of the largest neolithic complexes known around Bellary.
Some of the events in the Ramayana
Ramayana
The Ramayana is an ancient Sanskrit epic. It is ascribed to the Hindu sage Valmiki and forms an important part of the Hindu canon , considered to be itihāsa. The Ramayana is one of the two great epics of India and Nepal, the other being the Mahabharata...
have been related to places around Hampi
Hampi
Hampi is a village in northern Karnataka state, India. It is located within the ruins of Vijayanagara, the former capital of the Vijayanagara Empire. Predating the city of Vijayanagara, it continues to be an important religious centre, housing the Virupaksha Temple, as well as several other...
, the celebrated capital of the Vijayanagara empire
Vijayanagara Empire
The Vijayanagara Empire , referred as the Kingdom of Bisnaga by the Portuguese, was an empire based in South Indian in the Deccan Plateau region. It was established in 1336 by Harihara I and his brother Bukka Raya I of the Yadava lineage. The empire rose to prominence as a culmination of attempts...
.
Historically, the Bellary area has been known by many names, such as Kuntala Desha, Sindavadi-nadu (ಸಿಂದವಾಡಿ-ನಾಡು) and Nolambavadi-nadu (ನೊಳಂಬವಾಡಿ-ನಾಡು).
Bellary was ruled in succession by the Mauryas, Satavahana
Satavahana
The Sātavāhana Empire or Andhra Empire, was a royal Indian dynasty based from Dharanikota and Amaravati in Andhra Pradesh as well as Junnar and Prathisthan in Maharashtra. The territory of the empire covered much of India from 230 BCE onward...
s, the Pallava
Pallava
The Pallava dynasty was a Tamil dynasty which ruled the northern Tamil Nadu region and the southern Andhra Pradesh region with their capital at Kanchipuram...
s, the Kadambas, the Badami Chalukyas, the Rashtrakuta
Rashtrakuta
The Rashtrakuta Empire was a royal dynasty ruling large parts of the Indian Subcontinent between the sixth and the 10th centuries. During this period they ruled as several closely related, but individual clans. Rastrakutas in inscriptions represented as descendants of Satyaki, a Yadava well known...
s, the Kalyani Chalukya
Western Chalukyas
The Western Chalukya Empire ruled most of the western Deccan, South India, between the 10th and 12th centuries. This dynasty is sometimes called the Kalyani Chalukya after its regal capital at Kalyani, today's Basavakalyan in Karnataka and alternatively the Later Chalukya from its theoretical...
s, the Southern Kalachurya
Kalachuri
Kalachuri Empire is this the name used by two kingdoms who had a succession of dynasties from the 10th-12th centuries, one ruling over areas in Central India and were called Chedi or Haihaya and the other southern Kalachuri who ruled over parts of Karnataka...
s, the Sevuna Yadava
Seuna
The Seuna, Sevuna or Yadavas of Devagiri was an Indian dynasty, which at its peak ruled a kingdom stretching from the Tungabhadra to the Narmada rivers, including present-day Maharashtra, north Karnataka and parts of Madhya Pradesh, from its capital at Devagiri...
s, and the Hoysalas, and also ruled briefly by the Cholas during the wars between Kalyani Chalukyas and the Cholas.
After the Sevuna Yadavas and the Hoysalas were defeated by the Islamic sultanate
Delhi Sultanate
The Delhi Sultanate is a term used to cover five short-lived, Delhi based kingdoms or sultanates, of Turkic origin in medieval India. The sultanates ruled from Delhi between 1206 and 1526, when the last was replaced by the Mughal dynasty...
s of Delhi
Delhi
Delhi , officially National Capital Territory of Delhi , is the largest metropolis by area and the second-largest by population in India, next to Mumbai. It is the eighth largest metropolis in the world by population with 16,753,265 inhabitants in the Territory at the 2011 Census...
, the Vijayanagara Empire
Vijayanagara Empire
The Vijayanagara Empire , referred as the Kingdom of Bisnaga by the Portuguese, was an empire based in South Indian in the Deccan Plateau region. It was established in 1336 by Harihara I and his brother Bukka Raya I of the Yadava lineage. The empire rose to prominence as a culmination of attempts...
arose under Harihara I
Harihara I
Harihara I , also called Hakka ಹಕ್ಕ and Vira Harihara I, was the founder of the Vijayanagara empire. He was Bhavana Sangama’s eldest son, belonged to the Kuruba clan and was founder of the Sangama dynasty, the first among the four dynasties that ruled Vijayanagara...
and Bukka I who dominated the Bellary area. Bellary itself was ruled by the family of Hande Hanumappa Nayaka
Nayak (title)
Nayak, Nayaka, Nayakar, Nayakkar, Naik, Naiker, Naicker, Naickan, Naiken, Nayakkan, Naidu, Nayudu or Naidoo is a common title used by various caste and ethnic groups across India. They are all derivatives of the original Sanskrit Nayaka, meaning a leader...
, a Palayagara of the Vijayanagara rulers. After the fall of the Vijayanagara empire, the Hande Nayakas of Bellary were successively subsidiary to the Adilshahi sultanate, the Mughal
Mughal Empire
The Mughal Empire , or Mogul Empire in traditional English usage, was an imperial power from the Indian Subcontinent. The Mughal emperors were descendants of the Timurids...
s, the Nizam
Nizam
Nizam-ul-Mulk of Hyderabad popularly known as Nizams of Hyderabad was a former monarchy of the Hyderabad State, now in the states of Andhra Pradesh , Karnataka , and Maharashtra in India...
, Hyder Ali
Hyder Ali
Hyder Ali was the de facto ruler of the Kingdom of Mysore in southern India. Born Hyder Naik, he distinguished himself militarily, eventually drawing the attention of Mysore's rulers...
and Tipu Sultan
Tipu Sultan
Tipu Sultan , also known as the Tiger of Mysore, was the de facto ruler of the Kingdom of Mysore. He was the son of Hyder Ali, at that time an officer in the Mysorean army, and his second wife, Fatima or Fakhr-un-Nissa...
, and finally the British Empire
British Empire
The British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom. It originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height, it was the...
after the Nizam ceded
Ceded Districts
Ceded Districts is the name of an area in the Deccan, India that was 'ceded' to the British East India Company by the Nizam in 1800. The name is still in sparse current use....
a large part of the southern Deccan to the British East India Company
British East India Company
The East India Company was an early English joint-stock company that was formed initially for pursuing trade with the East Indies, but that ended up trading mainly with the Indian subcontinent and China...
. The Hande Nayakas ceased to be rulers of Bellary after Major Thomas Munro disposed of
Polygar War
Polygar War or Palayakarar Wars refers to the wars fought between the Polygars of former Madurai Kingdom in Tamil Nadu, India and the British East India Company forces between March 1799 to May 1802. The British finally won after carrying out long and difficult protracted jungle campaigns against...
the palayagars of the ceded districts
Ceded Districts
Ceded Districts is the name of an area in the Deccan, India that was 'ceded' to the British East India Company by the Nizam in 1800. The name is still in sparse current use....
and established the Ryotwari
Ryotwari
The ryotwari system, instituted in some parts of British India, was one of the two main systems used to collect revenues from the cultivators of agricultural land. These revenues included undifferentiated land taxes and rents, collected simultaneously...
land revenue system.
In 1808 AD, the ceded districts were split into Bellary and Kadapa districts, and in 1867 AD, the Bellary Municipal Council was created. Further in 1882 AD, Anantapuram district was carved out of the Bellary District. The Maratha princely state
Princely state
A Princely State was a nominally sovereign entitity of British rule in India that was not directly governed by the British, but rather by an Indian ruler under a form of indirect rule such as suzerainty or paramountcy.-British relationship with the Princely States:India under the British Raj ...
of Sandur
Sandur, India
Sanduru is a town in Bellary District in the Indian state of Karnataka. It is the administrative seat of Sanduru taluka.- Geography :Sanduru is located at . It has an average elevation of 565 metres ....
was surrounded by Bellary district.
As of 1901 AD, Bellary was the seventh largest town in Madras Presidency
Madras Presidency
The Madras Presidency , officially the Presidency of Fort St. George and also known as Madras Province, was an administrative subdivision of British India...
, and was one of the chief military stations in Southern India, garrisioned by British and native Indian troops under the British Indian Government. The town included a civil railway station to the east of the Bellary Fort, the cantonment and its railway station on the west, the Cowl Bazar and the suburbs of 'Bruce-pettah' (currently spelt Brucepet) and 'Mellor-pettah', named after two British officers once stationed in the town. The industries in the town included a small distillery and two steam cotton-presses. The steam cotton-spinning mill established in 1894 had 17,800 spindles, and employed 520 hands.
On 1 October 1953 AD, the Bellary district of Madras State
Madras State
Madras State was the name by which the Indian districts in Tamil Nadu, Andhra, Northern Kerala, Bellary and Dakshina Kannada were collectively known as from 1950 to 1953....
was divided on linguistic basis. Areas with significant Kannada speaking population were transferred to Mysore state
Mysore State
The Kingdom of Mysore was one of the three largest princely states within the erstwhile British Empire of India. Upon India gaining its independence in 1947, the Maharaja of Mysore merged his realm with the Union of India...
, which would later become Karnataka
Karnataka
Karnataka , the land of the Kannadigas, is a state in South West India. It was created on 1 November 1956, with the passing of the States Reorganisation Act and this day is annually celebrated as Karnataka Rajyotsava...
state. Areas of the district with significant Telugu
Telugu language
Telugu is a Central Dravidian language primarily spoken in the state of Andhra Pradesh, India, where it is an official language. It is also spoken in the neighbouring states of Chattisgarh, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Orissa and Tamil Nadu...
speaking population were merged into Anantapuram and Karnulu districts in what would later become Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh , is one of the 28 states of India, situated on the southeastern coast of India. It is India's fourth largest state by area and fifth largest by population. Its capital and largest city by population is Hyderabad.The total GDP of Andhra Pradesh is $100 billion and is ranked third...
state. Bellary city itself, with both Kannada and Telugu speaking populace in large numbers, was included into Mysore state after a protracted debate and controversy.
The Bellary City Municipal Council was upgraded to a City Corporation in 2004.Bellary Population as of 2011 409,000
Geography
Bellary is located at 15.15°N 76.93°E. It has an average elevation of 445 metres (1459 ft). The city stands in the midst of a wide, level plain of black cotton soilVertisol
In both the FAO and USA soil taxonomy, a vertisol is a soil in which there is a high content of expansive clay known as montmorillonite that forms deep cracks in drier seasons or years. Alternate shrinking and swelling causes self-mulching, where the soil material consistently mixes itself, causing...
. Summer temperatures can reach a scorching 45 degrees Celsius and as low as 11 degrees Celsius in winter.
The rocks
GraniteGranite
Granite is a common and widely occurring type of intrusive, felsic, igneous rock. Granite usually has a medium- to coarse-grained texture. Occasionally some individual crystals are larger than the groundmass, in which case the texture is known as porphyritic. A granitic rock with a porphyritic...
rocks and hills form a prominent feature of Bellary, and granite quarrying is big business. The city is spread mainly around two huge rocky granite hills, the Ballari Gudda (ಬಳ್ಳಾರಿ ಗುಡ್ಡ) and Kumbara Gudda (ಕುಂಬಾರ ಗುಡ್ಡ) (Gudda – hill in Kannada). These two hills are dominant features of the city, and are visible from every part of the city.
- Ballari Gudda
- Ballari Gudda has a circumference of nearly 2 miles (3.2 km) and a height of 480 feet (146.3 m). The length of this rock from north-east to south-west is about 1150 ft (350.5 m). To the east and south lies an irregular heap of boulders, but to the West is an unbroken monolith, and the north is walled by bare rugged ridges. This hill is also said to be the world's second largest monolithic hill.
- Kumbara Gudda
- The other hill is called Kumbara Gudda (wikimapia). This hill, when viewed from the south-east looks like the profile of a human face and is also known as Face Hill.
- Others
- Apart from these two hills, there are a number of other smaller granite hills within the city, the prominent among them being:
- Kaate Gudda (ಕಾಟೇ ಗುಡ್ಡ) (wikimapia) opposite the Municipal Junior College, which also houses a water tank & pumping station. This is also nicknamed Kaage Gudda (ಕಾಗೆ ಗುಡ್ಡ), for its teeming flocks of CrowCrowCrows form the genus Corvus in the family Corvidae. Ranging in size from the relatively small pigeon-size jackdaws to the Common Raven of the Holarctic region and Thick-billed Raven of the highlands of Ethiopia, the 40 or so members of this genus occur on all temperate continents and several...
s (Kannada : kaage=crow) - Eeshwara Gudda (ಈಶ್ವರ ಗುಡ್ಡ), behind the Anaadi Lingeshwara Temple in Parvati Nagar-Shastri Nagar area. This has now been quarried extensively and almost flattened with all loose boulders removed, making way for residential occupation.(wikimapia)
- The one housing a water tank, adjacent to the Bellary Central Jail (wikimapia)
- Adjacent to St. John's High School in the Fort Area (wikimapia)
- Kaate Gudda (ಕಾಟೇ ಗುಡ್ಡ) (wikimapia) opposite the Municipal Junior College, which also houses a water tank & pumping station. This is also nicknamed Kaage Gudda (ಕಾಗೆ ಗುಡ್ಡ), for its teeming flocks of Crow
- It is also very common to find small boulders and rocks at numerous places within the city.
Bellary fort
Bellary FortBellary Fort
The Bellary Fort was built on top of a hill called the "Ballari Gudda" or the Fort Hill. It is situated in the historic city of Bellary, in the Bellary district, in Karnataka state, India. It was built in two parts namely, the Upper Fort and the Lower Fort...
is built on top of Ballari Gudda or the Fort Hill. The Fort was built round the hill during Vijayanagara times by Hande Hanumappa Nayaka. Hyder Ali, who took possession of the Fort from the Hande Nayaka family in 1769, got the fort renovated and modified with the help of a French engineer. The lower fort was added by Hyder Ali around the eastern half of the hill. Legend has it that the unfortunate French engineer was hanged, for overlooking the fact that the neighbouring Kumbara Gudda is taller than Ballari Gudda, thus compromising the secrecy and command of the fort. His grave is believed to be located near the east gate of the fort, though some locals believe it to be the grave of a Muslim holy man.
The fort was classified as 1st class by the British Administration. This fort gave Bellary its ancient importance, and led to its selection by the British rulers as the site of a cantonment.
The fort is divided as the Upper Fort and the Lower Fort.
- The Upper fort
- The upper fort (wikimapia) is a polygonal walled building on the summit, with only one approach, and has no accommodation for a garrison. The upper fort consists of a citadel on the summit of the rock at 1976 feet (602.3 m), guarded by three outer lines of fortification, one below the other. It contains several cisterns, excavated in the rock. Outside the turreted rampart are a ditch and covered way. The main turret on the east currently features a huge muralMuralA mural is any piece of artwork painted or applied directly on a wall, ceiling or other large permanent surface. A particularly distinguishing characteristic of mural painting is that the architectural elements of the given space are harmoniously incorporated into the picture.-History:Murals of...
of the Indian Flag facing east (wikimapia). There is only one way up to the fort, which is a winding rocky path amongst the boulders. On the top, outside the citadel is a small temple, the remains of some cells and several deep pools of water. Within the citadel are several strongly constructed buildings, and an ample water supply from reservoirs constructed in the clefts of the rocks. Muzzaffar Khan, the Nawab of Kurnool, was confined here from 1823 to 1864 for the murder of his wife.
- The Lower fort
- The lower fort (wikimapia) lies at the eastern base of the rock and measures about half a mile in diameter, and probably had an arsenal and barracks. It consists of a surrounding rampart numerous bastions, faced by a deep ditch and glacis. The entrance to the lower fort is via two gates, one each on the western and eastern sides. Just outside the eastern gates of the lower fort is a temple dedicated to HanumanHanumanHanuman , is a Hindu deity, who is an ardent devotee of Rama, a central character in the Indian epic Ramayana and one of the dearest devotees of lord Rama. A general among the vanaras, an ape-like race of forest-dwellers, Hanuman is an incarnation of the divine and a disciple of Lord Rama in the...
– the Kote Anjaneya Temple (Kote (ಕೋಟೆ) – fort in Kannada) (wikimapia). Later additions to the lower fort by the British include the Commissariat stores, the Protestant church, orphanage, Masonic lodge, post-office and numerous private dwellings. Now the lower fort contains a number of public buildings, government offices, schools & educational institutions and churches.
British colonial buildings
The following is a list of buildings built during the British colonial period. Despite many of them having been partially modified, they retain the typical colonial British style architecture.- Bellary Central Jail
- The Wardlaw High School Complex
- St. Philomena's School Complex
- The old school building has been demolished to give way to a modern building. However, the facade of the older structure has been retained as a 'heritage structure'. The adjoining conventConventA convent is either a community of priests, religious brothers, religious sisters, or nuns, or the building used by the community, particularly in the Roman Catholic Church and in the Anglican Communion...
and church remain intact.- St. John's School Complex
- The old school building has been retained as a 'heritage building' but not used. The classes are held in buildings built much recently.
- St. Joseph's School Complex
- The main building of VIMS ((Vijayanagar Institute of Medical Sciences))
- This was originally a part of the British cantonment’s infantry barracks converted into a military jail, called the Alipore (Allipura) jail, towards the end of the 19th century. The jail lodged prisoners of war drawn from the various theaters of the First World War, including France, Denmark and Turkey. Even the crown prince of TurkeyTurkeyTurkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
was an inmate of the jail, and his body was buried in Bellary’s Turkish martyrs’ cemetery.
- In 1920, this military jail became an additional civilian prison, Bellary Central Jail, when over 2,000 MappilaMappilaMappila or Moplah refers to a Muslim community of Kerala, primarily in the northern region called Malabar, which arose in Malabar as a result of the pre and post Islamic Arab contacts. Significant numbers of the community are also present in the southern districts of Karnataka and western parts of...
s from TravancoreTravancoreKingdom of Travancore was a former Hindu feudal kingdom and Indian Princely State with its capital at Padmanabhapuram or Trivandrum ruled by the Travancore Royal Family. The Kingdom of Travancore comprised most of modern day southern Kerala, Kanyakumari district, and the southernmost parts of...
were imprisoned here. Famous personalities of the freedom movementIndian independence movementThe term Indian independence movement encompasses a wide area of political organisations, philosophies, and movements which had the common aim of ending first British East India Company rule, and then British imperial authority, in parts of South Asia...
were imprisoned here, such as C. RajagopalachariRajagopalachariRajagopalachari is a popular name in use amongst the Iyengar community of South IndiaSome prominent Rajagopalacahris are:* C. Rajagopalachari, also known as Rajaji: Indian freedom fighter, Gandhian, leader of the Indian National Congress and founder of the Swatantra party.* Sir Perungavur...
, V. V. GiriV. V. GiriVarahagiri Venkata Giri , commonly known as V. V. Giri, was the fourth President of the Republic of India from 24 August 1969 to 23 August 1974.-Early life:...
, Tekur SubramanyamTekur SubramanyamTekur Subramanyam was an Indian Freedom Fighter and politician from Bellary, India. For his involvement in the independence movement, he was jailed several times by the British Colonial administration, many times at Bellary's Allipura Jail...
, Kamaraj Nadar, Potti Sri Ramulu, Neelam Sanjiva ReddyNeelam Sanjiva ReddyNeelam Sanjiva Reddy was the sixth President of India, serving from 1977 to 1982 and was the only person to be elected President of India unopposed....
, Bezawada Gopala ReddyBezawada Gopala ReddyBezawada Gopala Reddy was an Indian politician. He was Chief Minister of Andhra State and Governor of Uttar Pradesh .-See also:*List of Chief Ministers of Andhra PradeshMember A.I.C.C., since 1931 ; M.L.A., Madras, 1937–46 ; was...
, E.V. Ramasamy Naicker, O. V. AlagesanO. V. AlagesanOzhalur Viswanatha Mudaliar Alagesan was an Indian politician and freedom fighter from the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. He served as a member of the Indian Parliament from 1951 to 1957, 1962 to 1967 and from 1971 to 1979....
, Bulusu SambamurtiBulusu SambamurtiBulusu Sambamurti was an Indian lawyer, politician and freedom-fighter who served as the President of the Madras Legislative Council from 1937 to 1942. He was popularly Known as Maharshi Bulusu Samamurti.-Early life:...
and Ghantasala Venkateswara Rao. - This jail was closed (the only other in the subcontinent to be closed, apart from the Cellular JailCellular JailThe Cellular Jail, also known as Kālā Pānī , was a colonial prison situated in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, India. The prison was used by the British especially to exile political prisoners to the remote archipelago...
at Port BlairPort BlairPort Blair is the largest town and a municipal council in Andaman district in the Andaman Islands and the capital of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, a union territory of India...
) in 1958 and the old buildings and entire area of 173 acre (0.70010678 km²) was converted into the Medical College campus in 1961. However, unlike the cellular jail, the entire Alipore jail with over 14 jail blocks was not considered for the status of National Heritage Museum. The records pertaining to this historic jail in Madras Presidency were sent to the National Archives in ChennaiChennaiChennai , formerly known as Madras or Madarasapatinam , is the capital city of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, located on the Coromandel Coast off the Bay of Bengal. Chennai is the fourth most populous metropolitan area and the sixth most populous city in India...
. The jail blocks were assigned to the Govt Medical College. All the blocks except one were converted into laboratories and hostels.
- The lone jail barrack still standing amidst the Medical College structures was saved from demolition due the efforts of people like Tekur Ramnath (son of Tekur Subramanyam) and Bahadur Seshagiri Rao. The director of VIMS, Dr Devanand has proposed to preserve a portion of this barrack as a National Heritage Centre, naming it the "Swatantra Samara Soudha" (Freedom Fighters Museum).
- The Government Wellesly TB & Chest Diseases Hospital.
- The Tehsildar's Office
- The DC's Office
- The District and Sessions Court
- The Jail Superintendent's Residence
- The District Chief Judge's Residence
- The DC's Residence
- The Residence of Superintendent of Police
- A part of the sprawling land attached to this building has been converted into a recreational facility for the local police forces (called the Police GymkhanaGymkhanaGymkhana is a typical Anglo-Indian expression, which is derived from the Hindi-Urdu word for "racket court," is an Indian term which originally referred to a place where sporting events take place. The meaning then altered to denote a place where skill-based contests were held...
). Additionally, the formerly northern entrance to the residence has been relocated to the east of the compound. (wikimapia)- The Railway Stations (both City & Cantonment)
- Mahatma GandhiMahatma GandhiMohandas Karamchand Gandhi , pronounced . 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948) was the pre-eminent political and ideological leader of India during the Indian independence movement...
spent about 8 hours on 01.10.1921 at the City Railway station during his visit to Bellary.
Parks, gardens and green spaces
Arid
A region is said to be arid when it is characterized by a severe lack of available water, to the extent of hindering or even preventing the growth and development of plant and animal life...
region with semi-desert flora
Flora
Flora is the plant life occurring in a particular region or time, generally the naturally occurring or indigenous—native plant life. The corresponding term for animals is fauna.-Etymology:...
, the city has slowly accumulated greenery over the past few decades due to the collective efforts of the city residents, the regional Forest Department and the Municipal Council/Corporation. The following is a short list of major green spaces in the city:
- The Ballari and Kumbara rock hills
- The two main rock hills form the major natural lung spaces in the city, accommodating a host of flora including various species of Ber (Kannada :Borey), the thorny AcaciaAcaciaAcacia is a genus of shrubs and trees belonging to the subfamily Mimosoideae of the family Fabaceae, first described in Africa by the Swedish botanist Carl Linnaeus in 1773. Many non-Australian species tend to be thorny, whereas the majority of Australian acacias are not...
(latronum, niloticaAcacia niloticaAcacia nilotica is a species of Acacia native to Africa and the Indian subcontinent...
, pennataAcacia pennataAcacia pennata is a species of acacia which is native to South and Southeast Asia. It is a shrub or small tropical tree which grows up to 5 metres in height. Its leaves are bipinnate with linear-oblong and glabrous pinnules. Its yellowish flowers are terminal panicles with globose heads...
, ferrugineaAcacia ferrugineaAcacia ferruginea is a species of legume in the Fabaceae family.It is found only in Sri Lanka.-References:* World Conservation Monitoring Centre 1998. . Downloaded on 18 July 2007....
, catechuAcacia catechuAcacia catechu also commonly called Mimosa catechu, is a deciduous, thorny tree which grows up to in height. The plant is called khair in Hindi, and kachu in Malay, hence the name was Latinized to "catechu" in Linnaean taxonomy, as the type-species from which the extracts cutch and catechu are...
, chundraAcacia chundraAcacia chundra is a perennial, deciduous tree found in Asia, India and in the Indian Ocean area. It grows 12 m to 15 m in height.Common names for it include Karangali, Kodalimurunkai, Lal Khair, Lal Khair, Rat Kihiriya and Red Cutch.Its uses include chemical products, medicine and wood.- Uses :The...
, etc. locally classified as jaali in Kannada), and the interesting Whirlnut (Gyrocarpus americanus JacquiniGyrocarpus americanusGyrocarpus americanus is a flowering plant in the Hernandiaceae family with a wide pantropical distribution. It is commonly and variously known as the Helicopter Tree, Propeller Tree, Whirly Whirly Tree, Stinkwood or Shitwood...
– illustration) that is not found elsewhere in the city.- Kuntegadda Park
- Officially called the Golden Jubilee Park or the Dr.RajkumarRajkumarRajkumar , born as Singanalluru Puttaswamayya Muthuraju was a popular actor and singer in the Kannada film industry...
Park, this former slumSlumA slum, as defined by United Nations agency UN-HABITAT, is a run-down area of a city characterized by substandard housing and squalor and lacking in tenure security. According to the United Nations, the percentage of urban dwellers living in slums decreased from 47 percent to 37 percent in the...
area has been changed into a beautiful urban park due to the efforts of a succession of District Commissioners starting with Ms. Gouri Trivedi and Ms. Manjula. The park features an artificial lake formed out of a disused granite quarry hole, a fountain with a daily musical show, a children's play area and a variety of garden flora.- Bellary Zoo
- Established in 1981, this zoo and children's park covers nearly 2.4 hectares, and hosts a variety of faunaFaunaFauna or faunæ is all of the animal life of any particular region or time. The corresponding term for plants is flora.Zoologists and paleontologists use fauna to refer to a typical collection of animals found in a specific time or place, e.g. the "Sonoran Desert fauna" or the "Burgess shale fauna"...
including BlackbuckBlackbuckBlackbuck is a species of antelope native to the Indian subcontinent. Their range decreased sharply during the 20th century. Since 2003, the IUCN lists the species as near threatened....
, Spotted deer (ChitalChitalThe chital or cheetal , also known as chital deer, spotted deer or axis deer is a deer which commonly inhabits wooded regions of Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, and in small numbers in Pakistan...
), JackalJackalAlthough the word jackal has been historically used to refer to many small- to medium-sized species of the wolf genus of mammals, Canis, today it most properly and commonly refers to three species: the black-backed jackal and the side-striped jackal of sub-Saharan Africa, and the golden jackal of...
, CrocodileCrocodileA crocodile is any species belonging to the family Crocodylidae . The term can also be used more loosely to include all extant members of the order Crocodilia: i.e...
, Indian PeafowlIndian PeafowlThe Indian Peafowl or Blue Peafowl is a large and brightly coloured bird of the pheasant family native to South Asia, but introduced and semi-feral in many other parts of the world...
, CobraCobraCobra is a venomous snake belonging to the family Elapidae. However, not all snakes commonly referred to as cobras are of the same genus, or even of the same family. The name is short for cobra capo or capa Snake, which is Portuguese for "snake with hood", or "hood-snake"...
, PythonPython (genus)Python, from the Greek word , is a genus of non-venomous pythons found in Africa, Asia and Australia. Currently, 7 species are recognised. A member of this group, P. reticulatus, is among the longest snakes known.-Geographic range:...
, Bear, PantherPantheraPanthera is a genus of the family Felidae , which contains four well-known living species: the tiger, the lion, the jaguar, and the leopard. The genus comprises about half of the Pantherinae subfamily, the big cats...
, BoarBoarWild boar, also wild pig, is a species of the pig genus Sus, part of the biological family Suidae. The species includes many subspecies. It is the wild ancestor of the domestic pig, an animal with which it freely hybridises...
, etc. This zoo is due to be relocated to a new facility.- Kaategudda Park
- This hill hosts a variety of trees and is famous for its resident flock of crows.
- Nagaruru Narayanarao Park in Vaddarabanda
- This has now fallen into disuse.
- Basavanakunta Park
- This disused granite quarry hole is being filled up to form an urban park.
- Parvathinagar Park
- Run with funds donated by the Jindal Vijayanagar Steels corporation.
Demographics
- In 1871, the population of Bellary was 51,766
- in 1881, 53,460
- in 1891, 59,467
- and in 1901, 58,247, the decline attributed to reduction of troops.
- In 1901,
- 60% of the city population was Hindu
- 32% of it was Muslim
- Christians numbered about 4,000.
- As of 2001 India census,
- Bellary had a population of 317,000
- Males constitute 51% of the population and females 49%
- Bellary has an average literacy rate of 75%, higher than the national average of 59.5%; with 82% of the males and 77% of females literate
- 12% of the population is under 6 years of age.
- While KannadaKannada languageKannada or , is a language spoken in India predominantly in the state of Karnataka. Kannada, whose native speakers are called Kannadigas and number roughly 50 million, is one of the 30 most spoken languages in the world...
is the administrative and predominant language, TeluguTelugu languageTelugu is a Central Dravidian language primarily spoken in the state of Andhra Pradesh, India, where it is an official language. It is also spoken in the neighbouring states of Chattisgarh, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Orissa and Tamil Nadu...
is also widely spoken by the residents, along with Dakhni (Deccan Urdu). A majority of the population is multilingual, speaking both Kannada and Telugu, and some including Dakhni and Hindi as well.
Education
Most graduate education in Bellary falls under the jurisdiction of Gulbarga UniversityGulbarga University
- Institution :Gulbarga University was a post graduation centre of Karnatak University, India. In 1980 The Government of Karnataka enacted a law and gave it the status of university....
and Visvesvaraya Technological University
Visvesvaraya Technological University
Visvesvaraya Technological University is an affiliating state university in Karnataka, India. It was established on 1st April 1998 by the Government of Karnataka as per VTU Act 1994, to improve the quality of technical education in the state. Apart from a few notable exceptions, VTU has complete...
. The following is an abridged list of educational institutions of historical importance in the city:
- Vijayanagara Institute of Medical Sciences (VIMS)
- St. Philomena's High School & Good Shepherd Convent
- This school in Cantonment was founded in 1885. In 1901, a technical class was run at the high school by the nuns of the Order of Good Shepherd, and the pupils were almost all Europeans or Eurasians.
- Wardlaw Composite Jr. College
- This school in Kaalamma Street was founded as a school in 1846 by Rev. R S Wardlaw, D.D. of the London Mission, and raised to second grade college in 1891. For a long time, it was the only Arts college in the Ceded Districts. In 1903–04 it had an average daily attendance of 319 students, of whom 17 were in F.A.Class. This is the oldest educational institution in the Bellary town and continues to offer quality education to the people of Bellary to date. Prof. U. R. RaoU. R. RaoUdupi Ramachandra Rao, popularly known as U. R. Rao is a space scientist and former chairman of the Indian Space Research Organisation. Presently he is the Chairman of the Governing Council of the Physical Research Laboratory at Ahmedabad, which is considered as the cradle of India's Space Program...
of ISRO studied in this institute.- Municipal Junior College
- This school on Ananthapur Road is over 150 years old. One of the oldest institutions in the town, it was started as a composite school for students from the Class IV elementary to Class VI form school final with English as the medium of instruction along with other languages like Telugu, Kannada and UrduUrduUrdu is a register of the Hindustani language that is identified with Muslims in South Asia. It belongs to the Indo-European family. Urdu is the national language and lingua franca of Pakistan. It is also widely spoken in some regions of India, where it is one of the 22 scheduled languages and an...
, besides ancient languages such as SanskritSanskritSanskrit , is a historical Indo-Aryan language and the primary liturgical language of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.Buddhism: besides Pali, see Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Today, it is listed as one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and is an official language of the state of Uttarakhand...
, Arabic and PersianPersian languagePersian is an Iranian language within the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages. It is primarily spoken in Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan and countries which historically came under Persian influence...
. - John Neale was the first headmaster of the school, followed by eminent people such as Arcot Ranganath MudaliarA. Ranganatha MudaliarArcot Ranganatha Mudaliar was an Indian politician and theosophist from Bellary. He served as the Minister of Public Health and Excise for the Madras Presidency from 1926 to 1928.- Early life :...
, T. D. Logan, Arcot Bheemachar, K. S. Vedantham, B. Madhava Rao, and Bahaddoor S. Seshagiri Rao. The foundation for the present building on Anantapur Road was laid on 16 July 1926 by R. G. Grieve, Director of Public Instruction, Government of Madras when Nagaruru Narayana Rao was the chairman of the Bellary Municipality- Moulana Abul Kalam Azad High School (MAKA High School)
- The Municipal High School was bifurcated in the 1950s and the Municipal Muslim High School located in the Fort area was later renamed Moulana Abul Kalam Azad High School. Janaab Meer Mohammed Hussain became the headmaster of the new school.
State owned
The biggest chunk of medical facilities are owned and maintained by the government, under the jurisdiction of VIMS. The most prominent hospitals in the city are:- Government Medical College Hospital/ Vijayanagar Institute of Medical Sciences (VIMS)
- This Academic Institute with an adjoining Medical College Hospital was commissioned in 1966, and currently has 680 beds. It is locally known as OPD, referring to the Out Patient Department of the hospital located in Cantonment.
- Women & Children's Hospital or The District Hospital
- Founded in 1842 as Sabhapathy Mudaliar Hospital, with 40 beds. Rai Bahadur A. Sabhapathy MudaliarA. Sabhapathy MudaliarRai Bahadur A. Sabhapathy Mudaliar was a Philanthropist and politician from Bellary, India. The Women & Children's Hospital or The District Hospital in Bellary was initially named after him, following his donation of land and building to the hospital...
donated the building for the hospital. - Now popularly known as Ghosha hospital. Situated in the heart of city, it is spread over an area of 15 acres (60,702.9 m²) and has 210 beds for Paediatrics, Gynecology and Post MortemAutopsyAn autopsy—also known as a post-mortem examination, necropsy , autopsia cadaverum, or obduction—is a highly specialized surgical procedure that consists of a thorough examination of a corpse to determine the cause and manner of death and to evaluate any disease or injury that may be present...
cases. A 20 bedded InfosysInfosysInfosys Limited, formerly Infosys Technologies Limited is a global technology services company headquartered in Bangalore, India. It is the second largest IT exporter in India with 133,560 employees as of March 2011. It has offices in 33 countries and development centers in India, China,...
ward has been added recently for the treatment of Japanese EncephalitisJapanese EncephalitisJapanese encephalitis —previously known as Japanese B encephalitis to distinguish it from von Economo's A encephalitis—is a disease caused by the mosquito-borne Japanese encephalitis virus. The Japanese encephalitis virus is a virus from the family Flaviviridae. Domestic pigs and wild birds are...
cases. This hospital is soon to be shifted to the VIMS campus.- Government Wellesley TuberculosisTuberculosisTuberculosis, MTB, or TB is a common, and in many cases lethal, infectious disease caused by various strains of mycobacteria, usually Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Tuberculosis usually attacks the lungs but can also affect other parts of the body...
& Chest Diseases Hospital
- Government Wellesley Tuberculosis
- Locally known as just TB Sanitarium/SanatoriumSanatoriumA sanatorium is a medical facility for long-term illness, most typically associated with treatment of tuberculosis before antibiotics...
, it was started in 1929 during British rule and is spread over a spacious area of 20 acres (80,937.2 m²) in the Cantonment area.- The Urban Health Center
- Was constructed in 1999. Located in the heart of the City and has a daily capacity intake of about 120–140 outpatients.
Private facilities
- The numerous private and/or charitable hospitals in the city far outnumber the government facilities, though not in facilities provided. Historically private facilities were of limited sophistication; however, this trend has been slowly changing, with private entrepreneurs investing much into acquiring more sophisticated infrastructure and expertise.
- The city also boasts of a few good private diagnostic laboratories.
Road
- Bellary is well connected by road to different parts of KarnatakaKarnatakaKarnataka , the land of the Kannadigas, is a state in South West India. It was created on 1 November 1956, with the passing of the States Reorganisation Act and this day is annually celebrated as Karnataka Rajyotsava...
, Andhra Pradesh, MaharashtraMaharashtraMaharashtra is a state located in India. It is the second most populous after Uttar Pradesh and third largest state by area in India...
and GoaGoaGoa , a former Portuguese colony, is India's smallest state by area and the fourth smallest by population. Located in South West India in the region known as the Konkan, it is bounded by the state of Maharashtra to the north, and by Karnataka to the east and south, while the Arabian Sea forms its...
. The following are the major highways passing through the city : - National Highway 63National Highway 63 (India)National Highway 63 is a National highway within the two southern states of Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh in India. It connects Ankola on NH 17 in Karnataka to Gooty NH 7 on in Andhra Pradesh. This highway was previously a state highway. The Total length of NH 63 runs to...
, connecting AnkolaAnkolaAnkola which is a Taluk is in Uttara Kannada district of Karnataka state, India. A small town by any standard surrounded by numerous temples. It is in line with Arabian sea. The beaches present at this place are Baskal gudda, nadibag, shedikuli, keni, Belekeri and many more...
in Karavali Karnataka (west coast) to GootyGootyGooty is a census town in Anantapur district in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. The history of Gooty dates back to the 7th century when is was previously known as Gowthamapuri. The region of Gooty was first under the rule of king Ashoka and there is a minor rock edict in Yerraguda...
in Andhra Pradesh.
-
- This is a major route for the mining trucks transporting Iron and Manganese ore from the Sanduru hill ranges to the sea port at MangaloreMangaloreMangalore is the chief port city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It is located about west of the state capital, Bangalore. Mangalore lies between the Arabian Sea and the Western Ghat mountain ranges, and is the administrative headquarters of the Dakshina Kannada district in south western...
and KarwarKarwarKarwar is the administrative headquarters of Uttara Kannada district in Karnataka, India. It is a seaside town situated on the banks of the Kali river which is on the west coast of the Indian peninsula. The town lies about 15 kilometres south of the Karnataka–Goa border and 519 km north-west...
. This highway also connects the city to Hubli, HospetHospetHospet , is a city in Bellary District in northern Karnataka, India. It is on the Tungabhadra River, 12 km from the World Heritage site consisting of the ruins of the medieval city of Vijayanagara, former capital of the Vijayanagara Empire....
and HampiHampiHampi is a village in northern Karnataka state, India. It is located within the ruins of Vijayanagara, the former capital of the Vijayanagara Empire. Predating the city of Vijayanagara, it continues to be an important religious centre, housing the Virupaksha Temple, as well as several other...
.- State Highway 19, connecting BidarBidarBidar is a city in the Indian state of Karnataka. Located on the Deccan Plateau in the north-eastern part of Karnataka. It is the headquarters of the Bidar District....
to SrirangapatnaSrirangapatnaSrirangapatna is a town in Mandya district of the Indian state of Karnataka...
.
- State Highway 19, connecting Bidar
- This highway connects the city to RaichurRaichurRaichur , is a city municipal council in Raichur district in the Indian state of Karnataka. Raichur, on the banks of the Tungabhadra River, is the headquarters of Raichur district. It was in the princely state of Mysore during the rule of Tipu Sultan...
, GulbargaGulbargaGulbarga is a city in the Indian state of Karnataka. It is the administrative headquarters of Gulbarga District. It was formerly part of Nizam's Hyderabad state...
and BidarBidarBidar is a city in the Indian state of Karnataka. Located on the Deccan Plateau in the north-eastern part of Karnataka. It is the headquarters of the Bidar District....
in the North and BangaloreBangaloreBengaluru , formerly called Bengaluru is the capital of the Indian state of Karnataka. Bangalore is nicknamed the Garden City and was once called a pensioner's paradise. Located on the Deccan Plateau in the south-eastern part of Karnataka, Bangalore is India's third most populous city and...
and Mysore in the south.- State Highway 132, connecting the city with AdoniAdoniAdoni , is a municipality, mandal headquarters and commercial town in Kurnool district in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It is 180 miles from Hyderabad and 307 miles from Chennai by rail. It has a population of about 2,43,247 people . Adoni is 245th biggest city in terms of population in India...
, KurnoolKurnoolKurnool is located at . It has an average elevation of 273 metres .Kurnool lies on the banks of the Tungabhadra River. The Handry and Neeva rivers also flow through the city. The K.C...
, VinukondaVinukondaVinukonda is a town in Guntur district, Andhra Pradesh, India. It had a population of 52,830 at the time of the 2001 Census. Local mythology holds a hill nearby as the place where Rama was informed of his wife Sita's abduction. The name therefore literally translates to "Hearing Hill". It is also...
, GunturGunturGuntur , is a city and a municipal corporation in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh, located to the north and west of the Bay of Bengal. It is approximately to the south of the national capital, New Delhi and south east of state capital, Hyderabad. Guntur is the fourth largest city in Andhra...
, VijayawadaVijayawadaVijayawada is the third largest city in Andhra Pradesh, India, located on the banks of the Krishna River and bounded by the Indrakiladri Hills on the West and the Budameru River on the North. The city is located in the Krishna District, about from the state capital Hyderabad.Vijayawada literally...
. - The city is served by the North East Karnataka Road Transport Corporation (NEKRTC), offering travel services to almost all parts of Karnataka, many parts of Andhra PradeshAndhra PradeshAndhra Pradesh , is one of the 28 states of India, situated on the southeastern coast of India. It is India's fourth largest state by area and fifth largest by population. Its capital and largest city by population is Hyderabad.The total GDP of Andhra Pradesh is $100 billion and is ranked third...
, ChennaiChennaiChennai , formerly known as Madras or Madarasapatinam , is the capital city of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, located on the Coromandel Coast off the Bay of Bengal. Chennai is the fourth most populous metropolitan area and the sixth most populous city in India...
, PunePunePune , is the eighth largest metropolis in India, the second largest in the state of Maharashtra after Mumbai, and the largest city in the Western Ghats. Once the centre of power of the Maratha Empire, it is situated 560 metres above sea level on the Deccan plateau at the confluence of the Mula ...
and many parts of Maharastra. Additionally, a sizable number of private businesses offer travel services to important destinations. - The main inter-city bus station is located in the now empty Nalla Cheruvu (నల్ల చెరువు) (Telugu – Black Lake or Tank) basin. This is a new improvement over the older busBusA bus is a road vehicle designed to carry passengers. Buses can have a capacity as high as 300 passengers. The most common type of bus is the single-decker bus, with larger loads carried by double-decker buses and articulated buses, and smaller loads carried by midibuses and minibuses; coaches are...
stand located near Gadigi Chennappa Circle. The old bus stand still serves state owned buses connecting rural locations and city buses. - An truck stationing facility, located in the Nalla Cheruvu basin, serves lorries and hauliers.
- State Highway 132, connecting the city with Adoni
- This is a major route for the mining trucks transporting Iron and Manganese ore from the Sanduru hill ranges to the sea port at Mangalore
Railway
- During British rule, Bellary was served by The Southern Mahratta Railway, connecting Bellary with Hubballi on the west and Guntakallu on the east, and thus to Madras.
- Currently, two railway stations serve the city, both built during British rule. The city station (Bellary Junction) and the Cantonment station (Cantonment). The city is served by the Hubli–Guntakal line and the extended Bellary–Rayadurgam–ChitradurgaChitradurgaChitradurga is a town in the southern part of the Indian state of Karnataka. It is also the headquarters of Chitradurga district. Chitradurga was also known by the names Chitradurg, Chitrakaladurga, Chittaldurg. Chittaldrug was the name officially used by the British Govt.-Geography:Chitradurga is...
line and falls under the jurisdiction of South Western RailwaySouth Western RailwayThe South Western Railway is one of the 16 railway zones in India. It is headquartered at Hubli and comprises Bangalore, Mysore divisions of the erstwhile Southern Railway and the reorganized Hubli division of the erstwhile South Central Railway which includes Hospet and Bellary. The division...
. Bellary is well connected by Rail to BangaloreBangaloreBengaluru , formerly called Bengaluru is the capital of the Indian state of Karnataka. Bangalore is nicknamed the Garden City and was once called a pensioner's paradise. Located on the Deccan Plateau in the south-eastern part of Karnataka, Bangalore is India's third most populous city and...
, RaichurRaichurRaichur , is a city municipal council in Raichur district in the Indian state of Karnataka. Raichur, on the banks of the Tungabhadra River, is the headquarters of Raichur district. It was in the princely state of Mysore during the rule of Tipu Sultan...
, Anantapur, HindupurHindupurHindupur is the second biggest town and Mandal headquarters located in Anantapur district in Andhra Pradesh, India. Hindupur was given its name by a Maratha Chieftain called Murari Rao, who named this town after his father Hindoji Rao, or after a king named Hindurao. The Hindupur Parliamentary...
, Tirupati, Hubli, GuntakalGuntakalGuntakal is a town in Anantapur district in the southwestern part of the state of Andhra Pradesh and 50 km away from Bellary of Karnataka, India. It has a population of 2,26,658...
, AdoniAdoniAdoni , is a municipality, mandal headquarters and commercial town in Kurnool district in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It is 180 miles from Hyderabad and 307 miles from Chennai by rail. It has a population of about 2,43,247 people . Adoni is 245th biggest city in terms of population in India...
, GunturGunturGuntur , is a city and a municipal corporation in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh, located to the north and west of the Bay of Bengal. It is approximately to the south of the national capital, New Delhi and south east of state capital, Hyderabad. Guntur is the fourth largest city in Andhra...
, VijayawadaVijayawadaVijayawada is the third largest city in Andhra Pradesh, India, located on the banks of the Krishna River and bounded by the Indrakiladri Hills on the West and the Budameru River on the North. The city is located in the Krishna District, about from the state capital Hyderabad.Vijayawada literally...
, Howrah, PunePunePune , is the eighth largest metropolis in India, the second largest in the state of Maharashtra after Mumbai, and the largest city in the Western Ghats. Once the centre of power of the Maratha Empire, it is situated 560 metres above sea level on the Deccan plateau at the confluence of the Mula ...
, etc. Guntakal is an important junction near Bellary from where trains to DelhiDelhiDelhi , officially National Capital Territory of Delhi , is the largest metropolis by area and the second-largest by population in India, next to Mumbai. It is the eighth largest metropolis in the world by population with 16,753,265 inhabitants in the Territory at the 2011 Census...
, ChennaiChennaiChennai , formerly known as Madras or Madarasapatinam , is the capital city of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, located on the Coromandel Coast off the Bay of Bengal. Chennai is the fourth most populous metropolitan area and the sixth most populous city in India...
, MumbaiMumbaiMumbai , formerly known as Bombay in English, is the capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the most populous city in India, and the fourth most populous city in the world, with a total metropolitan area population of approximately 20.5 million...
and to most of the places in India are available.
Air
- Bellary Airport
- The civilian Bellary AirportBellary AirportBellary Airport is the airport serving Bellary, a city in the Karnataka state of India. The airport served as an air strip during British rule, especially at the time of World War II...
, located at the far end of the Cantonment area, has previously been serviced by VayudootVayudootVayudoot was an airline in India established on 20 January 1981 as a joint-venture between the two state-owned carriers, Indian Airlines and Air India. The airline was headquartered at New Delhi's Safdarjung Airport....
and Air DeccanAir DeccanKingfisher Red, known formerly as Simplifly Deccan and prior to that as Air Deccan, is a low-cost brand run by Kingfisher Airlines. It is headquartered in Mumbai, India....
, linking Bellary with Bangalore, Goa and other nearby destinations. However, the services have been limited and inconsistent, with currently no commercial service available from this airport.- Vidyanagar Airport
- Bellary is currently served by Vidyanagar AirportVidyanagar AirportVidyanagar Airport also Jindal Vijaynagar Airport is a public airport located in Toranagallu, in the state of Karnataka, India.The Air strip is located at the Jindal Vijayanagar Steels complex, Toranagallu in Sandur Taluk, 40 kilometres from Bellary....
, located at the JSW Steel Ltd. complex, Toranagallu in Sanduru Taluk, 40 kilometres from Bellary. Bangalore based Charter airline, Taneja Aerospace and Aviation Ltd (TAAL), operate sightseeing charter flights to HampiHampiHampi is a village in northern Karnataka state, India. It is located within the ruins of Vijayanagara, the former capital of the Vijayanagara Empire. Predating the city of Vijayanagara, it continues to be an important religious centre, housing the Virupaksha Temple, as well as several other...
and Mysore since October 2002.
- International Airport
- A new international airport is being planned by the Infrastructure Development Corporation of Karnataka (iDecK), to be constructed near Sanganakallu on the north-eastern end of the city, around Chaganur and Siriwar villages. Nodal agency Infrastructure Development Department, Karnataka Government, has identified 1000 acres (4 km²) for the airport.
- The contract for the development and operation of this greenfield airport has been awarded to Chennai-based MARG LimitedMARG LimitedMARG Limited. formerly MARG Constructions Ltd. is India's fast growing diversified Infrastructure and Realty development companies. MARG is accredited ISO 9001: 2000 – by DASCL of UK. The Spirit of Visioneering is the motto and a way of life at MARG. MARG's vision statement is Creating Landmarks...
, which has incorporated a special purpose vehicle, MARG Krishna Devaraya Airport Pvt. Ltd. In addition to terminal buildings, runways and control towers, MARG will develop access facilities and build utilities necessary to serve the airport during the operational phase.
Intra-city
- The intra-city transport network is serviced by city buses connecting important points within the city.
- The city is also served by private but unregulated auto rickshawAuto rickshawAn auto rickshaw or three-wheeler is a usually three-wheeled cabin cycle for private use and as a vehicle for hire. It is a motorized version of the traditional pulled rickshaw or cycle rickshaw...
s and cycle rickshawCycle rickshawThe cycle rickshaw is a small-scale local means of transport; it is also known by a variety of other names such as velotaxi, pedicab, bikecab, cyclo, becak, trisikad, or trishaw or, simply, rickshaw which also refers to auto rickshaws, and the, now uncommon, rickshaws pulled by a person on foot...
s.
Within the city
- Bellary Fort is a place of historical, archeological and geological interest. Daytime is most suitable for visits. The hill fort is illuminated on Sundays and days of national importance.
- The city is host to a number of HinduHinduHindu refers to an identity associated with the philosophical, religious and cultural systems that are indigenous to the Indian subcontinent. As used in the Constitution of India, the word "Hindu" is also attributed to all persons professing any Indian religion...
temples of varying antiquity, examples being the Bellary DurgaDurgaFor the 1985 Hindi Film of Rajesh Khanna see DurgaaIn Hinduism, Durga ; ; meaning "the inaccessible" or "the invincible"; , durga) or Maa Durga "one who can redeem in situations of utmost distress" is a form of Devi, the supremely radiant goddess, depicted as having eighteen arms, riding a lion...
mma temple in the Gandhinagar area, the MalleshwaraShivaShiva is a major Hindu deity, and is the destroyer god or transformer among the Trimurti, the Hindu Trinity of the primary aspects of the divine. God Shiva is a yogi who has notice of everything that happens in the world and is the main aspect of life. Yet one with great power lives a life of a...
temple in the Fort area, the LaxminarayanaVishnuVishnu is the Supreme god in the Vaishnavite tradition of Hinduism. Smarta followers of Adi Shankara, among others, venerate Vishnu as one of the five primary forms of God....
temple on Brahmin Street and the Yogini Kolhapuri MahalakshmiLakshmiLakshmi or Lakumi is the Hindu goddess of wealth, prosperity , light, wisdom, fortune, fertility, generosity and courage; and the embodiment of beauty, grace and charm. Representations of Lakshmi are also found in Jain monuments...
temple at Vidyanagar. - Kuntegadda Park (the Golden Jubilee Park or Dr.Rajkumar Park) is a paid-entry urban park suitable for people of all ages. It features a musical fountain show in the evenings.
- Bellary Zoo
- A museum to exhibit findings from the Sanganakallu and other neolithic sites is proposed to built at the Kannada and Culture complex, adjacent to the Deputy Commissioner’s residence in Patel Nagar, Bellary. The proposed museum complex aims to bring into focus the history and cultural heritage of Bellary. There are also plans to create an audio-visual time capsule of landmark of the people of the region through the ages. A fully built two-storied building of about 8000 sq ft (743.2 m²) has been made available by the district administration for the museum.
Around and near-by the city
- HampiHampiHampi is a village in northern Karnataka state, India. It is located within the ruins of Vijayanagara, the former capital of the Vijayanagara Empire. Predating the city of Vijayanagara, it continues to be an important religious centre, housing the Virupaksha Temple, as well as several other...
, the capital of the famed Vijayanagar Empire is 70 km away from the city. - Daroji Bear Sanctuary is the only sanctuary in North Karnataka for the Indian Sloth Bear, and is located 50 km away from the city to the west. In October 1994, The Government of Karnataka declared 5,587.30 hectares of Bilikallu reserve forest as Daroji Bear Sanctuary . However, the hills that stretch between DarojiDarojiDaroji is a village in the southern state of Karnataka, India. It is located in the Sandur taluk of Bellary district in Karnataka.-Demographics: India census, Daroji had a population of 8861 with 4450 males and 4411 females....
of SandurSandurA sandur is a glacial outwash plain formed of sediments deposited by meltwater at the terminus of a glacier.- Formation :Sandar are found in glaciated areas, such as Svalbard, Kerguelen Islands, and Iceland...
taluk and RamasagarRamasagarRamasgar is a village in the southern state of Karnataka, India.-External links:* http://Bellary.nic.in/...
of Hospet Taluk in Bellary district have always been a host to the Indian Sloth Bears. - The GavisiddeshwaraShivaShiva is a major Hindu deity, and is the destroyer god or transformer among the Trimurti, the Hindu Trinity of the primary aspects of the divine. God Shiva is a yogi who has notice of everything that happens in the world and is the main aspect of life. Yet one with great power lives a life of a...
temple is a place of religious importance, located 25 km away from the city in the HirehaaluD.HirehalD.Hirehal is a village and a mandal in Anantapur district in the state of Andhra Pradesh in India. -Demographics:According to Indian census, 2001, the demographic details of D.Hirehal mandal is as follows:* Total Population: 39,394 in 7,399 Households...
mandal of RaayadurgaRayadurgRayadurg is a taluk headquarters and municipality in Anantapur district in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh.-Demographics:...
taluk in Andhra PradeshAndhra PradeshAndhra Pradesh , is one of the 28 states of India, situated on the southeastern coast of India. It is India's fourth largest state by area and fifth largest by population. Its capital and largest city by population is Hyderabad.The total GDP of Andhra Pradesh is $100 billion and is ranked third...
. - RaayadurgaRayadurgRayadurg is a taluk headquarters and municipality in Anantapur district in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh.-Demographics:...
town in Andhra PradeshAndhra PradeshAndhra Pradesh , is one of the 28 states of India, situated on the southeastern coast of India. It is India's fourth largest state by area and fifth largest by population. Its capital and largest city by population is Hyderabad.The total GDP of Andhra Pradesh is $100 billion and is ranked third...
, located 40 km from the city, features a hill fort of more antiquity than the Bellary Fort. The hill is also a host to a wide variety of wild life, including peafowl. bears, jackalJackalAlthough the word jackal has been historically used to refer to many small- to medium-sized species of the wolf genus of mammals, Canis, today it most properly and commonly refers to three species: the black-backed jackal and the side-striped jackal of sub-Saharan Africa, and the golden jackal of...
s, and panthersPantheraPanthera is a genus of the family Felidae , which contains four well-known living species: the tiger, the lion, the jaguar, and the leopard. The genus comprises about half of the Pantherinae subfamily, the big cats...
. - Donimalai, Sanduru and Narihalla Dam on the Sanduru hill range are places of natural beauty. The Kollur Mookambika Water Sports facility features boating and other water sports in back waters of the Narihalla Dam.
- TungaBhadra Dam and the Gunda forest are 60 km away, near Hospet.
- Ashoka Siddapura, 30 km to south of Bellary, is an important archeological site where Emperor AshokaAshokaAshok Maurya or Ashoka , popularly known as Ashoka the Great, was an Indian emperor of the Maurya Dynasty who ruled almost all of the Indian subcontinent from ca. 269 BC to 232 BC. One of India's greatest emperors, Ashoka reigned over most of present-day India after a number of military conquests...
's edicts were found. The nearby Brahmagiri village is the ancient site of Ishila, one of Emperor AshokaAshokaAshok Maurya or Ashoka , popularly known as Ashoka the Great, was an Indian emperor of the Maurya Dynasty who ruled almost all of the Indian subcontinent from ca. 269 BC to 232 BC. One of India's greatest emperors, Ashoka reigned over most of present-day India after a number of military conquests...
's provincial capitals. One of his earliest rock edicts, dated circa 3rd century BC, in Brāhmī scriptBrāhmī scriptBrāhmī is the modern name given to the oldest members of the Brahmic family of scripts. The best-known Brāhmī inscriptions are the rock-cut edicts of Ashoka in north-central India, dated to the 3rd century BCE. These are traditionally considered to be early known examples of Brāhmī writing...
and PrakritPrakritPrakrit is the name for a group of Middle Indic, Indo-Aryan languages, derived from Old Indic dialects. The word itself has a flexible definition, being defined sometimes as, "original, natural, artless, normal, ordinary, usual", or "vernacular", in contrast to the literary and religious...
language containing Kannada words were discovered here. Nearby is Ramagiri, a hillock that has mythical associations with the epic RamayanaRamayanaThe Ramayana is an ancient Sanskrit epic. It is ascribed to the Hindu sage Valmiki and forms an important part of the Hindu canon , considered to be itihāsa. The Ramayana is one of the two great epics of India and Nepal, the other being the Mahabharata...
and has a temple dedicated to RameshwaraShivaShiva is a major Hindu deity, and is the destroyer god or transformer among the Trimurti, the Hindu Trinity of the primary aspects of the divine. God Shiva is a yogi who has notice of everything that happens in the world and is the main aspect of life. Yet one with great power lives a life of a...
built circa 926 CE. - Shirekola village, 25 km to the south of Bellary, has as temple dedicated to Raghavendra SwamiRaghavendra SwamiRaghavendra Theertha was a Hindu saint and philosopher who served as the head of the Sri Mutt in Kumbakonam from 1624 to 1636. He wrote a commentary Sudha Parimala on the Nyaya Sudha, an exposition of Dvaita philosophy...
.
Steel industry
The city is surrounded by numerous iron and steel plants, owing to the availability of huge deposites of Iron and ManganeseManganese
Manganese is a chemical element, designated by the symbol Mn. It has the atomic number 25. It is found as a free element in nature , and in many minerals...
ore
Ore
An ore is a type of rock that contains minerals with important elements including metals. The ores are extracted through mining; these are then refined to extract the valuable element....
in the Sanduru hill ranges and surroundings. The following is an abridged list :
- Bellary Steels and Alloys Limited (BSAL), Navakarnataka Steels and Shatavahana Ispat are on the outskirts of the city.
- JSW Steel Ltd is a unit of Jindal Steels located at Toranagallu in Sandur taluk, 30 km from Bellary. JSW has further announced an investement of on capacity expansion and a captive power plant. Additionally, Jindal Saw Pipes plans to set up a steel plant in Bellary at
- The Arcelor Mittal group and Brahmani Industries Karnataka Ltd. have signed individual MoUMOUMOU, MoU, Mou or mou may refer to:* Memorandum of understanding* Minutes of Use, in telecommunication operations* Ministry of Unification, a branch of the South Korean government.* The Museum of Osaka University...
s to invest in Steel plants in the district to invest and respectively, each to set up 6 million tonne per annum integrated steel plants with captive power plants on site. The projects of both companies will be located in and around Bellary district and will provide employment to 10000 and 25000 people respectively. - Bhushan SteelBhushan SteelBhushan Steel is the largest manufacturer of auto-grade steel in India and is spending Rs. 260 billion to expand its capacity to 12 million tonnes annually, from the present installed capacity of around one million tonnes.-Financials and management:...
will be setting up a 6 million tonne per annum integrated steel manufacturing facility in the district, at an investment of .
Textiles and garments
- SareesSariA sari or sareeThe name of the garment in various regional languages include: , , , , , , , , , , , , , is a strip of unstitched cloth, worn by females, ranging from four to nine metres in length that is draped over the body in various styles. It is popular in India, Bangladesh, Nepal,...
- The growth of the famed cotton and silk Ilkal sareeIlkal sareeIlkal saree is a traditional form of saree which is a common feminine wear in India. Ilkal saree takes its name from the town of Ilkal in the Bagalkot district of Karnataka state, India. Ilkal sarees are woven using cotton warp on the body and art silk warp for border and art silk warp for pallav...
is attributed to the patronage provided by the local chieftains in and around the town of Bellary. Additionally, the nearby town of RayadurgRayadurgRayadurg is a taluk headquarters and municipality in Anantapur district in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh.-Demographics:...
am, formerly in Bellary district, but now in Andhra Pradesh, is also renowned for its silk and cotton sarees. Similarly MolakalmuruMolakalmuruMolakalmuru is a panchayat town in Chitradurga district in the Indian state of Karnataka. It is near the border of Karnataka state with Andhra Pradesh. It borders the Rayadurg Taluk of Ananthpur district of Andhra Pradesh. Molakalmuru has major villages like Rampura, Hangal...
, a town in ChitradurgaChitradurgaChitradurga is a town in the southern part of the Indian state of Karnataka. It is also the headquarters of Chitradurga district. Chitradurga was also known by the names Chitradurg, Chitrakaladurga, Chittaldurg. Chittaldrug was the name officially used by the British Govt.-Geography:Chitradurga is...
district but much closer to Bellary than its district headquarters, is known for for its silk sarees branded by the town's name. However, Bellary itself has no saree manufacturing industry.- Cotton processing
- With cotton being one of the major agricultural crops around Bellary historically, the city has had a thriving cotton processing industry in the form of ginning, spinningSpinning (textiles)Spinning is a major industry. It is part of the textile manufacturing process where three types of fibre are converted into yarn, then fabric, then textiles. The textiles are then fabricated into clothes or other artifacts. There are three industrial processes available to spin yarn, and a...
and weavingWeavingWeaving is a method of fabric production in which two distinct sets of yarns or threads are interlaced at right angles to form a fabric or cloth. The other methods are knitting, lace making and felting. The longitudinal threads are called the warp and the lateral threads are the weft or filling...
plants. The earliest steam cotton-spinning mill was established in 1894 AD, which by 1901 AD had 17,800 spindles, and employed 520 hands. - The city continues to thrive in this sector with one spinning mill and numerous cotton ginning and pressing mills, hand looms and power loomPower loomA power loom is a mechanized loom powered by a line shaft. The first power loom was designed in 1784 by Edmund Cartwright and first built in 1785. It was refined over the next 47 years until a design by Kenworthy and Bullough, made the operation completely automatic. This was known as the...
s.- Garment manufacture
- Bellary has a historic garment industry dating back to the First World War period, when the Marathi speaking “Darji” (tailor) community with its native skills in tailoring migrated from the current Maharashtra region to stitch uniforms for the soldiers of the colonial British Indian Army stationed at Bellary. After the war, the community switched to making uniforms for school children and gradually, the uniforms made here became popular all over the country.
- Currently, Bellary is well known for its branded and unbranded denim garments, with brands like Point Blank, Walker, Dragonfly and Podium being successfully marketed nationally and internationally. There are about 260 denim garment units in Bellary with nearly 3000 families working in these units. The Karnataka State Government has proposed to build an apparel park at Bellary at the cost of , setting aside 154 acre (0.62321644 km²) of land for the purpose at Mundargi and Guggarahalli villages on the south of Bellary city.
Rice milling
- S.S.Sai Pavan Rice Mill (SPRM)
- Sri Gurunath Rice Mill
- Srinavas modern rice industries operated by Grandhi family
- Sri SAI Rice Mill, Located at Anathapur Road operated by the Raju Family
- Sri Balaji Rice Mill
- Thirumula Rice Mill
Other industry
- The 500 MW Bellary Thermal Power Thermal Station (BTPS) is located 19 km away from city at the Kuditini village. This is the second Thermal plant in Karnataka after the Raichur Thermal Power Thermal Station.
Noted personalities
- Arcot Ranganatha MudaliarA. Ranganatha MudaliarArcot Ranganatha Mudaliar was an Indian politician and theosophist from Bellary. He served as the Minister of Public Health and Excise for the Madras Presidency from 1926 to 1928.- Early life :...
– Former Deputy CollectorDistrict collectorThe District Collector is the district head of administration of the bureaucracy in a state of India. Though he/she is appointed and is under general supervision of the state government, he/she has to be a member of the elite IAS recruited by the Central Government...
of Bellary, Politician and TheosophistTheosophyTheosophy, in its modern presentation, is a spiritual philosophy developed since the late 19th century. Its major themes were originally described mainly by Helena Blavatsky , co-founder of the Theosophical Society...
. He served as the Minister of Public Health and Excise for the Madras PresidencyMadras PresidencyThe Madras Presidency , officially the Presidency of Fort St. George and also known as Madras Province, was an administrative subdivision of British India...
from 1926 to 1928. - Bahaddoor S. Seshagiri Rao – Former principal of the Municipal High school, National Award winning teacher and associate of the Gandhi Bhavan in Bellary.
- BasavarajeshwariBasavarajeshwariBasavarajeshwari was an Indian politician from Bellary, Karnataka. She belonged to the Lingayat community and was the Union Minister of State for Women and Child Development in the P.V. Narasimha Rao Ministry.biodata -References:...
– Politician and Industrialist - Bellary RaghavaBellary RaghavaBellary Raghava was a noted Indian playwright from Bellary, India.Tadpatri Raghavacharlu, populary known as 'Bellary' Raghava, was a renowned actor. He was born on 2 August 1880. He received his early education at Bellary and later graduated in law from the Madras University. His uncle Dharmavaraṃ...
– Noted dramatist. The auditoriumAuditoriumAn auditorium is a room built to enable an audience to hear and watch performances at venues such as theatres. For movie theaters, the number of auditoriums is expressed as the number of screens.- Etymology :...
Raghava Kala Mandir in Bellary is named after him. - Dharmavaraṃ Rāmakr̥ṣṇamācāryuluDharmavaram RamakrishnamacharyuluDharmavaraṃ Rāmakr̥ṣṇamācāryulu was a renowned Telugu dramatist and playwright from Bellary. He was known as "Andhra Nataka Pithamaha" and wrote more than 30 original plays.-Early life:...
(1853–1912) – Noted dramatist. - Gali Janardhan Reddy – Chairman, OMCPLObulapuram Mining CompanyObulapuram Mining Company also known as OMC or OMCPL is an iron ore mining company located in Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh in India. The company is owned by the brothers, G. Karunakara Reddy, G. Janardhana Reddy and G. Somashekara Reddy, who were ministers in the Government of Karnataka...
, and incumbent minister for State Tourism Development in the Karnataka Legislative Assembly. - JayanthiJayanthi (actress)Jayanthi is an Indian actress. She has appeared in over 500 films, including films in the Kannada, Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam, Hindi and Marathi languages. In Kannada movies, she was honored with the title Abhinaya Sharade....
– Renowned cinema actress; was born in Bellary. - Kolachalam Srinivasa RaoKolachalam Srinivasa RaoKolachalam Srinivasa Rao was a noted dramatist from Bellary.A pleader and a non-professional theatre practitioner from Bellary, Srinivasa Rao belonged to the family of Mallinatha Suri, the world-famous writer acclaimed as Vyakyatha Shiromani...
(1854–1919) – Noted dramatist. - K.C.KondaiahK. C. KondaiahK.C. Kondaiah , is an Indian politician and presently a member of the Karnataka Legislative Council from Bellary. He is a former member of the from Karnataka.An ardent partisan of the Nehru-Gandhi family...
– Politician and Industrialist - Mundlur Diwakar Babu – Politician, District CongressIndian National CongressThe Indian National Congress is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Bharatiya Janata Party. It is the largest and one of the oldest democratic political parties in the world. The party's modern liberal platform is largely considered center-left in the Indian...
President and former Cabinet Minister in the Karnataka Legislative Assembly. - Nagaruru Narayana Rao – Former Chairman of the Bellary Municipality. A public park in the town is named after him.
- Rai Bahadur A. Sabhapathy MudaliarA. Sabhapathy MudaliarRai Bahadur A. Sabhapathy Mudaliar was a Philanthropist and politician from Bellary, India. The Women & Children's Hospital or The District Hospital in Bellary was initially named after him, following his donation of land and building to the hospital...
– Philanthropist; The Women & Children's Hospital or The District Hospital was initially named after him, following his donation of land and building to the hospital. - Ravi BelagereRavi BelagereRavi Belagere is a writer and journalist based in Bengaluru, Karnataka, India.He is the editor of Kannada language tabloid Hi Bangalore,which he founded along with R. T. Vittalamurthy, Ra. Somanath, Jogi, and I. H...
– Publisher of the Hai Bengaluru Tabloid - Tekur SubramanyamTekur SubramanyamTekur Subramanyam was an Indian Freedom Fighter and politician from Bellary, India. For his involvement in the independence movement, he was jailed several times by the British Colonial administration, many times at Bellary's Allipura Jail...
– Indian Freedom Fighter, First post-independence MP of Bellary, elected thrice in a row since 1952, Political Secretary to Prime Minister Jawaharlal NehruJawaharlal NehruJawaharlal Nehru , often referred to with the epithet of Panditji, was an Indian statesman who became the first Prime Minister of independent India and became noted for his “neutralist” policies in foreign affairs. He was also one of the principal leaders of India’s independence movement in the...