The Indian state of Andhra Pradesh is situated in the southeast of the subcontinent. Tamil Nadu to the south, Telangana to the northwest and north, Karnataka to the southwest and west, and Odisha to the northeast are its borders. A 600-mile (970-kilometer) coastline encircling the Bay of Bengal serves as the eastern border. After over 60 years as a part of Andhra Pradesh, Telangana was split off to become its own state in 2014. Hyderabad, which is in the west central region of Telangana, was initially the combined capital of both states. However, Amaravati was chosen to serve as Andhra Pradesh’s future capital in 2024.
The Andhra people, who have lived in the region since antiquity and created their own language, Telugu, are the source of the state’s name. The Andhras’ quest for their own state led to the creation of Andhra Pradesh in 1956 in its current shape. The state is mostly agricultural, but it also has a sizable industrial sector and some mining activities. Area: 275,068 square kilometers, or 106,204 square miles. 2011 Population: 84,665,533.
The state is divided into three main physiographic regions: the Eastern Ghats, which constitute the western flank of the Coastal Plain and stretch from the Bay of Bengal to the mountain ranges; the plateau to the west of the Ghats in the southwest; and the mountain ranges themselves. Numerous rivers that flow from west to east through the hills and into the bay irrigate the coastal plain, often referred to as the Andhra region, which stretches nearly the whole length of the state. The core of the plains, a region of rich alluvial soil, is made up of the deltas created by the two most significant of those rivers, the Godavari and the Krishna.
The Eastern Ghats are a section of a wider mountain range that runs parallel to the east coast and from central India to the far south. The large river valleys divide the mountains, preventing them from forming a continuous range. Their flanks feature extremely permeable soils.
The plateau area in the southwest of the state, known as Rayalaseema and a part of the Deccan (peninsular India), is made of gneissic rock, which is foliated granite that developed in the Earth’s interior under pressure and heat. It slopes downward toward the northeast and reaches its highest point in the far southwest, where altitudes surpass 2,000 feet (600 meters). The primary drainage system is formed by the Penner River. The plateau is a region of graded valleys with red sandy soil and isolated hills due to erosion. There are also areas in the region with black dirt.