Warangal

This article is about the municipality in India. For its namesake district, see Warangal district.

Warangal వరంగల్ وارنگل Orugallu Ekasila Nagaram
Metropolis
Warangal
Coordinates:
Country	India
State	Telangana
Region	Deccan
District	Warangal
Former name	Orugallu
Official Language	Telugu, Urdu
Named for	Heritage
Government
• Body	Greater Warangal Municipal Corporation(GWMC)
• Municipal Commissioner	Sarfaraz Ahmad
• Commissioner of Police	Sudheer Babu
Area
• Total	406.87 km2 (157.09 sq mi)
Area rank	17th(India) 2nd(State)
Elevation	302 m (991 ft)
Population (2014)
• Total	811,844
• Rank	62nd (India) 2nd (state)
• Density	2,331.44/km2 (6,038.4/sq mi)
Demonym(s)	Warangalite
Time zone	IST (UTC+5:30)
Telephone code	+91-870-XXX XXXX
Vehicle registration	TS–03
Ethnicity	Indian
Website	Greater Warangal Municipal Corporation

Sunset at Bhadrakali Lake

Carved pillar at Thousand Pillar Temple

Warangal <phonos file="Warangal.ogg">pronunciation</phonos>; (also known as Orugallu and Ekasila Nagaram) is a city and the district headquarters of Warangal district in the Indian state of Telangana. It is located 148 kilometres (92 mi) northeast of the state capital of Hyderabad and for administrative purposes comprises the Warangal, Hanmakonda and Kazipet areas. The city is included in Amrut project and smart city by central government. The city is known for its heritage and in late 2014 was included in the Government of India's proposed HRIDAY - Heritage City Development and Augmentation Yojana, along with eleven other Indian cities. A few months earlier, the national government listed it among the 100 proposed smart cities that will be eligible for additional investment to improve urban infrastructure and industrial opportunities.

Warangal is the second fastest-growing city in Telangana state, after Hyderabad. After taking control of 42 gram panchayats, its population has exceeded 1 million and this growth, plus its historical significance, caused the government to authorise the prefer Greater to the name of Warangal Municipal Corporation in early 2015.

Warangal has been chosen as one of the heritage cities for HRIDAY - Heritage City Development and Augmentation Yojana scheme of Government of India.

Etymology

"Oru" means 'single' and "Kal" is referred as a 'stone' in local language. The word "Orugallu" synonyms, one rock, which describes the city was carved out of a single large stone. The word "Ekashilanagaram" is other way of describing the name Orugallu which literally means same as "City Carved Out of Single Stone", used very commonly in the period of Kakatiyan empire. As the time went on, Orugallu was changed to "Warangallu" and finally settled as Warangal.

History

Warangal, then known as Orugallu, was the capital of the Kakatiya dynasty from 1195 CE until that ruling family was defeated by the Delhi Sultanate in 1323. The city was then renamed as Sultanpur.

The Kakatiyas left many monuments, including an impressive fortress, four massive stone gateways, the Swayambhu temple dedicated to Shiva, and the Ramappa temple situated near Ramappa Lake. The cultural and administrative distinction of the Kakatiyas was mentioned by Marco Polo. After the defeat of Prataparudra II, the Musunuri Nayaks united 72 Nayak chieftains and captured Warangal from Delhi Sultanate and ruled for fifty years. After the demise of the Nayaks, Warangal was part of the Bahmani Sultanate and then the Sultanate of Golconda.

The Mughal emperor Aurangzeb conquered Golconda in 1687, and it remained part of the Mughal empire until the southern provinces of the empire split away to become the state of Hyderabad in 1724, which included the Telangana region and some parts of Maharashtra and Karnataka. Hyderabad was annexed to India in 1948, and became an Indian state. In 1956 Hyderabad was partitioned as part of the States Reorganisation Act, and Telangana, the Telugu-speaking region of Hyderabad state, which includes Warangal, became part of Andhra Pradesh.

Geography and climate

Warangal is located at . It has an average elevation of 302 metres (990 feet).

Warangal
Climate chart (explanation)
J F M A M J J A S O N D     15     30 16     5     33 18     5     37 22     7     40 26     15     42 28     50     37 28     85     32 25     170     31 25     160     33 23     70     33 22     10     31 18     0     30 15 Average max. and min. temperatures in °C Precipitation totals in mm Source: mustseeindia.com
Imperial conversion J F M A M J J A S O N D     0.6     86 61     0.2     91 64     0.2     99 72     0.3     104 79     0.6     108 82     2     99 82     3.3     90 77     6.7     88 77     6.3     91 73     2.8     91 72     0.4     88 64     0     86 59 Average max. and min. temperatures in °F Precipitation totals in inches

It is settled in the eastern part of Deccan Plateau made up of granite rocks and hill formations which left the region barren making the cultivation depend on seasonal rainfalls. There are no river flows nearby warangal, which makes it to rely on Kakatiya Canal which originates from Sriram Sagar Project to meet the drinking water requirements. Located in the semi-arid region of Telangana, Warangal has a predominantly hot and dry climate. Summer starts in March, and peak in May with average high temperatures in the 42 °C (108 °F) range. The monsoon arrives in June and lasts until September with about 550 mm (22 in) of precipitation. A dry, mild winter starts in October and lasts until early February, when there is little humidity and average temperatures in the 22–23 °C (72–73 °F) range. Many hill rocks and lakes are located around warangal. Padmakshi hill and Govinda Rajula Gutta are two famous hills with temples. Bhadrakali and Waddepally are the two famous lakes which adds scenic beauty and also are the major sources of drinking water.

Governance

Greater Warangal Municipal Corporation

warangal info web site www.warangal.nic.in Civic administration is the responsibility of the Greater Warangal Municipal Corporation (GWMC), which oversees the three cities of Warangal, Hanamakonda and Kazipet. In July 1951 the city was upgraded to Special Grade Municipality status. Later, in July 1960, it was upgraded to Selection Grade Municipality. On 18 August 1994, the city was declared a municipal corporation. On 28 January 2015, city was upgraded to Greater Municipal Corporation by the state government of Telangana

Presently, the GWMC covers over 407.71 square kilometres (157.42 sq mi). City planning is governed by the Kakatiya Urban Development Authority, which was constituted in 1982. That body oversees development of infrastructure and other projects in the city.

The former Warangal Municipal Corporation implemented some pilot projects, such as the Solid Waste Management programme, that were so successful that other corporations have since implemented them. The city is divided into 58 political wards where each ward is represented by an area corporator.

Law and order

Police patrol vehicle in Warangal

The urban police district, which is responsible for maintaining law and order in city and agglomerated areas around Warangal was converted into a Police Commissionerate by the state government in 2015. Inspector General will be working as police commissionear who is also given magisterial powers. There are around 19 police stations present under warangal commissionerate.

Healthcare

The 1200-bed Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Hospital is the largest hospital in the city. It also serves the needs of patients from the neighbouring districts of Khammam and Karimnagar.

Apart from major public hospitals such as those for maternity, chest and tuberculosis, there are many private specialist hospitals like Lifeline, Rohini, Jaya, Guardian, St.Ann's.

Economy

Warangal Municipal Corporation (WMC)

According to the 2011 census of India, Warangal is one of the Indian cities that has seen rapid growth of urbanisation. This category is led by cities such as Gandhinagar (35% to 43%), Warangal (19% to 28%), Kozhikode (38% to 67%) and Krishna (32% to 41%).

Agriculture is the main economic activity with irrigation depending mainly on monsoon and seasonal rainfalls. Major crops are paddy, cotton, mango and wheat. Warangal benefits from the Godavari lift irrigation scheme which is designed to lift water from the Godavari river to irrigate drought prone areas in the Telangana region.

The city hosts Asia's second-biggest grain market, located in Enumamula. It is also attracting investors in information technology. The incubation tower at Madikonda is likely to play a significant role in this development.

Transport

Airway

Warangal had a domestic airport which was established in 1930. Currently, no flights are operated from this airport. Rajiv Gandhi International Airport in Hyderabad is the nearest major airport and is 174 kilometres (108 mi) from the city.

Railway

Konark Express in Kazipet Junction

Indian Railways connects Warangal with all other Indian cities. Kazipet railway station and Warangal railway station are two major stations which falls under south central railway Secunderabad division. Kazipet Junction is located on Delhi-Nagpur-Kazipet-Secunderabad route. It is one of the biggest railway junctions in India, acting as a gateway between north and south India having a high traffic of 147 trains passing through it every day. Kazipet Junction shelters both Electric and Diesel Loco sheds with a capacity of holding 175 and 142 locos
Warangal railway station is located on Delhi-Nagpur-Vijayawada-Chennai route at a distance of 14 kilometres (9 mi) from Kazipet Junction. It is administrated by South Central Railway zone. Kazipet town, Vanchanagiri, Hasanparthy Road are the other railway stations within Warangal city limits.

Road

Traffic on warangal Roads

National Highway 163 connecting Hyderabad in Telangana and Bhopalpatnam in Chhattisgarh passes through warangal. Central bus terminal is located in Hanamkonda, connects warangal with neighbouring cities of Hyderabad, Karimnagar, Khammam and distant cities of Nizamabad, Adilabad, Guntur, Nellore, Tirupati, Rajahmundry, Visakhapatnam, Raichur, Nanded, Shirdi, Bengaluru. Along with Garuda, Indra, Super luxury and Express Bus services, ordinary services to neighbouring towns and villages are operated by Telangana State Road Transport Corporation (TSRTC). City buses runs in various routes across the city and sub urban areas. City ordinary, city merupu are the main local services used by the people and are the cheapest mode of transportation. There are 3 bus depots located in heart of the city.

Education

view of NIT warangal

Among the educational institutions in the city are:

• Kakatiya University is a university of Warangal and has 471 affiliated colleges.
• NIT Warangal, formerly known as Regional Engineering College
• Kakatiya Medical College, renamed as Kaloji Health University in 2014, is a government medical college founded in 1959
• Sparkrill International School, Ananthasagar, Hasanparthy, Warangal Warangal
• Delhi Public School Warangal

Culture

Religions in Warangal
Religion			Percent
Hindu			83.41%
Muslim			14.39%
Christians			1.65%
Others†			0.55%
†Includes Sikhs, Jains

Bathukamma

Bathukamma is a floral festival celebrated by women of warangal, worshipping the goddess with different flowers for nine days. Though the festival is celebrated all over the state, it is famously known as major festival of warangal. After arranging different flowers in attractive manner which are available in the season, women carry their "Bathukamma" to nearest temple in their locality, after crowd gatherings they clap, sing and dance rhythmically around the Bathukamma. Along with Bonalu, bathukamma is declared as state festival on 15 June 2014.

Medaram Jatara

Sammakka Saralamma Jatara or Medaram Jatara is a popular religious congregation in the honour of Goddesses which is celebrated at Medaram in Warangal district . It is said to be the largest religious congregation in India after Kumbha Mela. This 3-day festival attracts many devotees in the country.

Cuisine

South Indian dishes includes Dosa, Vada, Puri, Idly are common breakfast items. Rice with variety of curries including curd is taken as main food. "Biryani" is a famous delicious food item which is served in all hotels, biryani available in the hotels of old city area of mandi bazar is very famous for its taste. Special food items Harees and Haleem are traditional food items available in the season of Ramzan.

Tourism

On 28 February 2013, Warangal was accorded World Heritage place status by UNESCO.

Movies

With the success of the Varsham movie,lot of Movies started filmed in and around warangal area.

orugallu technology services web site www.warangalinfo.co.in

Further reading

• (subscription required)

External links

• Warangal travel guide from Wikivoyage
• warangal municipalcorrporation web site