Srisailam is a holy city and Mandal, situated in Nallamala hills of Kurnool district, Andhra Pradesh, India.
Srisailam, a unique combination of forest sanctuary and pilgrimage town A famous temple dedicated to Lord Mallikarjuna Swamy and Bhramaramba is located here. Srisailam is one among the various Jyothirlingam of India. The River Krishna carves a deep gorge through the woods of the Nallamalai Hills, and leaves in its wake a lush forest that is home to India's largest tiger reserve.
The Skanda Purana has a chapter called Srisaila Kandam dedicated to it, which points to the ancient origin. This is confirmed also by the fact that Tamil saints of the past millennia have sung praises of this temple. It is said that Adi Sankara visited this temple and at that time he composed his Sivananda Lahiri. Srisailam is referenced in the ancient Hindu Puranas, and the epic Mahabharata.
PLACE TO VISIT
Srisailam Dam - Srisailam Dam is 512 m long on the Krishna River and is set amidst beautiful natural scenery - ghats, cliffs, craggy ridges, plateaus and dense forests. It has twelve crest gates to hold a maximum water level of 885ft. It has a live storage of 274 thousand million cubic feet (TMC). This reservoir was originally designed for hydropower generation only but was later converted to a multi-purpose facility for water supply and irrigation.
Srisailam Sanctuary - Srisailam also boasts of one of the largest Tiger Reserves in India. Srisailam sanctuary covers an area of 3568 km²). The terrain is rugged and winding gorges slice through the area. This area is covered by dry deciduous forests with scrub and bamboo thickets.
These forests provide shelter to a range of animals like the tiger, leopard, deer, sloth bear, hyena, jungle cat, palm civet, bonnet macaque and pangolin.
The down waters Srisailam dam is home to a variety of crocodiles. The local government supports a breeding program which has been highly successful.
HOW TO REACH
Srisailam can be reached by road from Hyderabad, which is a pleasant journey through the picturesque Nallamala Hills.
By Road: 190 km from Kurnool & 216 km from Hyderabad Srisailam is well connected by
APSRTC (Andhra Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation) by buses with major
centers like Hyderabad, Mahaboobnagar, Nalgonda, Devorkonda, Guntur,
Vijayawada, Kurnool, Ongole, Mahanandi, Mantralayam, Anantapur, Tirupati and Chitradurg, Markapur.
It is just 180 km from Ongole, 88 km from Markapur.
By Rail: The nearest railway stations are at Kurnool and Markapur(90km) on the Guntur-Hubli Section
By Air: Nearest airport is located at Hyderabad (216kms.)
