Machilipatnam (), also known as Masulipatnam and Bandar, is a city in

Krishna district Krishna district is district in the coastal Andhra Region in Indian state of Andhra Pradesh, with Machilipatnam as its administrative headquarters. It is the coastal district of Andhra Pradesh. Machilipatnam is the most populated city in the di ...

of the Indian state of

Andhra Pradesh Andhra Pradesh (, abbr. AP) is a state in the south-eastern coastal region of India. It is the seventh-largest state by area covering an area of and tenth-most populous state with 49,386,799 inhabitants. It is bordered by Telangana to t ...

. It is a

municipal corporation A municipal corporation is the legal term for a local governing body, including (but not necessarily limited to) cities, counties, towns, townships, charter townships, villages, and boroughs. The term can also be used to describe municipally ow ...

and the administrative headquarters of Krishna district. It is also the

mandal A tehsil (, also known as tahsil, taluka, or taluk) is a local unit of administrative division in some countries of South Asia. It is a subdistrict of the area within a district including the designated populated place that serves as its administr ...

headquarters of Machilipatnam mandal in Machilipatnam revenue division of the district. The ancient port town served as the settlement of European traders from the 16th century, and it was a major trading port for the Portuguese, British, Dutch and

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

in the 17th century.

Etymology

During the 17th century, it was known by the names ''Masulipatnam'' and ''Masulipatam'', in local

Telugu language Telugu (; , ) is a Dravidian language spoken by Telugu people predominantly living in the Indian states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, where it is also the official language. It is the most widely spoken member of the Dravidian language f ...

, 'Masuli'/'Machili' means fish and 'Patnam' means city. ''Masula'' and ''Bandar'' (Bandar translates to 'port' in

Persian language Persian (), also known by its endonym and exonym, endonym Farsi (, ', ), is a Western Iranian languages, Western Iranian language belonging to the Iranian languages, Iranian branch of the Indo-Iranian languages, Indo-Iranian subdivision of th ...

). The port town in the ancient times was also referred with the name ''Maesolia''.

History

The town has existed since at least the 3rd century BCE (

Satavahana The Satavahanas (''Sādavāhana'' or ''Sātavāhana'', IAST: ), also referred to as the Andhras in the Puranas, were an ancient Indian dynasty based in the Deccan region. Most modern scholars believe that the Satavahana rule began in the la ...

period) when, according to

Ptolemy Claudius Ptolemy (; grc-gre, Πτολεμαῖος, ; la, Claudius Ptolemaeus; AD) was a mathematician, astronomer, astrologer, geographer, and music theorist, who wrote about a dozen scientific treatises, three of which were of import ...

, it was known as Maisolos. The ''

Periplus of the Erythraean Sea The ''Periplus of the Erythraean Sea'' ( grc, Περίπλους τῆς Ἐρυθρᾶς Θαλάσσης, ', modern Greek '), also known by its Latin name as the , is a Greco-Roman periplus written in Koine Greek that describes navigation and ...

'' calls it Masalia in the 1st-century BCE. The port is on the southeastern, or

Coromandel Coast The Coromandel Coast is the southeastern coastal region of the Indian subcontinent, bounded by the Utkal Plains to the north, the Bay of Bengal to the east, the Kaveri delta to the south, and the Eastern Ghats to the west, extending over an ...

, of India. At the mouth of the River Krishna on the Bay of Bengal, the Masula port saw flourishing sea trade. Muslin was traded by ancient Greeks from the town and the word ''

muslin Muslin () is a cotton fabric of plain weave. It is made in a wide range of weights from delicate sheers to coarse sheeting. It gets its name from the city of Mosul, Iraq, where it was first manufactured. Muslin of uncommonly delicate hand ...

'' originated from the name Maisolos. Muslin was an important source of income for the town, being a favourite of Roman traders for domestic consumption. Several Roman coins were found during excavations of Buddhist towns near Machilipatnam. Masulipatnam rose to prominence under the Qutb Shahi kings. The town served as the primary sea port for their dominion, the kingdom of Golkonda. It was an outlet for textiles produced in the

Godavari Delta The Godavari (IAST: ''Godāvarī'' �od̪aːʋəɾiː is India's second longest river after the Ganga river and drains into the third largest basin in India, covering about 10% of India's total geographical area. Its source is in Trimbakeshwa ...

. It was a major source of income for the kingdom, and contributed to its immense prosperity in the 1620s and 1630s. By the end of the 17th century, the port city had fallen into decline. This coincided with the Mughal conquest of Golkonda. However, mismanagement prior to the conquest may have also been a factor in the city's decline. The town was the district headquarters of the then, Masulipatnam district and now to the

, which was formed in 1859 in the composite

Madras state Madras State was a state of India during the mid-20th century. At the time of its formation in 1950, it included the whole of present-day Tamil Nadu (except Kanyakumari district), Coastal Andhra, Rayalaseema, the Malabar region of North and ...

Geography

Machilipatnam city is at on the southeast coast of India and in the east coast of Andhra Pradesh. The city has an average elevation of 14 meters (45 feet).

Climate

Machilipatnam (city) gets most of its annual rainfall due to the

southwest monsoon A monsoon () is traditionally a seasonal reversing wind accompanied by corresponding changes in precipitation but is now used to describe seasonal changes in atmospheric circulation and precipitation associated with annual latitudinal oscill ...

. It has a

tropical savanna climate Tropical savanna climate or tropical wet and dry climate is a tropical climate sub-type that corresponds to the Köppen climate classification categories ''Aw'' (for a dry winter) and ''As'' (for a dry summer). The driest month has less than of ...

(

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, nota ...

''Aw'') with hot summers and moderate winters. The hottest months are between April and June. The average normal rainfall in the district is and Machilipatnam is vulnerable to high surges of the sea due to cyclones. The

1977 Andhra Pradesh cyclone The 1977 Andhra Pradesh cyclone was a devastating tropical cyclone that hit Andhra Pradesh in November 1977, killing at least 10,000 people.The storm in Orissa. Economist, 00130613, 11/6/1999, Vol. 353, Issue 8144 The worst affected areas were i ...

crossed the coast near

Nizampatnam Nizampatnam is a village in Bapatla district of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It is the mandal headquarters of Nizampatnam mandal in Repalle revenue division. The Dutch occupied the city for trading from 1606−1668. Etymology Nam ...

and took approximately 10,000 lives. As the storm approached the coast, gale winds reaching 200 km/h lashed Prakasam,

Guntur Guntur () is a city and the administrative headquarters of Guntur district in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. Guntur is spread across 168.49 km square and is the third-largest city in the state. It is situated to the west of the ...

Krishna Krishna (; sa, कृष्ण ) is a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as the eighth avatar of Vishnu and also as the Supreme god in his own right. He is the god of protection, compassion, tenderness, and love; and is on ...

East Godavari East Godavari is a district in the Coastal Andhra region of Andhra Pradesh, India. Its district headquarters is at Rajahmundry. As of census 2011, it became the most populous district of the state with a population of 5,151,549. In the Madras Pre ...

and West Godavari districts. A storm surge, 5 meters high, inundated the Krishna

estuary An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime environm ...

and the coast south of the city (Bandar). On 8 December 2004, a high capacity S-Band Doppler cyclone warning radar was installed, commissioned and made operational at the city by the German manufacturer Gematronik. With the installation of the radar, it is hoped the state will be better equipped to track cyclones. The facility will monitor the 960 km long coastline of the state. Musalipatam Mschilipatnam port in 1759

Demographics

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses in ...

, Machilipatnam had a population of 1,70,008. The total population constitutes 83,561 males and 86,447 females — a sex ratio of 1035 females per 1000 males. 13,778 children are in the age group of 0–6 years, of which 7,076 are boys and 6,702 are girls. The average literacy rate stands at 83.32% with 130,173 literates, significantly higher than the state average of 67.41%.

Governance

Civic administration

Machilipatnam Municipal Corporation is the civic body of the city. It was constituted as a municipality in 1866 and was upgraded to corporation from special grade municipality on 9 December 2015. It covers an area of under its jurisdiction. The present commissioner of the corporation is Sampath and the municipal chairperson is Motamarri Venkata Baba Prasad.

Machilipatnam Urban Development Authority The Machilipatnam Urban Development Authority (MUDA) is a special urban planning authority. It was constituted on 1 February 2016, under ''Andhra Pradesh Urban Areas (Development) Act 1975''. The headquarters are located at Machilipatnam in the ...

is the

urban planning Urban planning, also known as town planning, city planning, regional planning, or rural planning, is a technical and political process that is focused on the development and design of land use and the built environment, including air, water ...

authority, headquartered at Machilipatnam.

Politics

Machilipatnam is a part of Machilipatnam (Assembly constituency) for

Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly The Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly or Andhra Pradesh Śāsana Sabha is the lower house of the Andhra Pradesh Legislature. The Legislative Assembly consists of 175 members which are elected by adult universal suffrage under the first- ...

. Perni Venkata Ramaiah is the present MLA of the constituency from the

YSR Congress Party The Yuvajana Shramika Rythu Congress Party (YSRCP or YCP; ) is an Indian regional political party based in the state of Andhra Pradesh. Its president Y. S. Jagan Mohan Reddy serves as the state's chief minister. It is currently the fifth l ...

. The assembly segment is also a part of

Machilipatnam (Lok Sabha constituency) Machilipatnam Lok Sabha constituency is one of the twenty-five lok sabha constituencies of Andhra Pradesh in India. It comprises seven assembly segments it belongs to Krishna district and NTR district. Assembly segments Machilipatnam Lok Sabh ...

, which was won by

Balashowry Vallabhaneni Vallabhaneni Balasouri (born 18 September 1968) is an Indian politician from the YSR Congress Party. He is the current Member of Parliament (MP) in the 17th Lok Sabha representing Machilipatnam parliamentary constituency. He also served as th ...

of YSR Party.

Economy

Machilipatnam is known for its handloom industry, which produces Kalamkari textiles exported to United States and other Asian countries. Other notable local industries are

boat building Boat building is the design and construction of boats and their systems. This includes at a minimum a hull, with propulsion, mechanical, navigation, safety and other systems as a craft requires. Construction materials and methods Wood W ...

and

fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment, but may also be caught from stocked bodies of water such as ponds, canals, park wetlands and reservoirs. Fishing techniques ...

. Machilipatnam was a trading base for the

Europeans Europeans are the focus of European ethnology, the field of anthropology related to the various ethnic groups that reside in the states of Europe. Groups may be defined by common genetic ancestry, common language, or both. Pan and Pfeil (20 ...

in the 17th century and known for minting copper coins, exporting diamonds, textiles etc., through the port. The AP state government is taking measures to bring back the glory of the former port city. On 7 February 2019, it has started construction of a deep

seaport A port is a maritime law, maritime facility comprising one or more Wharf, wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge Affreightment, cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can a ...

and associated industrial corridor under the Machilipatnam Area Development Authority.

Culture

Art and handicrafts

''Machilipatnam Kalamkari'' is a handcrafted dyed block-painting of a

fabric Textile is an umbrella term that includes various fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, filaments, threads, different fabric types, etc. At first, the word "textiles" only referred to woven fabrics. However, weaving is not the ...

. It is performed at the nearby town of

Pedana Pedana is a municipality and the headquarters of Pedana mandal under Machilipatnam revenue division of Krishna district of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It is located at a distance of from the district headquarters, Machilipatnam. Geogra ...

and was registered with

geographical indication A geographical indication (GI) is a name or sign used on products which corresponds to a specific geographical location or origin (e.g., a town, region, or country). The use of a geographical indication, as an indication of the product's source, ...

from Andhra Pradesh. Machilipatnam and Srikalahasti styles are the only existing Kalamkari style works present in India.

Dance

'' Kuchipudi'', a popular Indian Classical Dance form, originated at Kuchipudi, 25 kilometers from Machilipatnam.

Cuisine

The city is well known for a sweet known as '' Bandar Laddu'' and Bandar Halwa.

Religious worship

There are many religions with worship centers in and around the city, such as Panduranga Temple at Chilakalapudi, Agastheeswara Temple etc. Dattashram is a pilgrimage site on the coast and home to ancient

Shiva Shiva (; sa, शिव, lit=The Auspicious One, Śiva ), also known as Mahadeva (; ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐ, or Hara, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions within Hin ...

and Datta temples. Manginapudi is popularly known as "Datta Rameswaram" due to the consecration of 12 wells for bathing (recalling those at

Rameswaram Rameswaram (; also transliterated as Ramesvaram, Rameshwaram) is a municipality in the Ramanathapuram district of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is on Pamban Island separated from mainland India by the Pamban channel and is about 40 ki ...

Tourism

Manginapudi Beach is on the coast of the city. Machilipatnam also has the ruined buildings built by the Europeans who settled here.

Transport

The city has a total road length of . The National Highway 65 connects Machilipatnam to

Pune Pune (; ; also known as Poona, ( the official name from 1818 until 1978) is one of the most important industrial and educational hubs of India, with an estimated population of 7.4 million As of 2021, Pune Metropolitan Region is the largest i ...

via

Hyderabad Hyderabad ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana and the ''de jure'' capital of Andhra Pradesh. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part ...

Suryapet Suryapet is a city in the Indian state of Telangana. It is a municipality and the headquarters of its eponymous district. The Government of India announced Suryapet to be developed under the Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformat ...

and

Vijayawada Vijayawada, formerly known as Bezawada, is the second largest city in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh and is a part of the state's Capital Region. It is the administrative headquarters of the NTR district. Its metropolitan region comprises N ...

NH 216 National Highway 153 (NH 153), formerly NH-216, is a national highway in India. It is a spur road of National Highway 53. NH-153 traverses the state of Chhattisgarh in India. Route NH-53 at Saraipali, Sarangarh, NH-49 at Raigarh. Juncti ...

from Kattipudi to

Ongole Ongole is a city in Prakasam district of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It is the headquarters of Prakasam district and also the mandal headquarters of Ongole mandal in Ongole revenue division. Ongole cattle, an indigenous breed of oxe ...

, passes through the city. The city's bus station is owned and operated by

Andhra Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation Andhra Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation (APSRTC) is the state-owned road transport corporation in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. Its headquarters is located at NTR Administrative Block of RTC House in Pandit Nehru bus station of ...

. The station is equipped with a bus depot for storage and maintenance of buses. Machilipatnam railway station is a 'B–Category' and 'Adarsh station' under the jurisdiction of Vijayawada railway division. It is the terminal station of Vijayawada-Machilipatnam branch line that connects Howrah-Chennai main line at . Machilipatnam port was damaged by a giant ocean wave on 1 November 1864. Since then, there were many efforts to build a new port. Navayuga Engineering Company Limited is in the process of building a deep water port at Gilakaladinne of the city. The nearest International airport is Gannavaram, Vijayawada (63 kms).

Education

The primary and secondary school education is imparted by government, aided, and private schools of the School Education Department of the state. Krishna University is located in Machilipatnam.

Notable natives

Divi Gopalacharlu Divi Gopalacharlu (October 10, 1872 - September 29, 1920) was a medical scientist, Hindu orthodox researcher, Ayurvedic scholar and president of All India ayurvedic vidyapeeth. In medicine he was credited with the titles Vaidyaratna and Ayurveda Ma ...

- Ayurvedic scholar * Timmarusu - Prime Minister of Raja Krishnadevaraya, the emperor of

Vijayanagara Empire The Vijayanagara Empire, also called the Karnata Kingdom, was a Hindu empire based in the region of South India, which consisted the modern states of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Goa and some parts of Telangana and Mahar ...

* Pingali Venkayya - Independence activist; designer of the national flag * Chitrapu Narayana Murthy - Indian director known for films like AVM's Bhaktha Prahlada (1967) *

Mutnuri Krishna Rao Mutnuri Krishna Rao was an Indian freedom fighter, editor, scholar and literary critic. He was the editor of '' Krishna Patrika'', a nationalist publication from 1907 to 1945. He is considered to be the doyen of Telugu journalism. Personal lif ...

- Independence activist and journalist * U. G. Krishnamurthy - Philosopher * Bhogaraju Pattabhisitaramayya - Indian independence activist and political leader *

Raghupathi Venkaiah Naidu Raghupathi Venkaiah Naidu (15 October 1869 – 15 March 1941), was an Indian filmmaker, screenwriter, director, graphic artist, lyricist, author, educationist and entrepreneur considered as the father of Telugu cinema. Regarded as one of the pio ...

- father of

Telugu cinema Telugu cinema, also known as Tollywood, is the segment of Indian cinema dedicated to the production of motion pictures in the Telugu language, widely spoken in the states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. Telugu cinema is based in Film Nagar, ...

, Indian artiste and film maker * C. K. Nayudu - Indian cricketer *

Poornima Pūrṇimā () is the word for full moon in Sanskrit. The day of Purnima is the day (''Tithi'') in each month when the full moon occurs, and marks the division in each month between the two lunar fortnights (paksha), and the Moon is aligned exactl ...

- Indian actress who starred in many Telugu, Tamil, Kannada and Malayalam films. *

Jagapathi Babu Veeramachaneni Jagapathi Rao Chowdary (born 12 February 1962), professionally known as Jagapathi Babu (), is an Indian actor known for his works predominantly in Telugu cinema. He has also appeared in a few Tamil, , Kannada and Malayalam films ...

- Telugu actor. * B. Vasantha - South Indian playback singer. * Master Venu - Music composer of the Telugu and Tamil cinemas. * C. S. R. Anjaneyulu - C. S. R., was an Indian film method actor, and thespian best known for his works in Telugu cinema and Telugu theater. *

Nirmalamma Nirmalamma (18 July 1920 – 19 February 2009) was an Indian actress in the Telugu cinema. She has acted in more than 800 films. She was well known for her grandmother roles in several films.She won two Nandi Awards. Early life She was born in ...

- Telugu actress known for her grandmother roles in old films. * Maruthi - Indian director, screenwriter, producer who works primarily in Telugu cinema. *

Mani Sharma Mani may refer to: Geography * Maní, Casanare, a town and municipality in Casanare Department, Colombia * Mani, Chad, a town and sub-prefecture in Chad * Mani, Evros, a village in northeastern Greece * Mani, Karnataka, a village in Dakshina ...

- Indian composer, singer, arranger, multi-instrumentalist and music producer known for his works primarily in the Telugu and Tamil cinema along with Hindi and Kannada films. * Achyuth - Indian actor *

Srikanth Bolla Srikanth Bolla is an Indian industrialist and the founder of ''Bollant'' Industries. He is the first international blind student in Management Science at Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Early life and education Bolla was born visually ...

- First Indian blind boy to study at

Massachusetts Institute of Technology The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a Private university, private Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Established in 1861, MIT has played a key role in the development of modern t ...

and an entrepreneur and founder of Bollant Industries. *

Turaga Desiraju Turaga Desiraju (1935–1992; Machilipatnam, Andhra Pradesh) was an Indian neurophysiologist and a professor at National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences (NIMHANS). He was associated with AIIMS Delhi before joining NIMHANS and foun ...

- neurophysiologist and a professor at National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences

References

Bibliography

* * * * * *

External links

{{Authority control Cities in Andhra Pradesh Former Portuguese colonies Port cities in India Populated coastal places in India Archaeological sites in Andhra Pradesh Mandal headquarters in Krishna district District headquarters of Andhra Pradesh 1611 establishments in the British Empire