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Tirupati is a major pilgrimage city located in the Chittoor district of Andhra Pradesh, India. It is located at the foothills of Eastern Ghats at a distance of 550 kms south of Hyderabad, the capital of the state and 100 kms north of Chennai.

Tirupati is famous for the Venkateswara Swamy temple dedicated to Lord Venkateswara, located about 10 km north west of Tirupati in the hallowed Tirumala hills at an elevation of 853 m. One of the most important pilgrimage centers in India, the temple draws millions of pilgrims and is one of the busiest pilgrimage centres in the world. Tirupati town itself has several temples and is famous for its red wooden toys, copper and brass idols. Also, the town is a major economical and educational hub in the southern region of the state.

Etymology
In Tamil Tirupati/Thirupathi stands for Thiru/Tiru + Pathi/Pati; means Husband (Pathi) of goddess Lakshmi (Thiru). Whereas, Tirumala is otherwise known as Seven Hills (Edu-kondalu in Telugu and Elu-Mala in Tamil). Tirumala is located atop the hill which comprises seven peaks, representing the seven hoods of Adisesha, thus earning the name, Seshachalam. The seven peaks are called Seshadri, Neeladri, Garudadri, Anjanadri, Vrishabhadri, Narayanadri and Venkatadri.

Recorded History
The Tirumala hills are the world's second oldest rock mountains. The Sangam literature of Tamil such as Silapadikaram and Sattanar's Manimekalai, dated between 500 BC to 300 AD, mentions Tiruvengadam (now named Tirupati).

There is no clear history on the origin of the temple of Lord Venkateshwara, but it was maintained and upgraded by various kingdoms. These include the Pallava Kingdom around 4th Century AD, Chola Kingdom over a discrete set of periods from 2nd Century BC to 10th century AD and the latest one being Vijayanagara Empire around 17th century BCE. Krishna Deva Raya the greatest of[Vijayanagara Empire led the temple to great popularity by donating gold and other ornaments for the temple and constructing extended shrines. The place of Chandragiri, presently a village few km south west of Tirupati, was used as the secondary capital of Vijayanagara emperor.

The site was an established center of Vaishnavism around 5th century A.D. during which Tirupati was praised by Alvars (Vaishnava saints); belonging to the Bhakti movement in Dravidian Land, who were known for their poems and literary works on Lord Venkateswara. Tirupati's significance in Southern Vaishnava tradition is next only to Srirangam, and the temple rites were formalized by the Vaishnavite saint Ramanujacharya himself, in the 11th century AD.

Tirupati survived the Muslim invasions of South India, unlike other temples such as the Meenakshi temple in Madurai and Ranganathaswamy Temple in Srirangam. It is believed that during the invasions the deity of Sriranganatha from Srirangam was brought to Tirupati for safekeeping. To commemorate this event, a hall in Tirupati is still known as the Ranganatha Mandapam.

In 1843, with the coming of the East India Company, the administration of the Sri Venkateshwara temple and a number of shrines was entrusted to Seva Dossji of the Hathiramji Mutt at Tirumala as Vicaranakarta for nearly a century until 1933, when the temple was under the administrative charge of the mahants.

The Madras legislature passed a special act in 1933 whereby the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam (TTD) committee was invested with powers of administration and control through a commissioner appointed by the Government of Madras. A Ryot Advisory Council was formed for the management of the estates of the TTD, and was assisted by a Religious Advisory Council with regard to religious matters.

The first establishment of the town was near Kotturu, today's K.T. Road area. Later it was shifted near the temple of Govindaraja Swamy with the temple as the center of the city. It is today's railway station area. Now the city is expanded to nearby areas. Tirupati town now includes Srinivasamangapuram, Thiruchanoor, Renigunta, Chandragiri, Avilala.

Geography
Tirupati is located in the southern part of Andhra Pradesh. It has an average elevation of 162 metres (531 feet).

The Tirumala hill is 3200 ft above sea level, and is about 10.33 sqmi in area.

Climate
Tirupati has an extreme type of climate. Monsoon remains moderate and summer experiences temperatures ranging from 42 to 45 degrees Celsius (107.6 F & 113 F). In winter the minimum temperatures will be between 10 and 18 degrees Celsius ( 50 F to 64.4 F). Usually summer lasts from March to June, with the advent of rainy season in July, followed by winter which lasts till the end of February.

Population
Tirupati has a population of about 2,50,821 (with urban agglomeration, 3,03,521). TUDA (Tirupati Urban Development Authority) further expanded its urban area limit to about 1380 km2 with a total population of about 10,00,000. Males constitute 53% of the population and females 47%. It has an average literacy rate of 81%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 82%, and female literacy is 72%. 16% of the population is under 6 years of age.

Language and culture
Tirupati is a melting pot of two ancient, brethren Dravidian culture – Telugu and Tamil. Tirupati is an example of extreme linguistic harmony in the entire country. Telugu is the official and principal language of the town, whereas Tamil is understood. English is a part of education system; widely understood among educated class. Most of the temples in Tirupati have been built using Dravidian architecture. Hinduism is the major religion here. Dhoti (Pancha/Veshti) and Saree are traditional attire of people here. Dresses like churidar and pants-shirt have become common in recent decades. Practices of tonsure and using tilaka are very popular among devotees of Lord Venkateswara. Songs and prayers of Lord Venkateswara are generally heard all over the town. Near the bus stand, stands the statue of Bharatharatna M.S. Subbulakshmi, a legendary Carnatic singer.

Economy
Tirupati was recognised as a Municipal Corporation in 2002. Although Chittoor is the headquarters of the district, much of the business activities and major government establishments (and operations) take place in Tirupati. With improved infrastructure and due to various efforts by the state government, Tirupati is well turning into a business hub of southern Andhra Pradesh. Notable large and medium scale industries along side a lot of small scale industries that call Tirupati as their home base, include the government owned Railway Carriage Repair Shop, Amararaja Power Systems, Lanco Industries. There are plans to improve the infrastructure to set up IT service based organizations in Tirupati. Financial institutions like HDFC are setting their back office operations in Tirupati. Tirupati is becoming the education hub for the nearby areas because of the strong presence of Educational Institutions and Universities. Being a pilgrimage center, the floating population is a major source of income. Considerable revenue is generated by travel sector. Strong expatriate/town's non-residents' money inflow and an emerging industrial scenario triggered a major real estate boom in the town in recent years and marched steadily, until before 2008-2009 Global Recession.

Road
Tirupati has direct bus services to nearby towns and major cities across South India. There is a dedicated Bus Stand at Alipiri for buses (once in every 2 minutes) to Tirumala. The town has a well planned network of roads with synchronized traffic control system.

A number of buses are operated by the government-run APSRTC and private operators connecting Tirupati to other major cities and towns directly. Private bus operators also ply buses to Tirupati from Chennai, Hyderabad, Vizag and Bangalore.

Rail
Tirupati has a major railway station which is well equipped and has ten platforms but only five are used; and presently undergoing modernization, including three escalators. Renigunta junction which lies on the busy Chennai and Mumbai rail route, is just 20 minutes drive from Tirupati town. There are many trains travelling across the country with Tirupati as the starting point. Tirupati is well connected to major cities across India, esp. Chennai, Bangalore and Hyderabad. The Andhra Pradesh Sampark Kranti Express is the only train from Tirupati that connects to Bhopal, Gwalior and New Delhi. It is connected by Chennai sub-urban railways in North-western line.

However, the town lacks direct connectivity with important and religious places such as Indore, Ujjain, Jabalpur, Jaipur and Dehradun.

Air
Tirupati Airport is a domestic airport that has direct flights to Hyderabad, Vizag, Chennai, New Delhi and Bangalore. The airport is located 15 km from the city centre. Closest international airport is located in Chennai] (Chennai International Airport) which is 130 km from Tirupati. The Tirupati airport has been upgraded to an International Airport and the upgrade process is underway.

Government and politics
Tirupati is a major municipal corporation in Andhra Pradesh state. It contributes a member in central parliament and a member in state legislature in Indian politics. Chinta Mohan is the current MP from Indian National Congress (INC) and Konidala Chiranjeevi is the MLA from Praja Rajyam Party (PRP). Chandragiri is a suburb accounting to one more seat for the state assembly. Tirupati Urban Development Authority (TUDA) was established long back to develop the city. It is involved in the construction of second fly-over in the city and extending all two lane roads to four lane. Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) also contributes a maximum of funds for the development of the city. Major roads like the traffic-loaded Tirumala bypass and the rail underpass near the railway station was taken up by TTD along with TUDA.


 * Assembly constituency


 * 1955 - R. Nadamunireddy (Indian National Congress)
 * 1962 - R. Nadamunireddy (Indian National Congress)
 * 1967 - A. Eswar Reddy (Independent)
 * 1972 - V. Sikamani (Indian National Congress)
 * 1978 - A. Eswar Reddy (Indian National Congress)
 * 1983 - N. T. Rama Rao (Telugu Desam Party)
 * 1983 - K. Symala (Telugu Desam Party)
 * 1985 - M. Ramireddy (Indian National Congress)
 * 1989 - M. Ramireddy (Indian National Congress)
 * 1994 - A. Mohan (Telugu Desam Party)
 * 1999 - Chadalavada Krishna Murthy (Telugu Desam Party)
 * 2004 - M. Venkata Ramana (Indian National Congress)
 * 2009 -Dr. Chiranjeevi (Praja Rajyam)
 * Municipal Chairman


 * 2002 - K Shankar Reddy (Telugu Desam Party)

List of elected members:
 * Parliamentary Constituency
 * 1977 - Balakrishnaiah Tambura (Indian National Congress)
 * 1980 - Pasala Penchalaiah (Indian National Congress)
 * 1984 - Chinta Mohan (Telugu Desam Party)
 * 1989 - Chinta Mohan (Indian National Congress)
 * 1991 - Chinta Mohan (Indian National Congress)
 * 1996 - Nelavala Subrahmanyam (Indian National Congress)
 * 1998 - Chinta Mohan (Indian National Congress)
 * 1999 - N. Venkata Swamy (Bharatiya Janata Party)
 * 2004 - Chinta Mohan (Indian National Congress)
 * 2009 - Chinta Mohan (Indian National Congress)

Media
Telugu newspapers - Eenadu, Vaartha, Andhra Jyothi, Andhra Prabha, Andhra Bhoomi, Saakshi and Prajashakthi and English newspapers - The Hindu, Deccan Chronicle, Indian Express are also available in the town. Most of the Telugu, Hindi and English television channels and the local city cable are available.

Festivals
The town celebrates most Vaishnava festivals including Vaikunta Ekadasi, Rama Navami and Janmashtami with great splendor, while the Brahmotsavam celebrated every year during September is the most important festival in Tirumala when it receives millions of devotees over a short span of a week. Rathasapthami (Magha Shuddha Saptami) is another festival, celebrated during February, when Lord Venkateswara's idol is taken in a procession around the temple chariots.

Gangamma Jathra is also celebrated as a major local festival. The Goddess Gangamma is offered animal sacrifices and also pongal and other offerings by the devotees. She is considered as the sister of Lord Govinda.

Religious sites
There are many temples in Tirupati and Tirumala. Some of them are:
 * Tirumala Venkateswara Temple, dedicated to Lord Vishnu as Venkateswara (also known as Balaji and Srinivasa) attracts followers from a wide range of Hindu traditions.
 * Alamelu Mangamma Shrine in Alamelumangapuram also called Thiruchanoor
 * Padmavati Temple
 * Govindaraja Swamy Temple
 * Kodanda Rama Swamy Temple: Lord Rama, Sita and Lakshmana are the presiding deities of the temple. Lord Anjaneya Swamy is seen near the foot of Lord Rama. The temple is in the heart of the city. There is also another temple dedicated to Lord Anjaneya Swamy opposite to Kodhanda Rama Swamy Temple. Prasadams are offered daily to pilgrims.
 * Srinivasa Mangapuram
 * Kapila Theertham: This temple is dedicated to Lord Shiva and Parvati. There is a beautiful waterfall near the temple.
 * ISKCON Lord Krishna Temple - The temple has its own style of architecture with the towers coloured in gold and white. The carvings of Lord Narasimha Swamy, Lord Varaha Swamy and Krishna Leela are marvelous. Glass painting works on the windows depicting Lord Krishna's playful acts and the ceilings decorated like Tanjore art reveals the colourful masterpiece in art work. Each pillar is decorated with ten avatars of Lord Vishnu. The temple inside the sanctum has Lord Krishna with beautifully dressed Gopikas. There is a beautiful park surrounded with lot of flowers, ponds, fountains and with Krishna Leela idols. The temple is on the way to Tirumala Hills.
 * Lord Shiva temple at Yogimallavaram, near to Tirupati is very old and is very famous.
 * Hanuman temple at Tirumala is where Hanuman's mother Anjana did penance.
 * Avanakshamma temple - 42 km from Tirupati
 * Sri Venugopala Swamy Temple in Karvetinagaram, 40 km from Tirupati
 * Sri Kalyana Venkateswara Swamy Temple - Narayanavanam, 48 km from Tirupati
 * Sri Prasanna Venkateswara Swamy Temple - Appalayagunta, 20 km from Tirupati

There is also another small temple for Lord Vishnu. The place is on the foothills of Tirumala. Giant Nandikeshwara statue is seen at the entrance of the temple. There is a rock garden in Tirumala called as Shilatoranam.

Other

 * Sri Venkateswara Zoological Park is the second of its kind in the Andhra Pradesh. It has many species of animals and plants which are being conserved. Nearly 10 to 15 tigers are present in this zoo.


 * Regional Science Center is a science center and also has a planetarium which grabs huge amounts of crowd.

Education
Tirupati is a major educational hub in South eastern region of Andhra Pradesh. It is home to several universities, including
 * Sri Venkateswara University
 * Sri Padmavati Mahila Viswavidyalayam (SPMVV) (one among two women universities in India)
 * Rashtriya Sanskrit Vidyapeeth
 * Rashtriya Sanskrit Vidyapeeth - Directorate of Distance Education
 * Sri Venkateswara Vedic University
 * Sri Venkateswara Veterinary University (SVVU)
 * Sri Venkateswara Institute of Medical Sciences university (SVIMS)

Apart from these universities, it has state government and Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam sponsored medical, pharmacy, agricultural colleges and also engineering colleges.

Around 22 engineering colleges and 5 pharmacy colleges exist in and around Tirupathi, including:
 * Sri Venkateswara University College of Engineering (SVUCE)
 * Chadalawada Ramanamma Engg College
 * Sree Vidyaniketan Engineering College
 * Sri Padmavathi School of Pharmacy (SPSP), Thiruchanoor

Tirupati also has several academic institutions offering degree programmes in Science, Arts, Commerce and Agricultural Sciences. Some of these colleges have been established more than 50 years ago. Some of them are: The Dairy Technology Programme under SV Veterinary University offering B. Tech (Dairy Technology) degree since 1983 has been elevated during the year 2009 to College of Dairy Technology, first of its kind in Andhra Pradesh.
 * Sri Venkateswara Arts College
 * Sri Govindarajaswamy Arts College
 * Sri Padmavathi Women's College
 * Sri Padmavathi Women's polytechnic
 * Sri Venkateswara Government Polytechnic
 * Sri Venkateswara Oriental College
 * Sri Venkateswara Agriculture College

Sports and entertainment
Tirupati has nearly 25 cinema halls including a Multiplex, which screen Telugu, English and Hindi movies. Cricket is the most watched and played sport in Tirupati. Volleyball is a major sport mainly in the rural areas surrounding the town. Tennis, Volley Ball, and Badminton are played in colleges.Chess is also quite popular in Tirupati. Sports complex in S.V.Arts college campus is another special attraction.