| Khammam district | |
| Settlement Type: | District of Telangana |
| Total Type: | Total |
| Coor Pinpoint: | Khammam |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Name: | India |
| Subdivision Type1: | State |
| Subdivision Name1: | Telangana |
| Established Title: | Established |
| Seat Type: | Headquarters |
| Seat: | Khammam |
| Parts Type: | Mandalas |
| Parts Style: | para |
| P1: | 21 |
| Area Total Km2: | 4361 |
| Population As Of: | 2011 |
| Population Total: | 1,401,639 |
| Population Urban: | 316828 |
| Population Density Km2: | auto |
| Demographics1 Title1: | Literacy |
| Demographics1 Title2: | Sex ratio |
| Leader Title: | District collector |
| Leader Name: | Sri V.P.Gautham I.A.S., |
| Leader Title1: | Parliament constituencies |
| Leader Name1: | 1 |
| Leader Title2: | Assembly constituencies |
| Leader Name2: | 10 |
| Timezone1: | IST |
| Utc Offset1: | +05:30 |
| Registration Plate: | TG 04[1] |
Khammam district is a district in the eastern region of the Indian state of Telangana. The city of Khammam is the district headquarters. The district shares boundaries with Suryapet, Mahabubabad, Bhadradri districts and with Eluru and NTR districts.
Paleolithic man probably roamed around the areas of lower Godavari valley[2] and the surroundings of Wyra, Sathupalli Taluks in the district. Prehistoric rock paintings were found near Neeladri konda[3] near Lankapalli of Sathupalli Taluk.
Megalithic site on the campus of Government Degree college in Khammam has yielded pottery and skeletal remains.[4] Kistapuram[5] of the district were rich in Megalithic cultural remnants explored and discovered.
The southern parts of Khammam district flourished as famous Buddhist centers along with Amaravathi and Vijayapuri along the rivulets Munneru, Wyra and Murredu. Important Buddhist sites in the district are Nelakondapalli and Mudigonda
Khammam town which was the seat of Taluk Administration was a part of the larger Warangal district, till 1 October 1953. Six taluks of the Warangal district viz., Khammam, Madhira, Yellandu, Paloncha, Kothagudem and Burgampadu were carved out as a new district with Khammam as headquarters. On 1 November 1956, Hyderabad state was dissolved, and Khammam district became part of Andhra Pradesh.
In 1959, Bhadrachalam revenue division consisting of Bhadrachalam and Nuguru Venkatapuram Taluks of East Godavari district, which were on the other side of the river Godavari were merged into Khammam on grounds of geographical contiguity and administrative viability. Aswaraopeta was also part of West Godavari District up to 1959. In 1973 a new taluk with Sathupalli as headquarters was carved out from Madhira and Kothagudem taluks. In the year 1976 three new taluks were formed viz., Tirumalayapalem, Aswaraopeta and Manuguru by bifurcating Khammam, Kothagudem and Burgampadu taluks respectively.
In the year 1985, following the introduction of the mandal system, the district has been divided into 46 mandals, under four Revenue Divisions – Khammam, Kothagudem, Paloncha and Bhadrachalam.
On 2 June 2014, Khammam together with nine other districts became the new state of Telangana, which was separated from Andhra Pradesh. On 11 July 2014, the Lok Sabha approved a bill transferring seven mandals of Khammam district (Kukunoor, Velairpadu, Bhurgampadu, Chintoor, Kunavaram, Vararamachandrapuram and Bhadrachalam) back to Andhra Pradesh, in order to facilitate the Polavaram Irrigation project.[6] [7]
Khammam district occupies an area of 4361km2. It is surrounded by Suryapet district and Mahabubabad district to the west, Bhadradri Kothagudem district to the east, NTR district to the south and east, and Eluru district to the east.[8]
Census of India, the district has a population of 1,401,639. Mahabubabad has a sex ratio of 1005 females per 1000 males and a literacy rate of 65.95%. 139,614 (9.96%) were under 6 years of age. 316,828 (22.60%) lived in urban areas. Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes made up 279,319 (19.93%) and 199,342 (14.22%) of the population respectively.[9]
At the time of the 2011 census, 83.09% of the population spoke Telugu, 10.21% Lambadi and 5.54% Urdu as their first language.[10]
The district has two revenue divisions of Kallur and Khammam. These are sub-divided into 21 mandals.[11] V.P. Gautham is the present collector of the district.
The mandals of Chinturu, Kunavaram, Nellipaka and Vararamachandrapuram were added to East Godavari district based on Polavaram ordinance.[12]
The list of 21 mandals in Khammam district under 2 revenue divisions are:
Khammam district comprises 5 Assembly constituencies and 1 Lok Sabha constituency.
| Constituency number | Name | style=max-width:7em | Reserved for | Parliament |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 112 | Khammam | None | Khammam | |
| 113 | Palair | None | ||
| 114 | Madhira | SC | ||
| 115 | Wyra | ST | ||
| 116 | Sathupalli | SC |
In 2006 the Indian government named Khammam one of the country's 250 most backward districts (out of a total of 640). It is one of the districts in Telangana currently receiving funds from the Backward Regions Grant Fund Programme (BRGF).[13]