Naupada

Naupada
—  city  —
Naupada Location of Naupada in Andhra Pradesh and India
Coordinates	18°34′00″N 84°18′00″E / 18.5667°N 84.3°E / 18.5667; 84.3Coordinates: 18°34′00″N 84°18′00″E / 18.5667°N 84.3°E / 18.5667; 84.3
Country	India
State	Andhra Pradesh
District(s)	Srikakulam
Time zone	IST (UTC+05:30)
Area • Elevation	• 5 metres (16 ft)

Naupada is a village located in Santha Bommali mandal of Srikakulam district, Andhra Pradesh, India. It is famous for salt fields and called the "Salt Bowl of Andhra Pradesh".

Geography

Naupada is located at 18.5667N 84.3E.^[1] It has an average elevation of 5 meters (19 ft).

Features

• Naupada is a railway junction ^[2] where a branch railway line from Gunupur in Rayagada district, Orissa meets Howrah-Chennai main railway line. This railway route was constructed in the year 1889 by the Maharaja of Paralakhemundi, Orissa, Sri Krishna Chandra Gajapati Narayan Deb.^[3] It was called Parlakimidi Light Railway and about Rs.99.00 lakhs was spent. Naupada-Gunupur route has been decided to be converted as broad gauge route under Project Unigauge and conversion work the project is completed and a trail run was carried out in the year 2010. Some long distance trains also halt at Naupada railway station.^[4] The station is on the main line of the East Central Railway.

• Naupada Salt Fields are spread across more than 3,000 acres (12 km²) in Naupada, Moolapeta and Bhavanapadu. According to the official estimates, the quantity of salt produced by about 500 major and minor producers in and around Naupada is around 56,000 tonnes.Due to reduced prices and lack of support from government the salt industry is almost shutting down.For the past few years the salt lands were converted to ponds for various types of aqua culture and almost polluted the land.^[5]

References

1. ^ Falling Rain Genomics.Naupada
2. ^ East Coast Railway Map
3. ^ Gajapati district of Orissa at a glance
4. ^ [http://www.geocities.com/railwaytowns/srikakulam/naupada.htm^{[dead link]} "Naupada railway station"]. http://www.geocities.com/railwaytowns/srikakulam/naupada.htm^{[dead link]}. ^{[dead link]}
5. ^ The Hindu

External links

History of Naupada-Gunupur railway