Kovvur

Infobox Indian Jurisdiction
native_name = Kovvur | type = city | latd = 17.0167 | longd = 81.7333
locator_position = right | state_name = Andhra Pradesh
district = West Godavari
leader_title =
leader_name = |881altitude = 11
population_as_of = 2001
population_total = 39,193 | population_density =
area_magnitude= km²
area_total =
area_telephone = 91 8813
postal_code = 534 350
vehicle_code_range =
sex_ratio =
unlocode =
website =
footnotes =

Kovvur or Kovvuru or Kovur is a small town, municipality and mandal in West Godavari district, in the state of Andhra Pradesh, India. It is situated adjacent to the west bank of the Godavari River.

Quick Facts

*Kovvur is very famous during Godavari Pushkaram. Gopadala revu and temple are very sacred. Actually there are many temples of various Hindu Gods in the Gopadala revu (Bank of the Cow's Footsteps). People from all over India (world) come here for the holy dip in the river during the pushkaram, which comes once in every 12 years.

*There are three bridges across the Godavari River linking Kovvur with Rajahmundry. The oldest of these was built by Sir Arthur Cotton and is over a hundred years old. Subsequently, a rail-cum-road bridge was built and most recently, another exclusive rail bridge was built for the Indian Railways.

*Fertiliser factory and Andhra Sugars are things you remember in Kovvur. Andhra Sugars company, which has a branch in Kovvur is one of the oldest companies in the state of Andhra Pradesh. It was set up a few days before India gained its independence in 1947 and has run smoothly without a single strike by employees.

*Kovvur has been recognized in recent assembly elections as the only constituency in West Godavari which won the seat for Telugu Desam Party. Surprisingly, in the 1999 assembly elections, it is the only constituency in West Godavari, won by Congress Party. It is not surprising that this constituency holds the uniqueness when it comes to assembly elections.

*One more notable thing about Kovvur is its high temperatures during mid summers which reached a height of 52 degree Celsius during the past 3 years

*The name KOVVUR actually has a British origin. Legend goes that the original name of the town is GOVURU which means the holy town of the cow (similar to the govupadala revu). In telugu GOVU means cow and VURU means a town. The Britishers who were ruling before the independence, were unable to pronounce the Telugu name, therefore changed it to KOVVUR (KOV resembling English word cow). Thus even after the independence, the name continued to be in use till date.

* There are many a small villages surrounding this simple town, namely Vadapalli, Thougummi, Pasivedala, Dommeru, etc., A tour to all these lush green villages will give a glimpse of the agricultural economy the entire region has been dependent on. Pasivedala is 5 KM away and its name also has similar origins as Kovvur. (Pasuvu means cow or buffalo in telugu. Vedana means struggle). Later English people named it as Pasivedala.

* One of the ancient temples, the Sarswathi mandiram is near the factory on the banks of river Godavari. There is a big group of temples located near Factory : Sivalayam,Gayatridevi temple,Ramalayam,Krishna temple so on....

* Notable schools in Kovvur are Deepthi English Medium Public School and Radhakrishna Convent.

* Even though the town is well known during the early days after India's independence, it hasn't seen much progress of late. The fact that it is very near to Rajahmundry, a City with great commercial potential in the Godavari districts hasn't done much help. In fact the development and quick commercial growth of Rajahmundry has been detrimental to its own growth.

Geography

Kovvur is located at coord|17.0167|N|81.7333|E|. [ [http://www.fallingrain.com/world/IN/2/Kovvur.html Falling Rain Genomics, Inc - Kovvur] ] It has an average elevation of 11 Metres (36 Feet). * Kovvur is very famous during Godavari Pushkaram. Gopadala revu and temple are very sacred. Actually there are many temples of various Hindu Gods in the Gopadala revu (Bank of the Cow's Footsteps). People from all over India (world) come here for the holy dip in the river during the pushkaram, which comes once in every 12 years.

* There are three bridges across the Godavari River linking Kovvur with Rajahmundry. The oldest of these was built by Sir Arthur Cotton and is over a hundred years old. Subsequently, a rail-cum-road bridge was built and most recently, another exclusive rail bridge was built for the Indian Railways.

* Fertiliser factory and Andhra Sugars are things you remember in Kovvur. Andhra Sugars company, which has a branch in Kovvur is one of the oldest companies in the state of Andhra Pradesh. It was set up a few days before India gained its independence in 1947 and has run smoothly without a single strike by employees.

* Kovvur has been recognized in recent assembly elections as the only constituency in West Godavari which won the seat for Telugu Desam Party. Surprisingly, in the 1999 assembly elections, it is the only constituency in West Godavari, won by Congress Party. It is not surprising that this constituency holds the uniqueness when it comes to assembly elections.

* One more notable thing about Kovvur is its high temperatures during mid summers which reached a height of 52 degree Celsius during the past 3 years

* The name KOVVUR actually has a British origin. Legend goes that the original name of the town is GOVURU which means the holy town of the cow (similar to the govupadala revu). In telugu GOVU means cow and VURU means a town. The Britishers who were ruling before the independence, were unable to pronounce the Telugu name, therefore changed it to KOVVUR (KOV resembling English word cow). Thus even after the independence, the name continued to be in use till date.

* There are many a small villages surrounding this simple town, namely Vadapalli, Thougummi, Pasivedala, Dommeru, etc., A tour to all these lush green villages will give a glimpse of the agricultural economy the entire region has been dependent on. Pasivedala is 5 KM away and its name also has similar origins as Kovvur. (Pasuvu means cow or buffalo in telugu. Vedana means struggle). Later English people named it as Pasivedala.

* One of the ancient temples, the Sarswathi mandiram is near the factory on the banks of river Godavari. There is a big group of temples located near Factory : Sivalayam,Gayatridevi temple,Ramalayam,Krishna temple so on....

* Notable schools in Kovvur are Deepthi English Medium Public School and Dr.S.R.K High School.

* Even though the town is well known during the early days after India's independence, it hasn't seen much progress of late. The fact that it is very near to Rajahmundry, a City with great commercial potential in the Godavari districts hasn't done much help. In fact the development and quick commercial growth of Rajahmundry has been detrimental to its own growth And also the negligence of elected representatives by the people of Kovvur.

Demographics

As of 2001 India census, [GR|India] Kovvur had a population of 39,193. Males constitute 50% of the population and females 50%. Kovvur has an average literacy rate of 70%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 74%, and female literacy is 66%. In Kovvur, 11% of the population is under 6 years of age.It is the only town in Andhra Pradesh where its literacy rate is increasing almost for 3 years.

Assembly Constituency

Kovvur is an assembly constituency in Andhra Pradesh. There are 1,68,312 registered voters in Kovvur constituency in 1999 electtions.

List of elected members: [ [http://www.eci.gov.in/ElectionAnalysis/AE/S01/partycomp72.htm Election Commission of India.A.P.Assembly results.1978-2004] ]
*1978 - Munshi Abdul Aziz
*1999 - G.S.Rao
*1983, 1985, 1989, 1994 and 2004 - Pendyala Venkata Krishna Rao

Panchayats and Villages

There are 17 village panchayats in Kovvur mandal. [ [http://panchayat.gov.in/adminreps/viewpansumR.asp?selstate=0205100000&ptype=V&button1=Submit Details of Andhra Pradesh till Village Panchayat Tier] ]
*Arikirevula (village and panchayat)
*Chidipi (village and panchayat)
*Decherla (village and panchayat)
*Dharmavaram (village and panchayat)
*Dommeru (village and panchayat)
*Isukapatlapangidi (village and panchayat)
*Kovvur (panchayat and mandal headquarters)
*Kumaradevam (village and panchayat)
*Madduru (village and panchayat)
*Madduru Lanka (village and panchayat)
*Nandamuru (village and panchayat)
*Pasivedala (village and panchayat)
*Penakanametta (village and panchayat)
*Seethampeta (village and panchayat)
*Thogummi (village and panchayat)
*Vadapalli (village and panchayat)
*Vemuluru (village and panchayat)
*malakapalli(village and panchayat)

References