GMR to adopt Golkonda Fort, Dalmia to Gandikota canyon in Andhra Pradesh

Team L&M

Under the Union Tourism Ministry’s Adopt a Heritage scheme, infrastructure major GMR has agreed to adopt the historic Golconda Fort, while Dalmia Company has come forward to adopt Gandikota in Kadapa district of Andhra Pradesh.

About 9km from the Hussain Sagar Lake, Golconda Fort was originally known as Mankal, and built on a hilltop in the year 1143. It was originally a mud fort under the reign of Rajah of Warangal and was fortified between 14th and 17th centuries by the Bahmani Sultans and then the ruling Qutub Shahi dynasty.

Golkonda Fort in Hyderabad

One of most magnificent fortress complexes and heritage properties in India, it rests on granite hill called Shepherd’s Hill, meaning Golla Konda in Telugu. Till today, the fort boasts of mounted cannons, four drawbridges, eight gateways, and majestic halls, magazines, stables etc. The fort is constructed in such a manner that if your clap your hand at a certain point near the dome entrance, the sound gets reverberated and can be clearly heard at the hill top pavilion, almost one kilometer away. In ancient times this was done to sound off inhabitants of any impending danger.

Located in the Kadappa district of Andhra Pradesh, Gandikota is dissected by a river, and is called the Indian version of Grand Canyon in the US. The name Gandikota is a mix of two words ‘gandi’ which mean canyon and ‘kota’ which means fort. The canyon remains open almost all year round, but the best time to visit it is after the summers have passed.

Gandikota – the Indian equivalent of the Grand Canyan of the US