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It has 2 revenue sub divisions, Bellary subdivision and Hosapete subdivision, which in all have seven taluks. The Bellary subdivision has 3 taluks, while there are four taluks in Hospet subdivision. There are 27 hoblies, two CMC's, one town municipality, seven town panchayats, 542 revenue villages, and 436 thandas/habitations.
Details of Crops of Bellary
The important crops grown are cotton, jowar, groundnut, paddy, sunflower and cereals. The net irrigated area is 37% to the net area sown.The main source of irrigation is Tungabhadra Dam. The Canal network accounts for 64% of irrigated area.
Water Resources in Bellary
The important rivers are Tungabhadra, Hagari and Chikkahagari. The western taluks of the district are dogged with scarcity conditions with the failure of rains during successive years. Bellary district is rich in natural resources which need to be tapped to a great extent for overall development of the district.
Mineral resources in Bellary
This district is endowed with rich mineral resources. It has both metallic and non-metallic minerals. The metallic minerals include iron ore, manganese ore, redoxide, gold, copper and lead. The non-metallic minerals include andalusite, asbestos, corundum, clay, delomite, limestone, limekankan, moulding sand, quartz, soap stone, granite and red ochre. The metallic minerals are abundant is only three taluks, Sandur, Hospet and Bellary in the order of mining activity intensity. The annual production of Iron ore is anywhere between 2.75 to 4.5 million tonnes, and manganese ore between 0.13 million tonnes to 0.3 million tonnes (1991).
History of Bellary
The founding of the original kingdom was based on the principality of Anegondi, based on a fortified town on the Tungabhadra river in the Deccan. In the century preceding the founding of the empire, the old kingdoms of the Deccan had been overrun by Muslim invaders from the north. From 1309, Malik Kafur reached and captured Warangal, later on reaching the Malabar kingdoms. Mubarak of Delhi reached Warangal again in 1323. Between 1334 and 1336, Muhammad Tughlaq of Delhi again overran the region, capturing Anegondi. There are several theories regarding the origin of this empire. Scholars like Prof. K. A. Nilakanta Sastry, Dr. N. Venkataramanayya and B. Surya Narayana Rao have supported the Telugu or Warrangal origin theory (Ref. Arthikage, Mangalore, India - History of Karnataka) Hakka and Bukka were brothers of the Kuruba clan and were commanders in the army of the King of Warangal. Muhammad bin Tughlaq after defeating the king of Warangal took Hakka and Bukka as prisoners of war to Delhi, where they were converted to Islam by force. However, the brothers escaped from Delhi vowed to preserve the Hindu culture and heritage. Under the guidance of Brahmin sage Madhvacharya Vidyaranya founded the Vijayanagara Kingdom. The Emblem of the Kingdom was Varaha {pig} the incarnation of Lord Vishnu. The Kuruba descendents of the Kingdom still live in Hampi. But scholars like Fr. Heras, B. A. Saletore and Dr. P. B. Desai have ably rejected this theory. They hold the view that the Sangama brothers were closely connected with the Hoysalas. Dr. Desai is of the opinion that the founders of Vijayanagara never belonged to the Telugu region and the story of their captivity and conversion by the Sultan of Delhi is false. The testimony of epigraphs establishes the fact that the ancestral territory of the Sangama brothers was Karnataka and that the area round about Hampi constituted their homeland. That Harihara and his brothers hailed from the Kannada region and were legitimate successors to Hoysala sovereignty by natural process is supported by evidence. For example, they became over lords of the entire communions formerly ruled by the Hoysalas without any clash for the transfer of power. In keeping with the old tradition, they implicitly followed the Hoysala framework in all political and administrative matters. Lord Virupaksha of Hampi and Chennakeshava of Belur were worshipped. As pointed out by G. S. Gai almost half of the inscriptions of Vijayanagara are in Kannada. Many of their titles like "Bhashegetappuva - rayara - ganda" and "Rayamoovara - ganda" were in Kannada and were used in the same form even in Sanskrit. According to Dr. P. B. Desai, "the adoption of the pontiffs of Shringeri as their revered teachers and spiritual guides and the pasupata Kriyasaktis as their family priests by the Sangama is yet another testimony of their unquestionable identity with the Hoysala country and Karnataka" (Ref. Arthikage, Mangalore, India - History of Karnataka) According to another account,Muhammad bin Tughlaq made Harihara, son of Sangama, who was previously a notable or a minister of Anegondi, his governor there. Harihara, who may also be called Deva Raya, was the first emperor of the Vijayanagara empire. Another story avers that the hermit Vidyarnya himself founded the city after the discovery of a hidden treasure, ruled over it himself, and left it after his death to a Kuruba family who established the first regular dynasty. A fourth account states that while Vidyaranya was living his ascetic life amongst the mountains he was supported by meals brought to him by a shepherd of Kuruba caste called Bukka, "and one day the Brahmin said to him, 'You shall be king and emperor of all Bharata.' The other shepherds learned this, and began to treat this shepherd with veneration and made him their head; and he acquired the name of 'king,' and began to conquer his neighbours. Bukka established a city "and called it Vijaya Nagar - the city of victory . As Muhammud Tughlaq's rule ended amidst revolts against him by his Muslim subjects in the Deccan, the area ruled by Harihara expanded greatly and quickly. The city of Vijayanagara was established by about 1340 on the bank of the Tungabhadra opposite Anegondi. Harihara was succeeded, probably around 1343, by his brother, Bukka Raya, who ruled till about 1379. By the end of Bukka's reign, most of southern India to the south of the Tungabhadra had accepted his suzerainity. |
