Telangana Village Chandlapur Grabs India's Attention

A tiny village, Chandlapur in Siddipet district, has grabbed the attention of India by securing the Best Tourism Village award from the union government for Telangana. And the curiosity to know about that village has since spiked significantly.

Chandlapur is located in a cluster around the Ranganayaka Swamy temple which is known for rural tourism. It is surrounded by the recreational zone of the Komati Cheruvu lake, the Wargal Saraswathi temple and the Nakashi painting cluster of Cherial. The village is known for its ancient religious attractions including temples, mosques and churches, with the Ranganayaka Swamy temple, located on the historic Ranganayaka hills, also known as a remedy for both mental and physical ailments, and the tourist attractions also including the Komuravelli Mallikarjuna Swamy temple.

The recent addition of the Ranganayaka Sagar reservoir, one of the link reservoirs of the Kaleshwaram lift irrigation project situated near Siddipet town, is a jewel in the crown for Chandlapur. Ranganayaka Sagar is known as a mega tourism destination, and the administration of Telangana has developed this area with an amount of Rs 10 crore by providing leisure and recreation facilities, as also MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions) infrastructure.

The village, with a population of 4,500, is also famous for its intricate and exquisite handlooms. A nucleus of unique handloom varieties, including the famous Gollabhaama sarees, the village is known for its ancient and traditional handloom activity. The village being the hub for the production of the Gollabhama sarees since generations is promoting the culture of the place.

The Gram Panchayat of this tiny village is known for its efforts for the continuous conservation and protection of cultural resources and tourism - the village is known for its environmental sustainability activities, and various initiatives have been taken by the village authorities for the promotion of micro watershed activity, and community-based management of natural resources. The village is also known for its committed banning of single-use plastic. The village promoted the plastic-ban awareness by providing cloth bags and jute bags to its people. It is also practicing natural resource utilisation through solar lights so as to mitigate environmental hazards.

The village has promoted Telanganaku Haritha Haaram too on a large scale.

The major recognition from the union government has put Chandlapur on the national tourism map.

Apart from Chandlapur, Pembarthi village of Jangaon district has also been adjudged the Best Tourism Village in Telangana. Pembarthi got this distinction for preserving and promoting its rural artisan activity.