Andhra Pradesh , is a state in south-eastern India and is part of the linguistic-cultural region of South India. It lies between 12°41′ and 22°N latitude and 77° and 84°40′E longitude, and is bounded by Maharashtra, chhattisgarh and Orissa in the north, the Bay of Bengal in the east, Tamil Nadu to the south and Karnataka to the west.

Andhra Pradesh is the fifth largest state in India and it forms the major link between the north and the south of India. It is the biggest and most populous state in the south of India. It is considered the rice bowl of India. The state is crisscrossed by two major rivers, the Godavari and Krishna. (”Pradesh” means “region” or “state”.)

The large state of Andhra Pradesh was created by combining the old princely State of Hyderabad with the Telegu speaking portions of the former State of Madras. Most of the state stands on the high Deccan plateau, sloping down to the low-lying coastal region to the east where the mighty Godavari and Krishna Rivers meet the Bay of Bengal in wide deltas.

Andhra Pradesh was once a major Buddhist centre and part of Ashoka’s large empire until it broke apart. Traces of that early Buddhist influence can still be seen in several places. Later the Chalukyas held power in the 7th century but they in turn fell to the Chola kingdom of the south around the 10th century.