Geography of Nellore

Nellore is located at 14.43°N 79.97°E .The average elevation of Nellore is 18 meters. The total land area of the district is 13,076 square kilometers. It is bordered by the Bay of Bengal to the east and Rayalaseema region to the South. The Cuddapah district and the district of Prakasam lies in the north of Nellore. In the Eastern part of the district there is low lying land, which has extended from the bases of the Eastern Ghats and slowly slopped to the Bay of Bengal. The West side of Nellore District is separated from the Cuddapah district by the Veligonda hills. Nellore District lies on both the South and North banks of the Pennar River. The district comprises of 46 revenue mandals, 12 agricultural sub-divisions and 3 revenue divisions. There are 1204 revenue villages, in which 1135 are inhabited and 69 are uninhabited villages in the district. The Bay of Bengal is only 24 km away from Nellore.
One can experience typical maritime climate in the city of Nellore, where the summers are warm and humid while the winters are mild. April and May are the two hottest months of the year while, December, January and February are the coolest months of Nellore. Due to the proximity to the Bay of Bengal the sea breeze keeps the climate of the city moderate in both summer and winter. But, the humidity level of the city is always high.

Climate of Nellore

The maximum temperature is 36-46 degree C during summer and the minimum temperature is 23-25 degree C  during winter. The rainfall ranges from 700–1000 mm in the North East Monsoons. Nellore is vulnerable to both droughts and floods, based on the seasons. It receives about 68 mm rainfall from March to May. The rains during this period helps the cultivation of crops such as Gingelly, Bajra and also Edagaru paddy.

During Khariff Season, which spans from June to September, the South-West monsoons in Nellore are quite irregular. The distribution of crops is uneven and it leads to mid-season dry spells for a long time, especially during June to August. At that time crop losses is a very common factor in Nellore. The rains during October and December are blessings for the agricultural operations and the crop yields gain momentum. Large areas under paddy and other crops are covered in the district at this time.

Topography and Rivers of Nellore

More than 50% of the total land in the Nellore District is cultivated and the land is very fertile. This is the main reason behind the development of agriculture in Nellore. The rest of the land in Nellore District is wasteland, where the terrain is rocky and sandy coastline or sometimes covered with scrub jungles. The main rivers of the area are Pennar, Swarnamukhi and Gundlakamma that flow through the district. These rivers are not navigable; they are mainly used for the purpose of irrigation. The tributaries to Penna like Boggeru and Kandaleru serve the remaining area. The area is rich in quartzite, which was used by the pre-historic men to make tools, weapons and other important implements.

Nellore is generally flat and low of elevation and it forms the parts of the Carnatic plains. There are numerous back waters along the coast and the best known of the backwaters is the Pulicat lake.

Irrigation of Nellore

Irrigation is one of the most important aspects of agriculture in Nellore. The total irrigated area in Nellore is 306517 Hect. The irrigation system of the Pennar Delta covers around 1,01,300 Hect.of land in the area. This is the most important irrigation region in Nellore district. All the remaining portions of the district are mostly covered by rain fed tanks. These rain fed tanks are considered as the most important sources of irrigation in Nellore.

Forests of Nellore

There are a number of different forest areas in Nellore. Some of the important classifications are like dry red Sander bearing forest area, Southern tropical dry mixed deciduous forest area, dry deciduous scrub forest area,hard wica based forest area, Binaca forest area,southern tropical thorn forest area,Southern thorn scrub based forest area,Southern tropical dry ever green forest, tropical dry evergreen scrub forests etc.

Apart from these classifications, the State Government has also specified some parts of the forests of Nellore as reserve forest areas.

Durgam Konda Nature Trails

Durgamkonda is the most important part of the forests of Nellore. It is situated near the Udayagiri of Nellore District. The area of Durgamkonda A & B RF. Block covers around 5029.60 Ha of land. It is also one of the most important forest areas of Andhra PRadesh. There are significant number of rare species of endemic flora and fauna, like barking deer, leopard, Wild boar, etc seen in this forest area. Due to the high amount of pollution, these rare flora and fauna species are being subjected to severe bio-tic interferences. The Government has included most of the area under the conversation region. All of the area falls in Durgampalli VSS & Durgampalli SC colony VSS and are protected by trained forest department staffs.

Important Numbers and Addresses of Nellore

D F O Territorial Forests
Address: Governement Office, Nellore, Nellore HO, Nellore - 524001
Contact No: +(91)-861-2326393, 2323788, +(91)-9440810052
Hours of Operation: Every Weekday, except Sunday and Government Holidays, from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm


Deputy Forest Officer T G P
Address: Governement Office, Nellore, Nellore HO, Nellore - 524001
Contact No: +(91)-861-2328546, 2325892,+(91)-9440810053
Hours of Operation: Every Weekday, except Sunday and Government Holidays, from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm

Agriculture Research Centers in Nellore

There are four different agriculture research stations in Nellore, like Agriculture Research Station, Nellore, Agriculture Research Station, Podalakur,Citrus Research Station,Petlur, Venkatagiri Mandal and Agriculture Research Station, Kavali. These centers are focused on developing the quality as well as quantity of crops in Nellore as well as in other parts of Andhra Pradesh and India.  The Agriculture Research Station in Nellore has developed high yielding rice varieties, which are suitable for export purposes. Also this center has played an important role in the development of Samba Mashuri type grain quality genotype with resistance to blast, BLB and BPH. Apart from rice, pulses, cotton, ground nut and other different types of oil seeds are researched here.

The research center is famous in the field of adoptive research and the researchers conduct regular diagnostic visits and field visits. The Andhra Pradesh Government also conducts Kisan Melas, Rytu Sadassulu & AMC level farmers training programs to develop the skills of the farmers and the potential to yield more crops. Even different Government agricultural officers are included in these programs.