The visit to the Belum Caves was a
part of the “Shiva and Vishnu Temples / Rock cut Cave temples of Andhra
Pradesh Visit on 24th June 25th
June 2023”. Had been to this cave after visiting the Shiva and Vishnu temples
at Tadipatri.
This is the second-largest cave in
the Indian subcontinent, after the Krem Liat Prah caves in Meghalaya. This
cave was used by the Prehistoric human beings and later by the Buddhists and
Jains. This cave was formed over tens of thousands of years by
the constant flow of underground water from the river Chitravathi, which does not exist now. The cave is about 3.229 km long with various & rocks like black limestones, stalactite, and stalagmite formations, i.e., salt, and minerals through the dripping of water from
the roof and waterfalls in some places. The cave goes to a depth of about 46
meters (151 feet) below the ground level. The visiting length was restricted
to about 1.5 km, considering the safety of the Visitors. The cave’s passage had
become narrow in some places due to the fall of rock from the ceiling. Even though there are 16 entrances to this
cave, only two are used for ventilation and entry. In addition to that,
electrical blowers are used to push the fresh air inside the cave.
IMPORTANT MILESTONES OF BELUM CAVES EXPLORATION
Belum cave was identified first by
Robert Bruce Foote, a British geologist, archaeologist, and surveyor in 1884
CE. From 1982 to 1984 CE, a team of German speleologists headed by H. Daniel
Gebauer conducted a detailed exploration of the caves. In 1989 CE, the
Government of Andhra Pradesh Archaeology Department declared the site a Natural Heritage
monument. Taken over by the Andhra Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation
(APTDC) took over the development of the caves as a tourist attraction in February 2003 CE.
But the Andhra Pradesh Government claims that this cave was found by Sri Bacham Chelapathi Reddy, addl. Superintendent of Police (Retd). His statue is at the entrance of the cave.
The inscription below the statue reads as...
SRI. BACHAM CHELAPATHI
REDDY
Addl. Superintendent of Police (Retd.)
Founder Of Belum Caves (July 1918-October 2006)
Statue Unveiled By SRI.M.NARAYANA REDDY
Addl. S.P (Retd) & Speleologist On
28-10-2011
SRI. JOEL PRAVEEN SAGAR
Present
Divisional Manager, APTDC, Kurnool
Many Buddhist relics were found
inside the caves. These relics are now housed in a museum in Ananthapur.
Archaeological Survey of India (ASI)
also found remnants of vessels of the pre-Buddhist era and dated the remnants
of these objects to 4500 years BCE.
CONTACT DETAILS
The mobile number +91 97053 89600 may
be contacted for further details.
VISITING HOURS
The Cave visiting hours will be 10.00
hrs to 16.30 hrs.
(Eid al-Adha) Hours might differ
HOW TO REACH
This place, Belum, is between Tadipatri
and Banaganapalli, and 33 km, 47 km from Jammalamudugu, 86 km from Anantapur, 126
km from Kadapa, 242 km from Nellore, and 396 km from Chennai.
LOCATION OF THE BELUM CAVES:
CLICK HERE
--- OM SHIVAYA NAMA ---
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