Ponnur
Ponnur is a town in Guntur district of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. There was a festival on full moon day in May. A road to Chandole goes south-east and comes to Nidubrolu, where there is a temple with a stone bearing inscription recording the erection of 90 temple in A.D. 1132. An ancient Telugu manuscript entitled 'Ponnuru-Chandavolu Shasanam' was present in Potti Sreeramulu Telugu University. Kilari Venkata Rosaiah of YSRCP party is the current MLA of the constituency, who won the 2019 Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly election. It is a municipality and the mandal headquarter  of Ponnur mandal under Tenali revenue division. Demographics. Census of India, the town had a population of with 16,138 households. The total population constitute, males and —a sex ratio of 1032 females per 1000 males, higher than the national average of 940 per 1000. children are in the age group of 0–6 years. The average literacy rate stands at 78.33% with literates, higher than the national average of 73.00%. Government and politics. Civic Administration. Ponnur Municipality oversees the civic needs of the town like, water supply, roads, sewage, garbage collection etc. It is classified as a "Grade–II" municipality which  was established in 1964 as a "III–Grade" municipality. It has an extent of with 31 wards. The town gets water from the Krishna river, which is supplied through taps, bores etc. The town has both government and private hospitals which include, clinics, nursing homes and a Government hospital for public healthcare. It also maintains parks and playgrounds for recreational purpose Politics. Ponnur being a part of Ponnur mandal, falls under Ponnur assembly constituency of Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly. Venkata Rosaiah Kilari is the present MLA of the constituency from YSRCP. The assembly segment is in turn a part of  Guntur lok sabha constituency and the present Member of parliament is Galla Jayadev of Telugu Desam Party. Economy. Ponnur is an important town for the nearby villages. The rural areas surrounding the town are mostly dependent on agriculture. The farming is dominant with paddy cultivation and others crops include ground nuts, cotton, betel etc. There exists several other economic industries and occupations in the town such as, brickworks, furniture making, handloom weaving, spinning khadi yarn, rice mills, timber etc. The town is also a part of Tenali–Ponnur growth corridor. Culture. Legend about Ponnuru | Once there lived two brahmans  namely "Kasibhatlu" who was childless and his sister's son "Nanduri Gunugovindu" with deformed haunchback. They went on pilgrimage to "Benares" where "Kasibhatlu" moved with "compassion," promised Govindu if ever daughter should be born to him, she would be given to him in marriage. Instantly Govindu called upon "Bhava Narayana Swamy, a sacred river" and "certain trees" growing on the banks as witnesses. Brahmans returned to Ponnuru. A daughter was born to "Kasibhatlu". When She grew up, Govindu claimed the fulfillment of promise by "Kasibhatlu" . "Kasibhatlu" was reluctant to keep his word. Witnesses were called upon by Govindu. One night , when "Kasibhatlu" slept, "Bhava Narayana Swamy" appeared to remember promise. In morning when awoke, "Kasibhatlu" saw "Ganges" and "trees" at door, because of overflown river. Warned by witnesses "Kasibhatlu" gave his daughter to Govindu in marriage. There are a few notable people from the town with their contributions to various fields such as, N. G. Ranga, Pragada Kotaiah. The town has an auditorium and a function hall for cultural events of the town. There are many religious worship centers in the town like, temples, mosques and churches. Most notable religious structures are, the temples of "Sakshi Bhavanarayana" and "Sahastra Lingeswara , a single stone carved statues of Anjaneya and Garuthmantha. Transport. The town has a total road length of . State Highway 48, also known as Guntur-Bapatla-Chirala Road" passes through Ponnur, which connects it with the district headquarter, Guntur. The "Ponnur–Repalle Road" connects National Highway 216 at Chandole. The state government operates APSRTC bus services to the nearby towns and villages. Nearest railway station is , a "D–category" station in the Vijayawada railway division of South Central Railway zone. Education. Zilla parishad high school is the prominent one, run by Panchayat Raj department under the government of Andhra Pradesh . PBN is famous college for intermediate and degree courses. The primary and secondary school education is imparted by government, aided and private schools, under the "School Education Department" of the state. The medium of instruction followed by different schools are English and Telugu. The town has both government and private educational institutions with a total of 34 primary, 3 upper primary and 12 high schools. There are also two government run junior colleges.