Sri Kurmam
Sri Kurmam is a village near Srikakulam, Andhra Pradesh, India. Srikurmam village is situated at a distance of 14.5 km to the South-east of Srikakulam town. It is in the Gara mandal of Srikakulam district. The village was named after the Srikurmam temple dedicated to Kurma avatar of the Hindu god Vishnu. Geography. Sri Kurmam is located at a latitude of 18° 16' N, a longitude of 84° 1' E and an altitude of 17 meters (59 feet). This location puts the temple about 3 km from the Bay of Bengal. Sri Kurmam Temple. Sri  Kurmam (holy tortoise) is a famous place of pilgrimage and the temple here is unique of its kind in the entire India. The temple is noted for its architectural beauty and contains many inscriptions ranging from the Eleventh Century A.D. to the Nineteenth Century A.D. According to inscriptions in the temple dated 1281 AD, the holy place of Kürmakshetra was re-established by Ramanujacharya under the influence of Jagannatha Deva at Jagannatha Puri. Later the temple came under the jurisdiction of the king of Vijayanagara. The inscriptions throw light on the dynasties which held sway over this region. The temple  is dedicated to Sri Kurmanatha, the second avatar of Vishnu, Kurma Avatar. Dolotsavam is the important festival and more than 20,000 pilgrims congregate on this occasion.