27 October 2026
A Division Bench of Justice Ravi Nath Tilhari and Justice Purushottam Kumar Chintalapudi of the Andhra Pradesh High Court held that the right to property under Article 300-A does not depend on how much land is involved, and that even a small deprivation must follow both the authority of law and the procedure the law prescribes, even where the acquisition serves a larger public interest. The appeals arose from land at Penumaka village acquired for the E-3 Seed Access Road in the Andhra Pradesh Capital Region. The landowners argued that there was no administrative sanction, no prior survey and no revision of market value, and that objections were rejected without reasons; the State said most of the land had already come through a Land Pooling Scheme. The Court referred to Sections 11, 12, 19(1), 21 and 26 of the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013. In one appeal interim protection against dispossession continued; in the other the Court declined to interfere, leaving the issues to the pending writ petitions.
Constitutional provision:
Article 300-A
Village where the land lies:
Penumaka
Why it matters for exams: Article 300-A and the 44th Constitutional Amendment that moved the right to property out of the Fundamental Rights are among the most asked Polity facts, and the 2013 land acquisition Act is the current law on the subject.
Kerala PSCUPSC
In plain words
RFCTLARR Act Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act — The 2013 central law that replaced the Land Acquisition Act of 1894.
28 October 2026
Cyclone Arnab crossed the Andhra Pradesh and Yanam coasts between 2 am and 8 am on Wednesday and weakened from a very severe cyclonic storm to a severe cyclonic storm by the time of landfall, the India Meteorological Department said. The crossing was placed southwest of Yanam, about 20 km east-northeast of Narsapur and about 60 km southwest of Kakinada, with maximum sustained winds forecast up to 135 km per hour and gusts up to 150 km per hour. Three deaths were reported in the State and 31 houses were damaged. Heavy rain and strong winds hit Visakhapatnam, Kakinada, Konaseema and West Godavari districts, Anakapalli received 10 to 15 cm of rain, and about 400 trees were uprooted in Vizianagaram and Parvathipuram Manyam districts, where 100 rehabilitation centres were set up.
Districts under flash flood warning:
13
Houses damaged:
31
Power restoration personnel deployed:
1,932
Why it matters for exams: Which agency names and tracks cyclones over the North Indian Ocean is a repeat Geography question: the India Meteorological Department is the Regional Specialised Meteorological Centre for this basin and names come from a regional panel list.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
IMD India Meteorological Department — India's national weather agency, under the Ministry of Earth Sciences.
Background
Krishna district in Andhra Pradesh gets its name from the holy river Krishna, which the district administration describes as the third largest river that flows in India. The river originates near Mahabaleswar in Maharastra and joins the Bay of Bengal near Hamsaladevi village in the district.
The district is considered the kernel of Telugu culture and is the birth place of the classical dance form Kuchipudi; the dialect of Telugu spoken in Krishna is widely considered to be the standard form of Telugu. Its recorded history dates back to the 2nd century BC, and the area was ruled by the Satavahanas, Pallavas, Chalukyas and later by the Cholas, Kakatiyas and the Reddy dynasty, and subsequently came under the Vijayanagara Empire, the Qutub Shahis and later the Nizams. The rulers from Golconda were the first to patronise European traders at Masulipatnam, now Machilipatnam; the English founded their settlement there in 1611 and kept it as their headquarters until they moved to Madras in 1641. Collectors directly responsible to the Board of Revenue were appointed at Masulipatnam in 1794, making the Krishna collectorate one among the oldest collectorates in the country.
Machilipatnam is the administrative headquarters of the district, while Vijayawada is the biggest city in the district, third in the state, and a commercial centre. The district is spread over 8,727 Sq.kms, is divided into upland and delta area, and consists of 50 Mandals in four Revenue Divisions — Bandar, Vijayawada, Gudivada and Nuzvid. Kolleru Lake, one of India's most ecologically significant wetlands, lies partly within the district. Agriculture is the main occupation. People from the district include Siddhendra Yogi, the architect of Kuchipudi, and Pingali Venkayya, the designer of India's National Flag; its known products include Kondapalli toys, Nuzvid mangoes and Pedana Kalamkari block printed cotton textiles.
Headquarters:
Machilipatnam
Area:
8,727 Sq.kms
Revenue Divisions:
Bandar, Vijayawada, Gudivada and Nuzvid
Wetland:
Kolleru Lake, partly within the district
Why it matters for exams: The source of the Krishna, the home of Kuchipudi, the district headquarters and Kolleru Lake are standard state-geography questions.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
Kuchipudi Kuchipudi — A classical dance form whose birth place is Krishna district in Andhra Pradesh.
Kalamkari Pedana Kalamkari — Block printed cotton textiles associated with Pedana in Krishna district.
Background
Visakhapatnam District is one of the north eastern coastal districts of Andhra Pradesh. It is bounded on the north by Vizianagaram District, on the south and west by Anakapalli District, and on the east by the Bay of Bengal.
Inscriptions indicate that the district was originally a part of the Kalinga Kingdom, subsequently conquered by the Eastern Chalukyas in the 7th Century A.D., who ruled over it with their head quarters at Vengi. It was also under rulers such as the Reddy Rajahs of Kondaveedu, the Gajapathis of Orissa, the Nawabs of Golkonda and the Moghal Emperor Aurangazeb through a Subedar, passed to French occupation and finally came under British rule. On the formation of Orissa State several taluks were transferred to it, and the district was reconstituted with the remaining area and residuary portions of Ganjam District; the reconstituted district was found administratively unwieldy and was bifurcated into Srikakulam and Visakhapatnam districts in 1950, and the taluks of Vizianagaram, Gajapathi nagaram, Srungavarapukota and a portion of Bheemunipatnam taluk were transferred to the newly created Vizianagaram District in 1979.
On the etymology of the name, tradition has it that some centuries ago a king of the Andhra dynasty encamped on the site of the present headquarters town on his pilgrimage to Banaras and, being pleased with the place, built a shrine in honour of his family deity called Visakeswara to the south of Lawson's Bay, from which the district derived the name Visakheswarapuram, which subsequently changed to Visakhapatnam.
The district presents two distinct geographic divisions: the strip of land along the coast, and the interior called the plains division with the Eastern Ghats. Along the shore lies a series of salt and sandy swamps. The coast line is broken by a number of bald head lands, the important of them being the Dolphin's Nose, which had afforded the establishment of a Natural Harbor at Visakhapatnam, Rushikonda and the big Narasimha Hill at Bheemunipatnam. Administratively the district is divided into 2 Revenue Divisions and 10 Mandals.
Bounded on the north by:
Vizianagaram District
Bounded on the east by:
Bay of Bengal
Early ruler:
Eastern Chalukyas, with head quarters at Vengi
Headland:
Dolphin's Nose
Why it matters for exams: The Kalinga and Eastern Chalukya past, the Vengi capital, the Visakeswara etymology and the Dolphin's Nose headland behind the natural harbour are the durable facts.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
Vengi Vengi — The head quarters from which the Eastern Chalukyas ruled this region.
Dolphin's Nose Dolphin's Nose — A headland on the Visakhapatnam coast that allowed a natural harbour to be established.
Background
Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC) SHAR, at Sriharikota in Nellore District of Andhra Pradesh, is described by the Indian Space Research Organisation as the Spaceport of India. It is responsible for providing launch base infrastructure for the Indian space programme, and has facilities for solid propellant processing, static testing of solid motors, launch vehicle integration and launch operations, and range operations comprising a telemetry, tracking and command network and a mission control centre.
The centre has two launch pads from where the rocket launching operations of PSLV and GSLV are carried out. Its mandate is to produce solid propellant boosters for the launch vehicle programmes of ISRO; to provide the infrastructure for qualifying various subsystems and solid rocket motors and carrying out the necessary tests; and to provide launch base infrastructure for satellites and launch vehicles.
SDSC SHAR also has a separate launch pad for launching sounding rockets, and provides the launch base infrastructure for the sounding rockets of ISRO, including assembly, integration and launch of sounding rockets and payloads.
Place:
Sriharikota, Nellore District, Andhra Pradesh
Described as:
the Spaceport of India
Launch pads:
two launch pads for PSLV and GSLV, and a separate pad for sounding rockets
Why it matters for exams: The district in Andhra Pradesh where the spaceport sits, the launch vehicles flown from its two pads and what SDSC stands for are repeat questions.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
SDSC Satish Dhawan Space Centre — The ISRO centre at Sriharikota that provides launch base infrastructure for the Indian space programme.
PSLV Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle — One of the two launch vehicles whose launch operations are carried out from the centre's launch pads.
Background
The Andhra State was formed after separating from the erstwhile Madras State, comprising 11 Telugu districts — Srikakulam, Visakhapatnam, East Godavari, West Godavari, Krishna, Guntur, Nellore, Kurnool, Anantapur, Cuddapah and Chittoor — in the year 1953. The High Court for the Andhra State, with its principal seat at Guntur, was established in the year 1954 with 7 Judges, and Justice Koka Subba Rao was its first Chief Justice.
In 1956 the Hyderabad State and the Andhra State were merged to form the State of Andhra Pradesh. The High Court of Andhra Pradesh was established with its principal seat at Hyderabad with 11 Judges, and Justice Koka Subba Rao was the first Chief Justice of this High Court as well. The State of Andhra Pradesh was bifurcated, in the year 2014, into the States of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh; the High Court at Hyderabad was designated as the Common High Court for the States of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh with effect from 02.06.2014 and continued to function from Hyderabad.
The present High Court of Andhra Pradesh came into existence by an order dated 26.12.2018 and started functioning with its principal seat at Amaravati from 01.01.2019 with 14 Judges; Justice C. Praveen Kumar was the acting Chief Justice at its inception. The High Court initially functioned from a temporary accommodation in Vijayawada, and has been functioning from the Interim Judicial Complex at Amaravati, in Guntur District, from 18.03.2019.
Andhra State formed from:
the erstwhile Madras State, 11 Telugu Districts, in the year 1953
First principal seat of the High Court:
Guntur, established in the year 1954 with 7 Judges
First Chief Justice:
Justice Koka Subba Rao
Present principal seat:
Amaravati, Guntur District, from 01.01.2019 with 14 Judges
Why it matters for exams: Which state Andhra State was carved out of, which two states merged to form Andhra Pradesh, the first seat of the High Court at Guntur and its first Chief Justice are standard questions.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
Common High Court Common High Court for the States of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh — The arrangement under which the High Court at Hyderabad served both states after the bifurcation.
Background
Guntur, in Andhra Pradesh, was ruled by dynasties such as the Satavahanas, Andhra Ikshvakus, Pallavas, Ananda Gotrikas, Vishnukundina, Kota Vamsa, Chalukyas, Cholas, Kakatiyas, Vijayanagara and Qutb Shahis during ancient and medieval times. The battle of Palnadu, which is enshrined in legend and literature as Palnati Yuddham, was fought in Guntur district in 1180.
Guntur became part of the Mughal empire in 1687 when the emperor Aurangzeb conquered the Qutb Shahi sultanate of Golconda, of which Guntur was then a part. In 1724 Asaf Jah, viceroy of the empire's southern provinces, declared his independence as the Nizam of Hyderabad. The coastal districts of Hyderabad, known as the Northern Circars, were occupied by the French in 1750. Raja Vasireddy Venkatadri Nayudu shifted his capital from Chintapalli in Krishna district to Amaravati across the river Krishna, and built many temples in the Guntur region. Guntur was brought under the control of the British East India Company by 1788, and became a district of Madras Presidency.
The district administration records that the Guntur region played a significant role in the struggle for independence and in the formation of Andhra Pradesh, with the northern, Telugu-speaking districts of Madras state, including Guntur, advocating for a state of their own after independence.
Battle:
battle of Palnadu, enshrined as Palnati Yuddham, fought in Guntur district in 1180
Coastal districts of Hyderabad:
known as the Northern Circars
Under the British:
a district of Madras Presidency
Why it matters for exams: The battle known as Palnati Yuddham, the Northern Circars and their French occupation, and Guntur's place in Madras Presidency are the durable facts here.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
Northern Circars Northern Circars — The name for the coastal districts of Hyderabad, occupied by the French before British control.
Palnati Yuddham Palnati Yuddham — The name in legend and literature for the battle of Palnadu, fought in Guntur district.
Background
The rulings the Andhra Pradesh High Court delivered this week on the right to property, on the Model Code of Conduct and on juvenile justice come from a court headed by Justice Lisa Gill, whose appointment as Chief Justice of the Andhra Pradesh High Court was notified by the Centre with the President's approval and in consultation with the Chief Justice of India. She was transferred to the Andhra Pradesh High Court from the Punjab and Haryana High Court. A Chief Justice of a High Court is appointed by the President under Article 217 after consultation with the Chief Justice of India and the Governor of the State. The Andhra Pradesh High Court began functioning as a separate High Court for the State in 2019, with its seat at Amaravati, after the bifurcation of the common High Court it had shared with Telangana.
Article on appointment of High Court judges:
Article 217
Seat of the Andhra Pradesh High Court:
Amaravati
Why it matters for exams: Article 217 on the appointment of High Court judges, and 'firsts' such as the first woman Chief Justice of a particular High Court, are both asked directly in Polity and current affairs papers.
Kerala PSCUPSC
Background
The investment case Andhra Pradesh makes for Amaravati, reviewed this week by visiting Lok Sabha members, rests partly on the Investment Friendliness Index 2026 of NITI Aayog, prepared with Crisil as knowledge partner. The index assesses all 28 States and eight Union Territories on eight parameters using 84 indicators, including surveys of more than 1,850 businesses. Andhra Pradesh is ranked 8th nationally and 6th among the 17 large States, with a score of 48.7, and is placed in the Frontrunners category. Among the large States Gujarat leads with 56.6, followed by Maharashtra at 53.7, Tamil Nadu at 53.3 and Odisha at 52.4, with Madhya Pradesh at 48.9 and Karnataka also at 48.7.
Andhra Pradesh national rank:
8th
Andhra Pradesh score:
48.7
Top-ranked large State:
Gujarat, 56.6
Indicators used:
84
Why it matters for exams: An index question is almost always about its publisher and the top-ranked State; the Investment Friendliness Index is published by NITI Aayog, the body that replaced the Planning Commission.
Kerala PSCUPSCBank
In plain words
NITI Aayog National Institution for Transforming India — The Union government's policy think tank, which replaced the Planning Commission.