Karimnagar district is an administrative district located in the northern part of the Indian state of Telangana. The town of Karimnagar serves as its headquarters. The district lies in the Godavari river basin and forms part of the historical region of Telangana, which was earlier a part of the erstwhile Hyderabad State.
| State | Telangana |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | Karimnagar |
| Region | Telangana (Northern) |
| Country | India |
| Major river | Godavari (and tributaries such as the Manair) |
Karimnagar has a long history of human settlement, with archaeological remains and inscriptions linking the region to several dynasties that ruled the Deccan, including the Satavahanas, the Kakatiyas of Warangal, the Bahmanis, the Qutb Shahis and later the Asaf Jahi Nizams of Hyderabad. The district takes its name from Syed Karimullah Shah, an officer of the Nizam, after whom the headquarters town was named.
After the integration of Hyderabad State into the Indian Union in 1948 and the formation of Andhra Pradesh in 1956, Karimnagar continued as one of the districts of the Telangana region. Following the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh and the creation of Telangana on 2 June 2014, Karimnagar became one of the districts of the new state.
As part of the wider reorganisation of districts in Telangana that took effect on 11 October 2016, the original Karimnagar district was divided into four smaller districts:
The reorganisation was intended to bring administration closer to the people and to facilitate decentralised governance and development planning.
The district lies on the Deccan plateau and is drained primarily by the Godavari and its tributary, the Manair. The Lower Manair Dam, near Karimnagar town, is a major irrigation and water-supply reservoir. The terrain is largely undulating with patches of forest, agricultural land and granite outcrops; granite quarrying and stone polishing are economically important activities in parts of the district.
Agriculture is the backbone of the local economy, with paddy, maize, cotton, turmeric and pulses among the principal crops. The district is also known for its granite industry, with several quarries and processing units operating in and around the headquarters town. Handloom weaving, particularly in centres associated with the broader Telangana weaving tradition, has historically been an important cottage industry. The Singareni Collieries, headquartered in the wider Telangana coal belt, has historically influenced the economy of the surrounding districts carved out from old Karimnagar.
The district is administered by a District Collector and Magistrate appointed by the Government of Telangana. It is divided into revenue divisions and mandals for purposes of revenue and general administration. Local self-government is exercised through gram panchayats in rural areas and municipal bodies in urban centres, with the Karimnagar Municipal Corporation being the principal urban local body.
Telugu is the principal language of the district, with Urdu also spoken, particularly in urban areas.
Karimnagar is connected by state highways and national highways to Hyderabad, Warangal and other major centres in Telangana. Rail connectivity is provided through the Karimnagar railway station on the South Central Railway network. Bus services operated by the Telangana State Road