Historical Places near Warangal Warangal is recognized as one of the best heritage cities of India. It is 145 km away from the state capital Hyderabad. It is also the second largest city in the state of Telangana. The city's name is derived from the Telugu word Orugallu; 'Oru' which means one and the word 'gallu' meaning stone. The city was the capital of the great Kakatiya rulers who reigned between 12th and 14th centuries. Thousand Pillar Temple: Many Hindu temples were developed under the patronage of Ganapati Deva, Rudrama Devi and Prataparudra who were of Kakatiya dynasty. The Thousand Pillar Temple was believed to be constructed during the period between 1175-1324 CE by order of the king, Rudra Deva. It stands out to be a masterpiece and achieved major heights in terms of architectural skills by the ancient Kakatiya vishwakarma sthapathis. Bhadrakali Temple: The temple is believed to be built in 625 A.D by the King Pulakeshin II of Chalukya dynasty to commemorate his victory over Vengi region of Andhra Desham, as per the writings on the temple wall. Kakatiya kings later have adopted the temple and considered Goddess Bhadrakali as their "Kula Devatha". A lake was also built by Ganapatideva adjacent to the temple. Due to the fall of Kakatiya dynasty to the Muslim rulers of Delhi, the temple lost its prominence. In 1950, the temple was renovated by Sri Ganapathi Sastri a devi upasaka along with the help of a local merchant and other affluent locals. Warangal Fort: Warangal Fort, in Warangal district, Telangana in India. Appears to have existed since at least the 12th century when it was the capital of the Kakatiya dynasty. The fort has four ornamental gates, known as Kakatiya Kala Thoranam, that originally formed the entrances to a now ruined great Shiva temple. The Kakatiyan arch has been adopted and officially incorporated into the Emblem of Telangana after the state bifurcation. The Fort is included in the "tentative list" of UNESCO World Heritage Site. The Monument was submitted by the Permanent Delegation of India to UNESCO on 10/09/2010. Ramappa Temple: The Ramappa temple has been referred as the brightest star in the network of medieval temples in the Deccan region. Another striking feature of this temple is that it is built with bricks that are so light that they can easily float on water. The temple which is situated in a valley took nearly 40 years to be completed. The Ramappa temple finds its hold on a 6 feet high platform on a cruciform plan. The temple's chamber is crowned with a shikharam and is surrounded by pradakshinapatha. Medaram (Sammakka & Saralamma): Sammakka Saralamma Jatara or Medaram Jatara is a tribal Hindu festival of honouring the goddesses celebrated in the state of Telangana, India. The Jatara begins at Medaram. Medaram is a village in Warangal district, Telangana, India. A popular religious congregation or Jatara called "Samakka sarakka" jatara takes place for three days biennially in this village. Sammakka-Sarakka Jatara held by forest dwelling Koya tribe of Telangana and surrounding States, is the biggest Tribal festival in Asia which is attended by two crore people on an average. Bogatha Waterfall: Situated in Koyaveerapuram G, (Wazeedu Mandal) in Khammam district, Bogatha Waterfall is 120 km away from Bhadrachalam, and 329 km away from Hyderabad. The distance has come down from 440 km because of the newly constructed Eturnagaram bridge on National Highway 202. Laknavaram Lake: Laknavaram Lake is a lake located in Govindaraopet mandal, about 80km from Warangal, Telangana. The lake is spread over an area of 10,000 acres and holds about 2.135 tmcft of water. It irrigates over 3,500 acres of land. It was built by Kakatiya kings. It has about 13 islands in it and has a 160 metres long hanging bridge, which connects three islands. It is surrounded by a thick deciduous forest and it is a very popular tourist spot. The new facilities including cottages, a viewing tower, a pantry, and a ferry from the main banks to the island amidst the serene waters have been opened for the nature loving tourists. Pakhal Lake The great Kakatiya, Telugu king Ganapati Deva has constructed Pakhal lake in the deepest forest area for the future uses of farmland for agriculture purpose. Now approximately 3Lakh Acres of the area is surviving under it. Kakatiya rulers have lot of future plannings to make people's lives better. They used so many kinds of engineering technologies in the constructions..they built Ramappa temple on a lake, as well as thousand pillars temples at Hanamkonda is constructed on sand land and still surviving for past thousand years and they will be standing so strongly other 2 to 3 thousand years so proudly after our generation. Eturnagaram Wildlife Sanctuary Eturnagaram Wildlife Sanctuary is a wildlife sanctuary located in Eturnagaram village in Jayashankar district in Telangana, India. It is located 250 km (160 mi) away from Hyderabad. Telangana has splendid wildlife reserves, one of such is the Eturnagaram wildlife sanctuary, which is 100 km (62 mi) from Warangal. The sanctuary is located near the Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh and Telangana border. It is one of the oldest sanctuaries of Telangana. In the year 1952 on 30 January the erstwhile Hyderabad Government because of its rich bio-diversity declared it as a sanctuary. The land is undulating from steep slopes to gentle slopes from west to east. Three- quarters of the area consist of a plain while the rest is hilly with many streams and springs. Godavari river passes through the sanctuary. The vegetation here is tropical dry deciduous with teak and other trees of good quality standing 60 ft (18 m) and above. The biennial festival of Sammakka Saralamma Jatara is held in the sanctuary. .