Karimnagar: Satavahana Empire emerged only at Kotilingala of the district, but not at Amaravathi as claimed by Andhra people, said a noted historian Dr Jaisetty Ramanaiah. Referring to the recent comments made by Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu that Amaravathi was the first capital of Satavahanas, he made this remarks while delivering a lecture on “The Glorious History and Culture of Telangana” organised by Spurthi, a voluntary organization at a private hotel here on Friday.

He further said Srimukha, who was under the service of Samagopa, established the Satavahana kingdom at Kotilingala. Six coins of his name were recovered from nowhere else except at Kapparraopet lying near Kotilingala, the first capital of the Satavahanas. Paithan in Maharashtra and Dharanikota or Dhanyakatakam or Amaravathi are later capitals, he said. Andhras claimed that the word Nagabu found on Amaravathi stupa as the first Telugu word.

ut earlier to that, the 17th Satavahana rulers mentioned several Telugu words used in Telangana in their Prakrit work Gadhasaptasati. Talking about the State government’s prestigious programme Mission Kakatiya, he said there was no village in Telangana without tanks and lakes. Chanakya rulers established villages by digging tanks and constructing temples.