Beyond the lush patch of greenery, spread unevenly on the rugged hills, situated to the west of Boyavandalapalli village in Peapully mandal of Kurnool district, lies a lesser-explored underground cave system.
First discovered by four German tourists in 1983, the ‘Valmiki Caves’ are known for their magnificent rock formations and clear water bodies.
The only entrance to the ‘natural wonder’ is a small opening, which can be accessed after a trek for a couple of furlongs from the main road and a strenuous ascent of 100 feet. It is further characterised by treacherous drops across varying levels of depths — nearly 20-30 feet.
Tourism Department officials, who have conducted a preliminary survey with the help of the locals and Kurnool-based Area 21 Adventures, are planning to develop the cave system as an adventure spot.
Speaking to The Hindu , AP Tourism Regional Director G. Gopal, who is also Executive Director of the AP Tourism Development Corporation (APTDC), remarked that they have invited a team of Italian speleologists to study and explore the caves.
“The team has expressed its willingness to conduct the exploration and we are coordinating with Area 21 Adventures to work out the modalities. With the help of their expertise and suggestions, we can further evaluate the action plan to develop the system,” he maintained.
Project report
The tourism officials have already charted out a project report on creation of required facilities, which include provision for steps and pathways, including ropes and iron ladders, illumination, waiting lounges, drinking water, snack bar, restrooms, landscaping and several other basic amenities for the tourists.
Outlining the tourism potential of the region, APTDC Executive Engineer B. Eswaraiah said that once the basic amenities are in place, the officials can focus on developing tourism circuit.
Some of the initially identified places, are Gooty Fort (43 km), Sri Sai Baba Temple (23 km), Belum Caves (77 km) and several others can be probably incorporated into the circuit.
Meanwhile, District Tourism Officer B. Venkateswarlu took part in the preliminary survey with the locals. Area 21 Adventures Founder P. Naga Chaitanya and team, opined that the caves could be a potential game changer for adventure tourism in Rayalaseema region.
Recalling his trek, Mr. Venkateswarlu said that visitors travelled through a single passage and asserted that there were many others yet to be explored.
