VELIKONDA RANGE

range of hills in southeastern Andhra Pradesh state, southern India. They trend north to south and form the eastern flank of the Eastern Ghats, which at that point are strongly folded and faulted. The Velikondas are assumed to have been elevated during the Cambrian Period (540 to 505 million years ago). They are relics of ancient mountains that were eroded and dissected by numerous streams. Rivers find their way through the hills by narrow gaps, usually marked by rapids. The main railway from Madras to Bombay runs along the corridor formed by the Penner River between the Velikondas and the Palkonda hills to the south. The Velikondas reach an elevation of 2,500 to 3,000 feet (750 to 900 m) but are sparsely wooded and almost devoid of human population except for a few scattered groups of aboriginal Chenchus. The valleys, however, are moderately populated. The narrowness of the corridors through the hills has permitted the streams to be dammed and storage tanks to be built, making a certain amount of cultivation and irrigation possible. Peanuts (groundnuts) and jowar (sorghum) are the main crops.