Vijayawada

Vijayawada is the commercial city of Andhra Pradesh and the third largest after Hyderabad and Visakhapatnam, with an area of 261.88 km2. The city has a population of 1,048,240 (2011 Census), while the population of the metropolitan area is 1,491,202. The city is also popularly known by its historic name Bezawada, which is used by the Indian Railways in assigning its railway station code "BZA".

About the western outskirts of Vijayawada lies the Kondapalli reserve forest, spread over 121.5 square kilometres (30,000 acres). The forest provides Vijayawada with a "green lung". This pristine forest is home to leopards, wild dogs, jackals, wild boar, wolves etc. The hills produce a soft wood which is used in the manufacture of Kondapalli Toys.

Cricket is the most popular sport, with national-level matches played at Indira Gandhi Stadium. A new international stadium is being built in a 20-acre (81,000 m2) site in Mangalagiri which will be the venue for international and Ranji matches. Only one international cricket match was played between India and West Indies on 24 November 2002 at Indira Gandhi stadium. It was won by West Indies. On 12 December 1997 Women's Cricket Worldcup only a group match was played between England Women's Cricket Team and Pakistan Women's Cricket Team, and it was won by England.