Headquarters: Markapuram. This new inland district was carved from western Prakasam and reaches the Nallamala-side terrain. Locate this district first in relation to the coast, the Godavari or Krishna corridors, the Eastern Ghats or the Rayalaseema plateau. These physical belts often reveal why a crop, port, reservoir or pilgrimage place appears in a district question. Read the number on the accompanying current-boundary map before memorising a headquarters. A town name on a pre-2022 map can remain correct geographically but lead to the wrong present-district option.
Exam anchor: Its official profile names Markapuram and Kanigiri revenue divisions; Veligonda and Gundlakamma are useful water-geography cues. This is a place-to-theme association, not a claim that every landmark in the surrounding region belongs inside the district. Keep a separate column for a river or landscape, a site or activity, and the administrative headquarters. In a map question, begin at the state outline, narrow to the regional belt, and only then select the district polygon. The order is more dependable than recognising a familiar town name in isolation.
Boundary and date caution: Markapuram is a current district as of 31 December 2025; a 2022 district map correctly lacks it for that earlier date. District-level population, area, output and mandal totals are especially sensitive to reorganisation. An exact figure should carry its reference year and boundary vintage; this book does not silently attach an old census total to a new polygon. If the stem quotes an older notification, answer for that date. If it asks for the current district, use the 2026 map and official district portal.
Worked example: Markapuram is a current district created in the later 28-district arrangement. Its headquarters is Markapuram, while older sources place its localities in Prakasam. On a blank map, identify it as an inland southern-central unit, not a new coastal port district. If a question cites a 2024 Prakasam statistic, do not divide it by assumption; a documented reaggregation is needed.
Active recall: Name the headquarters of Markapuram; place it on the map; give one physical-geography anchor and explain the dated boundary trap above.