Headquarters: Madanapalle. This Rayalaseema district occupies uplands between Chittoor, Kadapa and the southern interior. 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: Madanapalle is the current headquarters following the 31 December 2025 restructuring; Mangampeta barytes is in the present district. 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: Rayachoti was headquarters in the 2022 structure, and old Kadapa sources placed Mangampeta in the then Kadapa district. Both are dated labels. 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: Annamayya's current administration is centred at Madanapalle. Older materials often state Rayachoti as headquarters, so a dated source can be historically correct and a current MCQ answer wrong. Use the district collectorate's current address and the 2026 map. A place associated with the poet Annamacharya is a cultural clue, not a shortcut to the current office location.
Active recall: Name the headquarters of Annamayya; place it on the map; give one physical-geography anchor and explain the dated boundary trap above.