The city reached the peak of its prosperity during the 9th and 10th centuries, serving as the Imperial capital of the
Rashtrakutas
. At Manyakheta, there is a historical fort whose restoration is in progress based on a proposal submitted by HKADB (Hyderabad Karnataka Area Development Board).
Demographics
As of 2001[update] India census, Malkheda had a population of 11,180 with 5,679 males and 5,501 females and 2,180 households.[3]
History
Manyakheta rose to prominence when the capital of
Western Chalukyas until about 1050 CE. According to Dhanapāla's Pāiyalacchi, the city was sacked by the Paramāra king Harṣa Sīyaka in CE 972-73, the year he completed that work.[4]
Manyakheta is home to two ancient institutions.
The
Anuvyakhyana" of Madhvacharya which itself is a commentary upon the "Brahma Sutras". For this commentary called Nyaya Sudha, he is popularly known as Teekacharya.[5]
The Jain
tirthankaras, choubisi (24 tirthankaras), Nandishwar dvipa and idols of yakshi. There is a famous panchdhatu shrine with 96 images. In the same temple, there are other historical images. The last bhaṭṭāraka of the Malkheda seat who reigned during the year 1950–61, was Bhaṭṭāraka Devendrakīrti.[6]
The famous Mahapurana (Adipurana and Uttarapurana) was composed here by Acharya
Mahaviracharya
.
The renowned
Apabhramsha
poet Pushapadanta lived here.
From 814 CE to 968 CE Manyakheta rose to prominence when the capital of
Malkheda is the home to one of the biggest cement factories by name Rajashree Cements owned by the Aditya Birla Group. The village is now developing into a business centre for food grains, dairy and livestock trading . Malkheda has got the biggest livestock trading centre in the entire region. The main crops grown here are mostly rainfed crops like different varieties of pulses pigeonpea, greengram, blackgram. Though water is plenty, it is rarely utilised for agriculture. The masonry here in Malkheda is basically stone masonry and the thatching of the roofs are done by square blocks of stone which are placed in a slanting way so that the rain water gets easily drained off.
Transport
Malkheda is well connected by road and rail. Malkheda lies on
State Highway 10. Malkaheda is 40 km southeast to the District Headquarters Kalaburagi district and 18 km west to the Taluk Headquarters Sedam
. There is also a railway station near the village, Malkhaid Road.
^Georg Bühler, 'Pâiyalachchhî Nâmamâlâ', in Beiträge zur Kunde der Indogermanischen Sprachen, vol. 4, edited by Adalbert Bezzenberger (Göttingen, 1878) and B. J. Dośī, Pāia-lacchīnāmamāla (Prākṛta-Lakṣmināmamālā) (Bombay, 1960): v. 276
. Jayatirtha is credited with twenty-two works, the most important being Nyaya-sudha, a commentary on Madhva's commentary on the Brahma Sutra, known as Anuvyakhyana. His samadhi is located at Malkhed.
^Georg Bühler, 'Pâiyalachchhî Nâmamâlâ', in Beiträge zur Kunde der Indogermanischen Sprachen, vol. 4, edited by Adalbert Bezzenberger (Göttingen, 1878) and B. J. Dośī, Pāia-lacchīnāmamāla (Prākṛta-Lakṣmināmamālā) (Bombay, 1960): v. 276
Dr. Suryanath U. Kamath (2001). A Concise History of Karnataka from pre-historic times to the present, Jupiter books, MCC, Bangalore (Reprinted 2002) OCLC: 7796041