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280 Another sacred place on the Pattisam island is the Bhadrakáligundam, a pit in the bed of the river which is a favourite bathing-place. The Mahánandísvaram temple on another small island four miles up the river is also fairly well known. It is supposed to be the residence of the bull (nandi) which belongs to the Pattisam temple. It has one agraháram village as an endowment, and this brings in Rs. 800 a year. On the island is a cave which is popularly supposed to be the entrance of an underground passage to Benares.

Pólavaram: Head-quarters of the Agency Deputy Collector (who, however, is temporarily located at Rajahmundry) and the deputy tahsildar. Population 4,455. It also contains the office of a sub-registrar, a local fund dispensary (established by Government in 1880), a police-station, a travellers' bungalow, a Government girls' school and an English lower secondary school for boys. It was formerly the chief place in the important zamindari of the same name, which formerly embraced the whole of this division and much of Yernagúdem and Rajahmundry taluks, but now comprises only twelve villages paying a peshkash of Rs. 6,713.

This estate was long under the independent rule of an ancient Hindu family who derived their authority from the Gajapati kings of Orissa, and are said to have been descended from that line. Little is known of the estate previous to the British occupation of the country, but the names of three of its zamindars, Venkatapati, Jagannátha, and Venkataráma, have been preserved. It was then divided into the three estates of Pólavaram, Gútála and Kottapalli, and subordinate to it was the small hill zamindari of Nágavaram.

In 1780 the zamindar, Lakshmináráyana Dévu, died leaving three sons named Mangapati Dévu, Narasimha Dévu and Vijayagópála Dévu, of whom the last was the only son of his second wife. Mangapati was the eldest of the three and succeeded to the zamindari. In 1781 Kottapalli, which had been temporarily in charge of another holder, was restored to the estate, and Mangapati was thus in possession of all three of the subdivisions of the property. As he was a minor, his diwan managed the estate for him. This man was the brother of Vijayagópála's mother, and he induced the Chief at Masulipatam to recommend (1782) that the estate should be divided into three so as to make a provision for each of the three brothers. This was done, and Pólavaram fell to Mangapati, Gútála to Vijayagópála, and Kottapalli to Narasimha.