Kurnool is a city in the state of Andhra Pradesh, India. It formerly served as the capital of Andhra State (1953–1956) and was proposed as the judicial capital of Andhra Pradesh from 2024, although this is awaiting a Supreme Court decision. The city is often referred to as "The Gateway of Rayalaseema". Kurnool is also known as The City of Gem Stones. It also serves as the district headquarters of its Kurnool district. As of 2011 census, it is the fifth most populous city in the state with a population of 484,327. It is located on the banks of the Tungabhadra river. Although the area has been inhabited for thousands of years, modern Kurnool was founded in the 16th century CE with the construction of the Konda Reddy Fort.

Andhra Pradesh is a state in the southern coastal region of India. It is the seventh-largest state with an area of 162,970 km2 (62,920 sq mi) and the tenth-most populous state with 49,577,103 inhabitants. It shares borders with Chhattisgarh, Odisha, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Telangana and the Bay of Bengal. It has the second-longest coastline in India at about 974 km (605 mi). After existence as Andhra State and unified Andhra Pradesh, the state took its present form on 2 June 2014, when the new state of Telangana was formed through bifurcation. Amaravati is the capital of the state, with the largest city being Visakhapatnam. Water sharing disputes and asset division with Telangana are not yet resolved. Telugu, one of the classical languages of India used by the majority of people, is the first official language.