Kotla Vijaya Bhaskara Reddy served as the 9th chief minister of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh in 1983 and then from 1992 to 1994. Reddy was a member of the Indian National Congress and was elected to the Lok Sabha six times. Reddy also served as a Union cabinet Minister, along with serving on several parliamentary committees. He lost the 1999 elections and subsequently retired from active politics. Botanical Garden in Hyderabad is named after him.

Kurnool district is one of the eight districts in the Rayalaseema region of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh after the districts are reorganised in April 2022. It is located in the north western part of the state and is bounded by Nandyal district in the east, Anantapur district in the south, Raichur district of Karnataka in the northwest, Bellary district of Karnataka in the west, and Jogulamba Gadwal district of Telangana in the north. It has a population of 2,271,686 based on the 2011 census. The city of Kurnool is the headquarters of the district.