It’s impossible to miss sighting a beautiful hilltop church around 108 kilometres from the city on the Vizag-Araku route Tourists travelling to Araku usually get down to have a look at the scenic church of Sunkarimetta. Especially during Christmas and New Year, the otherwise tranquil church comes alive with prayer services and hundreds of visitors. But not many know the historic and geographic significance of this building that dates back to the 1930s.
The Sunkarimetta Baptist Church, located exactly 12 kilometres from Araku and Ananthagiri, is situated at an altitude of 4,236 feet above sea level. It is considered the
highest point of the Eastern Ghats in Visakhapatnam District
Associated with the rajas of Jeypore, it was also from this church that Christianity first started spreading in the Agency areas in the first half of the 20th century.
The church has remained intact in its original form for around 80 years. The bell tower is the only addition that was made nearly a decade ago.
Since the hilltop church renders a beautiful view of the scenic surroundings of green valleys and cultivated fields, distant grey-blue hills and winding roads of the Eastern Ghats..!
Mr.Toxic_Photographer 