The Gannavaram tahsildar Mr R. Siva Rao, has asked the state archaeological department in Vijayawada city to inspect the structures suspected to have been built some centuries ago on three hills near the Brahmaiah Lingaiah tank and temple in Chikkavaram village of Gannavaram mandal.

The tahsildar on Friday sent a letter to the archaeological department about the historical structures they noticed in the village on Thursday.

The local villagers told the tahsildar that the ancient structure is their property and it must be protected.

The historical structures came to light when works were going on for laying the road for quarrying. The government issued permission to the local contractors for quarrying near Brahmaiah Lingaiah tank in Chikavaram village.

The local villagers noticed two caves, tunnels, two inscriptions, compound wall and other structures said to have been built several hundred years ago on the 150 metres tall hill.

Mr Siva Rao, told this newspaper that the archaeological experts could identify the significance of the compound wall, inscriptions and other structures.

Interestingly, the Brahmaiah Lingaiah tank is located three km away in the forest from the Chikkavaram village, which is located between Gannavaram and Agiripalli.

The tank is spread over 1,100 acres land and mostly located in the forest area.

Treasure hunters used to dig and search for treasure. But, they failed to trace valuables in recent years. The local villagers also abandoned the hills and were not going towards the structures.