A mandalam is a local government area in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.
The mandal system was introduced as an administrative reform to make governance more efficient by reducing the size of the larger, previously existing taluks.
The decentralization aimed at improving revenue administration, record-keeping, and enhancing the reach of the panchayati raj system.
As part of the middle tier of the panchayati raj structure, mandals replaced the former panchayat samitis in Andhra Pradesh during the tenure of the Telugu Desam Party government led by N. T. Rama Rao on May 25, 1985.
Each taluk generally comprises four to five mandals, forming more localized sub-units within districts.