Telangana

Etymology

According to Kingshuk Nag who authored "Battleground Telangana" (2011); Etymology of Telangana is uncertain; it is believed that the word Telugu is derived from Telu in Gondi language-A dialact spoken by the tribals of Chhattisgarh—(in present-day a state located in North of Telangana), and plural form of Telu is Telunga which means "white skinned people", and thus making the word Telangana.

According to Campbell, Alexander Duncan (1789–1857); who authored a book "A Grammar of the Teloogoo language" (1816) mentions that; A theory suggest that the name Telangana is derived from the word Trilinga (Sanskrit: त्रिलिङ्ग), as in the Trilinga Desa, which translates to "the country of the three lingas". According to a Hindu legend, Shiva descended in the lingam form on three mountains, Kaleshwaram, Srisailam and Draksharama, which marked the boundaries of the Trilingadesa (Sanskrit: त्रिलिङ्गदेश), later called Telinga, Telunga or Telugu.

The word "Telinga" changed over time to "Telangana" and the name "Telangana" was designated to distinguish the predominantly Telugu-speaking region of the erstwhile Hyderabad State from its predominantly Marathi-speaking one, Marathwada. After Asaf Jahis ceded the Seemandhra region to the British, the rest of the Telugu region retained the name Telingana and the other parts were called Madras Presidency's Circars and Ceded.

One of the earliest uses of a word similar to Telangana can also be seen in a name of Malik Maqbul (14th century CE), who was called the Tilangani, which implies that he was from Tilangana. He was the commander of the Warangal Fort (Kataka Pāludu).

History

Telangana was governed by many rulers, including the Satavahana dynasty (230 BCE to 220 CE), the Kakatiya Dynasty (1083–1323), the Musunuri Nayaks (1326–1356) the Delhi Sultanate, the Bahmani Sultanate (1347–1512), Qutb Shahi dynasty (1512–1687), Mughal Empire (1687–1724) and Asaf Jahi Dynasty (1724–1948).

Early history

The Satavahana dynasty (230 BCE to 220 CE) became the dominant power in this region. It originated from the lands between the Godavari and Krishna rivers and was based at Amaravathi and Dharanikota. After the decline of the Satavahanas, various dynasties, such as the Vakataka, Vishnukundina, Chalukya, Rashtrakuta and Western Chalukya, ruled the area.

Kakatiya Dynasty

The Telangana area experienced its golden age during the reign of the Kakatiya dynasty, which ruled most parts of the present day Andhra Pradesh and Telangana from 1083 to 1323 CE. Rudrama Devi and Prataparudra II were prominent rulers from the Kakatiya dynasty. The dynasty weakened with the attack of Malik Kafur in 1309 and was dissolved after the defeat of Prataparudra by the forces of Muhammad bin Tughluq in 1323.

Qutb Shahi and Asaf Jahi's

The area came under the rule of the Delhi Sultanate in the 14th century, followed by the Bahmani Sultanate. Quli Qutb Mulk, a governor of Golkonda, revolted against the Bahmani Sultanate and established the Qutb Shahi dynasty in 1518. On 21 September 1687, the Golkonda Sultanate came under the rule of the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb after a year-long siege of the Golkonda fort.

In 1712, Qamar-ud-din Khan was appointed by emperor Farrukhsiyar as the viceroy of Deccan with the title Nizam-ul-Mulk (meaning "Administrator of the Realm"). He was later recalled to Delhi, with Mubariz Khan appointed as the viceroy. In 1724, Qamar-ud-din Khan defeated Mubariz Khan to reclaim the Deccan suba, establishing it as an autonomous province of the Mughal empire. He took the name Asif Jah, starting what came to be known as the Asif Jahi dynasty. He named the area Hyderabad Deccan. Subsequent rulers retained the title Nizam ul-Mulk and were called Asif Jahi nizams or nizams of Hyderabad. The Medak and Warangal divisions of Telangana were part of their realm.

When Asif Jah I died in 1748, there was political unrest due to contention for the throne among his sons, who were aided by opportunistic neighbouring states and colonial foreign forces. In 1769, Hyderabad city became the formal capital of the nizams. The nizam Nasir-ud-dawlah, Asaf Jah IV signed the Subsidiary Alliance with the British in 1799 and lost its control over the state's defence and foreign affairs. Hyderabad State became a princely state among the presidencies and provinces of British India.

Post-independence

When India became independent from the British Empire in 1947, the Nizam of Hyderabad did not want to merge with the Indian Union and wanted to remain independent. The Government of India annexed Hyderabad State on 17 September 1948 after a military operation called Operation Polo. It appointed a civil servant, M. K. Vellodi, as first chief minister of Hyderabad State on 26 January 1950. He administered the state with the help of English-educated bureaucrats from the Madras and Bombay states, who were familiar with British systems of administration unlike the bureaucrats of Hyderabad state who used a completely different administrative system. The official language of the state was switched from Urdu to English.

In 1952, Dr. Burgula Ramakrishna Rao was elected chief minister of the Hyderabad State in its first democratic election. During this time, there were violent agitations by some Telanganites to send the Madras state bureaucrats back and implement a rule by the natives (mulkis) of Hyderabad.

Telangana Rebellion

The Telangana Rebellion was a peasant revolt supported by the communists. It originated in the Telangana regions of the Hyderabad state between 1946 and 1951, led by the Communist Party of India (CPI).

The revolt began in the Nalgonda district against the feudal lords of Reddy and Velama castes. It quickly spread to the Warangal and Bidar districts. Peasant farmers and labourers revolted against the local feudal landlords (jagirdars and deshmukhs) and later against the Nizam Osman Ali Khan. The violent phase of the movement ended after the Government of India's Operation Polo. Starting in 1951, the CPI shifted to a more moderate strategy of seeking to bring communism to India within the framework of Indian democracy.

States Reorganisation Commission

In December 1953, the States Reorganisation Commission (SRC) was appointed to form states on a linguistic basis. An agreement was reached between Telangana leaders and Andhra leaders on 20 February 1956 to merge Telangana and Andhra with promises to safeguard Telangana's interests. After reorganisation in 1956, the region of Telangana was merged with Andhra State to form Andhra Pradesh.

Following this Gentlemen's agreement, the central government established the unified state of Andhra Pradesh on 1 November 1956. G.O 553 of 1959 from the united Andhra Pradesh state moved two revenue divisions of Bhadrachalam from East Godavari and Aswaraopeta from West Godavari to Khammam for administrative convenience.

Telangana movement

There have been several movements to revoke the merger of Telangana and Andhra, major ones occurring in 1969, 1972 and 2009. The movement for a new state of Telangana gained momentum in the 21st century by an initiative of Kalvakuntla Chandrashekar Rao, the chief of Telangana Rashtra Samithi, on 29 November 2009. On 9 December 2009 the Government of India announced the process of formation of the Telangana state. Violent protests led by people in the Coastal Andhra and Rayalseema regions occurred immediately after the announcement, and the decision was put on hold on 23 December 2009.

The movement continued in Hyderabad and other districts of Telangana. There have been hundreds of claimed suicides, strikes, protests and disturbances to public life demanding separate statehood.

Formation of Telangana state in 2014

On 30 July 2013, the Congress Working Committee unanimously passed a resolution to recommend the formation of a separate Telangana state. After various stages the bill was placed in the Parliament of India in February 2014. In February 2014, Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2014 bill was passed by the Parliament of India for the formation of Telangana state comprising ten districts from north-western Andhra Pradesh. The bill received the assent of the President and published in the Gazette on 1 March 2014.

The state of Telangana was officially formed on 2 June 2014. Kalvakuntla Chandrashekar Rao was elected as the first chief minister of Telangana, following elections in which the Telangana Rashtra Samithi party secured majority. Hyderabad will remain as the joint capital of both Telangana and Andhra Pradesh for a period not more than 10 years after that period Hyderabad shall be the capital of the State of Telangana and there shall be a new capital for the State of Andhra Pradesh. Andhra Pradesh picked Amaravathi as its capital; moved its secretariat in 2016 and legislature in March 2017 to its new capital.

Geography

Telangana is situated on the Deccan Plateau, in the central stretch of the eastern seaboard of the Indian Peninsula. It covers 114,840 square kilometres (44,340 sq mi). The region is drained by two major rivers, with about 79% of the Godavari River catchment area and about 69% of the Krishna River catchment area, but most of the land is arid. Telangana is also drained by several minor rivers such as the Bhima, the Maner, the Manjira and the Musi.

The annual rainfall is between 900 and 1500 mm in northern Telangana and 700 to 900 mm in southern Telangana, from the southwest monsoons. Various soil types abound, including chalkas, red sandy soils, dubbas, deep red loamy soils, and very deep black cotton   soils that facilitate planting mangoes, oranges and flowers.

Climate

Telangana is a semi-arid area and has a predominantly hot and dry climate. Summers start in March, and peak in May with average high temperatures in the 42 °C (108 °F) range. The monsoon arrives in June and lasts until September with about 755 mm (29.7 inches) of precipitation. A dry, mild winter starts in late November and lasts until early February with little humidity and average temperatures in the 22–23 °C (72–73 °F) range.

Ecology

The Central Deccan Plateau dry deciduous forests ecoregion covers much of the state, including Hyderabad. The characteristic vegetation is woodlands of Hardwickia binata and Albizia amara. Over 80% of the original forest cover has been cleared for agriculture, timber harvesting, or cattle grazing, but large blocks of forest can be found in Nagarjunsagar-Srisailam Tiger Reserve and elsewhere. The more humid Eastern Highlands moist deciduous forests cover the Eastern Ghats in the eastern part of the state.

National Parks and Sanctuaries

Telangana has three National Parks: Kasu Brahmananda Reddy National Park in Hyderabad district, and Mahavir Harina Vanasthali National Park and Mrugavani National Park in Ranga Reddy district.

Wildlife Sanctuaries in Telangana include Eturunagaram Wildlife Sanctuary and Pakhal Wildlife Sanctuary in Warangal District, Kawal Tiger Reserve and Pranahita Wildlife Sanctuary in Adilabad district, Kinnerasani Wildlife Sanctuary in Khammam district, Manjira Wildlife Sanctuary in Medak district, Nagarjunsagar-Srisailam Tiger Reserve in Nalgonda and Mahbubnagar districts, Pocharam Wildlife Sanctuary in Medak and Nizamabad districts, Shivaram Wildlife Sanctuary in Karimnagar district.

Sacred groves are small areas of forest preserved by local people. Sacred groves provide sanctuary to the local flora and fauna. Some are included within other protected areas, like Kadalivanam in Nagarjunsagar-Srisailam Tiger Reserve, but most stand alone. There are 65 sacred groves Telangana – two in Adilabad district, thirteen in Hyderabad district, four in Karimnagar district, four in Khammam district, nine in Mahbubnagar district, four in Medak district, nine in Nalgonda district, ten in Ranga Reddy district, and three in Warangal district.

Administrative divisions

The state is divided into 31 districts which are further divided into 68 revenue divisions and they are in turn divided into 584 mandals.

The districts in the state are

There are a total of 12 cities which include, 6 municipal corporations and 38 municipalities. Hyderabad is the only million plus city in the state.

Government and politics

Telangana is governed through a parliamentary system of representative democracy, a feature the state shares with other Indian states. Universal suffrage is granted to residents. There are three branches of government.

1. Executive authority is vested in the Council of Ministers headed by the Chief Minister, although the titular head of government is the Governor. The Governor is the head of state appointed by the President of India. The leader of the party or coalition with a majority in the Legislative Assembly is appointed as the Chief Minister by the Governor, and the Council of Ministers are appointed by the Governor on the advice of the Chief Minister. The Council of Ministers reports to the Legislative Assembly.
2. The legislature, the Telangana Legislative Assembly and the Telangana Legislative Council, consists of elected members and special office bearers such as the Speaker and Deputy Speaker, that are elected by the members. Assembly meetings are presided over by the Speaker or the Deputy Speaker in the Speaker's absence. The Assembly is bicameral with 119 Members of the Legislative Assembly and 40 Member of the Legislative Council. Terms of office run for 5 years, unless the Assembly is dissolved prior to the completion of the term. The Legislative Council is a permanent body with one-third members retiring every two years.
3. The judiciary is composed of the High Court of Judicature at Hyderabad and a system of lower courts.

Auxiliary authorities known as panchayats, for which local body elections are regularly held, govern local affairs. The state contributes seats to Lok Sabha.

The main players in the regional politics are the Telangana Rashtra Samithi, All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen, Telugu Desam Party, Bharatiya Janata Party and Indian National Congress. Following the Telangana Legislative Assembly Election in 2014, the Telangana Rashtra Samithi under Kalvakuntla Chandrashekar Rao was elected to power.

Demographics

According to the Backward Regions Grant Fund Programme 2009–10, There are 9 backward districts (all except Hyderabad) from Telangana and the rest are from other regions.

The religious makeup of Telangana is about 85.1% Hindu, 12.7% Muslim, and 1.3% Christian, and 0.9% others.

Telugu and Urdu are the official languages of Telangana. About 77% of the population of Telangana speak Telugu, 12% speak Urdu, and 13% speak other languages. Before 1948, Urdu was the official language of Hyderabad State, and due to a lack of Telugu-language educational institutions, Urdu was the language of the educated elite of Telangana. After 1948, once Hyderabad State joined the new Republic of India, Telugu became the language of government, and as Telugu was introduced as the medium of instruction in schools and colleges, the use of Urdu among non-Muslims decreased. The Urdu spoken in Telangana is called Hyderabadi Urdu, which in itself is a dialect of the larger Dakhini Urdu dialects of South India. Although the language is orally spoken by most Hyderabadi Muslims, the language in a literary context has long been lost, and standard Urdu is used.

According to the 2011 census, Telangana's literacy rate is 66.46%. Male literacy and female literacy are 74.95% and 57.92% respectively. Hyderabad district leading with 80.96% and Mahabubnagar district at the bottom with 56.06%.

Economy

The Economy of Telangana is mainly driven by agriculture. Two important rivers of India, the Godavari and Krishna, flow through the state, providing irrigation. Farmers in Telangana mainly depend on rain-fed water sources for irrigation. Rice is the major food crop. Other important crops are cotton, sugar cane, mango and tobacco. Recently, crops used for vegetable oil production such as sunflower and peanuts have gained favour. There are many multi-state irrigation projects in development, including Godavari River Basin Irrigation Projects and Nagarjuna Sagar Dam, the world's highest masonry dam.

The state has also started to focus on the fields of information technology and biotechnology. Telangana is one of top IT exporting states of India. There are 68 Special Economic Zones in the state.

Telangana is a mineral-rich state, with coal reserves at Singareni Collieries Company.

Agriculture

Rice is major food crop and staple food of the state. Other important crops are maize, tobacco, mango, cotton and sugar cane. Agriculture has been the chief source of income for the state's economy. Important rivers of India, the Godavari, Krishna flow through the state, providing irrigation. Apart from major rivers, there are small rivers as Tunga Bhadra, Bima, Dindi, Kinnerasani, Manjeera, Manair, Penganga, Pranahitha, peddavagu and Taliperu.There are many multi-state irrigation projects in development, including Godavari River Basin Irrigation Projects and Nagarjuna Sagar Dam, the world's highest masonry dam.

Agri Export Zones for the following produce are proposed at the places mentioned against them:

Industries

Several major manufacturing and services industries are in operation mainly around Hyderabad. Automobiles and auto components industry, spices, mines and minerals, textiles and apparels, pharmaceutical, horticulture, poultry farming are the main industries in Telangana. In terms of services, Hyderabad is usually nicknamed as Cyberabad due to its information technology foray and location of major software industries in the city. Prior to secession, it contributed 10% to India's and 98% to Andhra Pradesh's exports in IT and ITES sectors last 2013 With Hyderabad as in the front line of Telangana's aims to promote information technology in India, the city boasts the HITEC City as its premier hub.

The state government is in the process of developing Industrial Parks at different places, for specific groups of industries. The existing parks are Software Park at Hyderabad, HITEC City for software units, Apparel Park at Gundlapochampalli, Export Promotion Park at Pashamylaram, Bio-technology park at Turkapally.

Hyderabad is also a major site for healthcare related industries including hospitals and pharmaceutical organizations such as Nizam's Institute of Medical Sciences, Yashoda Hospitals, LV Prasad Eye Care, Akruti Institute of cosmetic and plastic surgery, Fever Hospital, Durgabai Deshmukh, Continental Hospitals and Apollo Hospitals. Many pharma and pharma related companies like Dr. Reddy's Laboratories, Shantha Biotechnics and GVK BIO are based out of Hyderabad.

In addition, Hyderabad based healthcare non-profits include the Indian Heart Association, a cardiovascular disease NGO.

Tourism

Telangana State Tourism Development Corporation (TSTDC) is a state government agency which promotes tourism in Telangana. Telangana has a variety of tourist attractions including historical places, monuments, forts, waterfalls, forests and temples.

Awards

Telangana state has won CNBC-TV18 Promising State of the Year Award for the year of 2015. The Jury for the India Business Leader Awards (IBLA) has collectively chosen Telangana for the award.

Power

Hydel and thermal power projects in the state meets the power requirements of the State. Number of new power projects are coming up in the State which is expected to generate additional power capacity in the state.

Transport

The state is well connected with other states by means of road, rail and airways. The Telangana State Road Transport Corporation (TSRTC) is the major public transport corporation that connects all the cities and villages. Mahatma Gandhi Bus Station (M.G.B.S) in Hyderabad is one of the largest bus stand in Asia. Jubilee Bus Station in Secunderabad serves inter city bus services. Asia's biggest Inter City Bus Terminal (ICBT) is being built in Miyapur (Hyderabad), which would house nearly 200 bus bays and for parking nearly 1,000 buses.

Roadways

The state has a total of 16 national highways and accounts for a total length of 2,690.23 km (1,671.63 mi).

Railways

The history of railways in this region dates back to the time of nizam of Hyderabad in 1874. It operates under the auspices of the South Central Railway founded in 1966. The landmark building Rail Nilayam in Secunderabad is the Zonal Headquarter office of South Central Railway. Secunderabad and Hyderabad are the main divisions of South Central Railway that fall in the state.

Airports

Rajiv Gandhi International Airport at Shamshabad is an international airport serving the city of Hyderabad. It is the largest airport in the state and one of the busiest airports in the country. The government has plans to upgrade Warangal Airport, Nizamabad Airport and Ramagundam Airport It also plans to construct airports in Karimnagar and Kothagudem. Warangal has a domestic airport in Mamunooru which was established in the year 1930 during Nizam period. All the exports and imports of Azam Jahi Mills, Warangal were done through the Warangal Airport.

Culture

Telangana culture combines cultural customs from Persian traditions, embedded during rule of the region by the Moghuls, Qutub Shahis and Nizams, with prominent and predominantly south Indian traditions and customs. The State has a rich tradition in classical music, painting and folk arts such as Burra katha, shadow puppet show, and perini Shiva Tandavam, Gusadi Dance, Kolatam.

Monuments

Charminar, Golconda Fort, Qutb Shahi Tombs, Chowmahalla Palace, Falaknuma Palace, Birla Mandir and Nagarjun sagar, Bhongir Fort, Warangal Fort, Khammam Fort, Bhuvangiri Fort are some of the monuments in and around Hyderabad.,

Religious destinations

There are religious worship centers of different religions in the state. These include Muslim worship destinatoins such as Makkah Masjid near Charminar, Khairtabad Mosque, Koh-e-qaim, Mian Mishk Masjid, Toli Masjid and Spanish Mosque.

Hindu worship destinations include Bhadrachalam Temple, Gnana Saraswati Temple, Yadagirigutta Temple, Ramappa Temple, Vemulawada Raja Rajeswara temple, the Thousand Pillar Temple.

Christian worship centers include the Diocese of Dornakal of the Church of South India, Bahe Church of South India, and Medak Cathedral. There are also some Buddhist destinations, such as Nelakondapalli, Dhulikatta, Phanigiri and Kolanpaka.

Telugu cinema

Telugu cinema, also known by its sobriquet as Tollywood, is a part of Indian cinema producing films in the Telugu language, and is centered in the Hyderabad, Telangana neighbourhood of Film Nagar. In the early 1990s, the Telugu film industry had largely shifted from Chennai to Hyderabad. The Telugu film industry is the second-largest film industry in India next to Bollywood Film Industry. In the years 2005, 2006 and 2008 the Telugu film industry produced the largest number of films in India, exceeding the number of films produced in Bollywood. The industry holds the Guinness World Record for the largest film production facility in the world.

Waterfalls

Kuntala Waterfall [45 metres (148 ft)] located in Kuntala, Adilabad district, is the highest waterfall in the state.

Bogatha Waterfall is waterfall located in Koyaveerapuram G, Wazeedu Mandal, Bhupalpally district, Telangana. It is located 120 km from Bhadrachalam, 140 km away from Warangal and 329 km from Hyderabad.

Savatula Gundam Waterfalls are one of the many waterfalls located in Adilabad district, Telangana, India. They are located 30 kilometres (19 mi) from Asifabad and 350 kilometres (220 mi) from Hyderabad, the state capital.

Gowri Gundaala waterfalls at sabitham village near Ramagundam in Peddapalli district.

Education

Telangana has multiple institutes of higher education universities along with numerous primary and secondary schools.The state is home to a number of institutes, which impart higher education. The Department of Higher Education deals with matters relating to education at various levels in the State of Telangana

The Government has established Rajiv Gandhi University of Knowledge Technologies Basar(RGUKT Basar) in 2008 to cater to the educational needs of the gifted rural youth of Telangana. The higher education includes many colleges, universities and research institutes providing professional education in the fields of arts, humanities, science, engineering, law, medicine, business, and veterinary sciences, with undergraduate and post graduation.

Sports

The Hyderabad cricket team is represented in the Ranji Trophy and had won twice. The Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium is the home ground of Hyderabad cricket team. It hosts international as well as domestic matches. The Sunrisers Hyderabad, an Indian Premier League franchise, is based in Hyderabad.

Notable sports persons from the state are Mohammad Azharuddin, V. V. S. Laxman, Mithali Raj, Pragyan Ojha, Saina Nehwal, P.V. Sindhu, Jwala Gutta, Parupalli Kashyap, Gagan Narang, Mukesh Kumar and Pullela Gopichand, as well as Sania Mirza who has been appointed as the "brand ambassador" of Telangana.

Other stadiums include Gachibowli Athletic Stadium, LB stadium and G. M. C. Balayogi Athletic Stadium.