Focus: GS II- Polity
Why in News?
The Prime Minister of India greeted the people of Telangana on Statehood Day (2nd June).
Key Points
- On 2nd June, 2014 the north western part of Andhra Pradesh was separated and 29th state Telangana was created with Hyderabad as its capital.
- The Andhra State Act (1953) formed the first linguistic state of India, known as the state of Andhra, by taking out the Telugu speaking areas from the State of Madras (now Tamil Nadu).
- The States Reorganisation Act (1956) merged the Telugu-speaking areas of Hyderabad state with the Andhra state to create the enlarged Andhra Pradesh state.
- The Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act (2014) bifurcated Andhra Pradesh into two separate states, namely, the Andhra Pradesh (residuary) and the Telangana.
Telangana region after Independence
- When India became independent from the British Empire in 1947, the Present region of Telangana was a part of the Hyderabad Princely State.
- 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 – The Nizam’s army surrendered and India then incorporated the state of Hyderabad and ended the rule of the Nizams.
- In 1956 during the reorganisation of the Indian States based along linguistic lines, the state of Hyderabad was split up among Andhra Pradesh and Bombay state (later divided into states of Maharashtra and Gujarat in 1960 with the original portions of Hyderabad becoming part of the state of Maharashtra) and Karnataka.
History of Formation of Telangana
- The seeds of Telangana struggle were sown in 1955 when the recommendation of the States Reorganisation Commission to retain Hyderabad as a separate State went unheeded.
- Telangana leaders accused the people of Andhra of “colonising the region” by grabbing their jobs and land, and the government of not investing in the region’s infrastructure.
- On November 1, 1956, Telangana merged with the State of Andhra, carved out of erstwhile Madras, to form Andhra Pradesh, a united-state for the Telugu-speaking populace.
- The State witnessed a violent ‘separate Telangana’ agitation in 1969 and a ‘separate Andhra’ agitation in 1972.
- Many believe it was the creation of Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand and Uttaranchal (now Uttarakhand) states that spurred the demand for Telangana.
Note
- State Bird – Palapitta (Indian Roller or Blue Jay).
- State Animal – Jinka (Deer).
- State Tree – Jammi Chettu (Prosopis Cineraria).
- State Flower – Tangedu (Tanner’s Cassia).
These icons reflect the culture and tradition of Telangana state and three of them – Tangedu flowers, Palapitta and Jammi Chettu are associated with the popular festivals of Bathukamma and Dasara, while Jinka reflects the mindset of the people of Telangana as it is very sensitive and innocent.
