Formation of Telangana State

Telangana Formation Day is a state holiday in the Indian state of Telangana, commemorating the formation of the state of Telangana. It is observed annually on 2 June since 2014.

Telangana Formation

The state of Telangana was officially formed on 2 June 2014. K. Chandrashekar Rao was elected as the first chief minister of Telangana, following elections in which the Telangana Rashtra Samithi party secured a majority.

On 1 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 Reorganization Act, 2014 bill was passed by the Parliament of India for the formation of Telangana state comprising ten districts from north-western Andhra Pradesh.

Telangana movement

The day marks significance in the state’s history for the sustained Telangana movement through the years. The Telangana movement refers to a movement for the creation of a new state, Telangana, from the pre-existing state of Andhra Pradesh in India. The new state corresponds to the Telugu-speaking portions of the erstwhile princely state of Hyderabad. After several years of protest and agitation, the central government, under the United Progressive Alliance, decided to bifurcate the existing Andhra Pradesh state and on 7 February 2014, the Union Cabinet unilaterally cleared the bill for the creation of Telangana. Lasting for almost a decade, this has been one of the most long-lasting movements in South India. On 18 February 2014, the Lok Sabha passed the bill with a voice vote. Subsequently, the bill was passed by the Rajya Sabha two days later, on 20 February. As per the bill, Hyderabad would be the capital of Telangana, while the city would also remain the capital of residual state of Andhra Pradesh for no more than ten years. On 2 June 2014, Telangana was created.

History of Telangana Movement

In December 1953, the States Reorganization Commission was appointed to prepare for the creations of states on linguistic lines. The commission, due to public demand, recommended disintegration of Hyderabad State and a merge of the Marathi-speaking region with Bombay state and of the Kannada-speaking region with Mysore state. The States Reorganization Commission (SRC) discussed pros and cons of the merger of Telugu speaking Telangana region of Hyderabad state with Andhra state. Paragraph 374 of the SRC report said “The creation of Vishalandhra is an ideal to which numerous individuals and public bodies, both in Andhra and Telangana , have been passionately attached over a long period of time, and unless there are strong reasons to the contrary, this sentiment is entitled to consideration”. Discussing the case of Telangana, paragraph 378 of the SRC report said “One of the principal causes of opposition of Vishalandhra also seems to be the apprehension felt by the educationally backward people of Telangana that they may be swamped and exploited by the more advanced people of the coastal areas who were swamped by people of Tamil Nadu already”. In its final analysis SRC recommended against the immediate merger. In paragraph 386 it said “After taking all these factors into consideration we have come to the conclusions that it will be in the interests of Andhra as well as Telangana, if for the present, the Telangana area is to constitute into a separate State, which may be known as the Hyderabad State with provision for its unification with Andhra after the general elections likely to be held in or about 1961 if by a two-thirds majority the legislature of the residuary Hyderabad State expresses itself in favor of such unification.”

After going through the recommendations of the SRC, the then Home Minister Pandit Govind Ballabh Pant decided to merge Andhra state and Telangana to form Andhra Pradesh state on 1 November 1956 after providing safeguards to Telangana in the form of Gentleman’s agreement.

(Source: Wikipedia)

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