The State of Telangana was carved out of the erstwhile State of Andhra Pradesh and
was formed on the 2nd June 2014. Telangana is the 29th State of Indian Republic. The
geographical area of the State is spread over 1,12,077 sq.kms, which makes it the 12
the largest State in the Country.
Past:
As an economic, social, cultural and historical entity it has a glorious history of at least
two thousand five hundred years or more. Megalithic stone structures like cairns, cists,
dolmens and menhirs found in several districts of Telangana show that there were
human habitations in this part of the Country thousands of years ago. Remnants of iron
ore smelting found at many places demonstrate the hoary roots of artisanship and tool
making in Telangana for at least two thousand years. The reference to Asmaka
Janapada, part of present Telangana, as one of the 16 Janapadas in ancient India
proves that there existed an advanced stage of society.
Megasthenes, who visited India in the 4th century BC, wrote that there were 30 fortified
towns of Andhrs and a majority of them were in Telangana. In the historical age,
Telangana had given rise to mighty empires and kingdoms like the Satavahanas,
Vakatakas, Ikshvakus, Vishnukundins, Chalukyas, Kakatiyas, Qutub Shahis and Asif
Jahis.
The emergence of flourishing of these powerful political formations is in itself a proof of
existence of a sturdy economic, social and cultural structure.
Even though extensive exploration has not been done, the archaeological department
under the Nizams‟ government had done tremendous work in discovering the traces of
pre-historical human habitations in Telangana. These studies found that human
habitations in parts of Telangana can be seen from the Palaeolithic age consistently.
Around the third century BC there arose the first significant kingdom under the
Satavahanas from this region. The earliest capital of the Satavahanas was Kotalingala
and then moved to the other popular capitals like Paithan and Amarvati (Dharanikota)
only after two centuries of their rule.
The sub-feudatories of the Rashtrakutas emerged themselves as independent kings
and founded the Kakatiya dynasty around 950 AD and this kingdom became strong and
united whole of Telugu speaking lands and lasted for more than three centuries and a
half. The kingdom saw powerful kings like Ganapatideva, Rudradeva and Prataparudra as well as the first ever woman ruler in the subcontinent Rudramadevi. The Kakatiyas
ruled from Hanumakonda in the beginning and shifted their capital to Warangal later
The Kakatiyas are known for their irrigation public works, sculpture and fine arts.
Thanks to the well-planned irrigation facilities and a perfect system of chain tanks to suit
the undulating nature of the terrain, the Kakatiya kingdom flourished economically
leading to cultural progress also. Envy of this, affluence, several neighbouring
kingdoms as well as Delhi sultanate tried to wage war on Warangal fort and capture
Prataparudra, who according to the legend, killed himself on the banks of the Narmada
unwilling to surrender when he was being taken as prisoner of war to Delhi.
Sultan Quli QUtub Shah, subedar for Telangana under the Bahamanis, with Golconda
as his capital, declared his independence in 1496 and seven sultans of this dynasty
ruled not only Telangana but the entire Telugu speaking land including parts of present
day Maharashtra and Karnataka. The Moghul Empire waged war and defeated
Golconda in 1687 and for about three decades Telangana was again witnessed chaos
and fragmented rulers.
In 1724, Qamar-ud-din Khan established as on 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 Asaf Jahi Nizams or Nizams of Hyderabad. The Medak
and Warangal divisions of Telangana were part of their realm.
A total of seven Nizam‟s ruled Hyderabad. There was a period of 13 years after the rule
of Asaf Jah , when three of his sons (Nasir Jung, Muzaffar Jung and Salabath Jung)
ruled. They were not officially recognised as the rulers.
- Nizam-ul-Mulk, Asaf Jah1 (Mir Qamar-uddin Khan)
- Nasir Jung (Mir Ahmed Ali Khan)
- Muzaffar Jung (Mir Hidayat Muhi-ud-din Sa‟adullah Khan)
- Salabat Jung (Mir Sa‟id Muhammad Khan)
- Nizam-ul-Mulk, Asaf Jah II (Mir Nizam Ali Khan)
- Sikandar Jah, Asaf Jah III ( Mir Akbar Ali Khan)
- Nasir-ud-Daula, Asaf Jah IV ( Mir Farqunda Ali Khan)
- Afzal-ud-Daula, Asaf Jah V ( Mir Tahniyath Ali Khan)
- Asaf Jah VI (Mir Mahbub Ali Khan)
- Asaf Jah VII ( Mir Osamn Ali Khan)
When India became independent from the British Empire in 1947, Hyderabad remained
an independent princely state for a period of 13 months. The peasants of Telangana
waged an armed struggle to liberate the region. Scores of people lost their lives in the
armed struggle. The private militia named Razakars, under the leadership of Qasim
Razwi unleashed terror in the state by resorting to looting and murder. On 17
September, 1948, the Indian Government conducted a military operation called
Operation Polo to bring Hyderabad State into the Indian Union. It appointed a civil
servant, M.K. Vellodi, as first Chief Minister of Hyderabad State on 26 January, 1950.
In 1952, Dr. Burgula Ramakrishna Rao was elected as Chief Minister of the Hyderabad
State in its first democratic election. During this time, there was an agitation by locals in
the state to ensure proper representation was given to locals (Mulkis ) of Hyderabad.
In early 1950s, people of Telangana region in Hyderabad State, started organising
themselves with a demand for separate state. In 1953 the Indian Government
appointed the States Reorganisation Commission (SRC) to look into various statehood
demands in the country. The Commission was headed by Fazal Ali, Kavalam Madhava
Panikkar and H.N. Kunzru.
The SRC toured the whole country to seek representations from various sections of the
society. People of Telangana region submitted several memorandums to the SRC and
expressed their wish to constitute Telangana as a separate State. Telangana
intellectuals such as late Prof Jayashankar and Political leaders such as Sri HC Hda, Sri
Konda Venkat Ranga Reddy gave memorandums containing historic, political,
economic, social and cultural justifications for creating the Telangana State. The
Commission submitted its report on 30th September 1955, and recommended formation
of Telangana State. In January 1969. Students intensified the protests for a separate
State.
In 1997, the State unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) passed a resolution seeking
a separate Telangana. Sri Kalvakuntla Chandrashekar Rao (KCR), who was then the
Deputy Speaker of AP State assembly, had started background work on Telangana
issue and announced the launch of Telangana Rashtra Samithi on 17th May 2001.
On 29th November 2009, KCR had announced an indefinite hunger strike demanding
statehood to Telangana. The State Government, headed by Sri K. Rosaiah had called
for an all-party meeting on 7th December. Leaders of TDP and PRP parties promised
that they would support a Telangana statehood resolution if it was tabled in the state
Assembly. The UPA Government announced that the process of statehood for
Telangana would be initiated. But within 2 weeks, resistance from Seemandhra
leadership resulted in UPA backtracking on this issue. After 4 years of peaceful and
impactful protests, the UPA Government started the statehood process in July 2013 and
concluded the process by passing the statehood bill in both houses of Parliament in
February,2014.
CULTURE & ARTS:
South of North and North of South‟ , Telangana State has long been a meeting place
for diverse languages and cultures. It is the best example for India‟s composite culture,
pluralism and inclusiveness. Located on the uplands of Deccan Plateau, Telangana is
the link between the North and South India. It is thus no surprise that the region on the
whole came to be known for its Ganga-Jamuna Tehzeeb and the capital Hyderabad as
a „miniature India‟.
Geography, polity and Economy of the region determined the culture of Telangana.
Satavahanas, the earliest known rulers of the region sowed the seeds of independent
and self-sufficient village economy, the relics of which can be felt even today. In the
medieval times, the Kakatiya dynasty‟s rule, between the 11th and 14th centuries with
Warangal as their capital, and subsequently the Qutub Shahis and Asaf Jahis, who
ruled the Hyderabad state defined the culture of the region.
While the Kakatiya rule led to evolution of dance forms such as Perini Sivatandavam,
also known as “dance of warriors”, the commoners, faced with the challenges of daily
life developed traditions of story-telling coupled with solutions to tide over them through
Golla Suddulu, Oggu Kathalu and Gotralu etc.,
A variant of Yakshagana, Chindu Bhagavatham is performed widely across Telangana.
It is a theatre art form that combines dance, music, dialogue, costume, makeup, and
stage techniques with a unique style and form. The word “ Chindu” in Telugu means
„Jump‟. As their presentation is interspersed with leaps and jumps, it gained the name
of Chindu Bhagavatam. Most of the stories narrated are from “Bhagavatam”. Qawali,
Ghazals and Mushairas evolved under the patronage of Qutub Shahi and the Asaf Jahi
rulers in and around the capital city of Hyderabad.
The Hindu festivals like Ugadi, Srirama Navami, Bonalu, Vinayaka Chaturthi, Dasara,
Deepavali, Sankranthi, Holi, Mahashivarathri are celebrated with pomp, gaiety and
devotion. Dasara is the main festival with the epithet “Pedda panduga”, Bathukamma, a
part of Dasara festivities, is unique to Telangana. This colourful festival has historic,
ecological, societal and religious significance. Women clad in glittering costumes and
jewellery carry beautifully stacked Bathukammas with flowers like Tangedu, Gunugu,
Chamanthi and others to the village or street‟s meeting point.
Bonalu is a Hindu festival, celebrated during the Telugu month of Ashadam (translates
to June/July of Gregorian calendar) wherein Goddess Mahakali is worshipped. The
festival is also considered a thanks giving to the Goddess for fulfilling the desires of
devotees.
While Ramzaan is the main festival of Muslims, Moharram too is celebrated on a large
scale in Telangana. It is known famously as “Peeral Panduga”. Pir means Master.
Many Hindus take part in the festival. Christians, mainly in and around Hyderabad
celebrate Christmas and Good Friday with great fervour and religiosity.
Telangana is a great place for “Bidri” arts and crafts with many astounding handicrafts.
The unique art of silver engraved on metal. Black, gold and silver coatings are applied
on this. It involves various several stages like casting, engraving, inlaying and oxidizing.
The name of this art form is derived from a town called Bidar (currently part of
Karnataka) of the erstwhile Hyderabad State. Banjara Needle Crafts are the traditional
handmade fabrics made by Banjaras (the tribal Gypsies) in Telangana. It is a form of
embroidery and mirror work on fabrics employing the needlecraft. Dhokra or Dokra is
also known as bell mental craft and is widely seen in Jainoor Mandal, Ushegaon and
Chittalbori in Adilabad Dist. The tribal craft produces objects like figurines, tribal gods,
etc. The work consists of folk motifs, peacocks, elephants, horses, measuring bowl,
lamp caskets and other simple art forms and traditional designs. The renowned Nirmal
oil paintings use natural dyes for depicting themes from the epics such as Ramayana
and Mahabharata. Also, the wood paintings and other wooden articles, has great
aesthetic expression. The origin of the Nirmal craft is traced back to the Kakatiya era.
The motifs used for Nirmal craft are floral designs and frescoes from the regions of
Ajanta and Ellora and Mughal miniatures. Telangana is famous world-wide for its
amazing Bronze castings. While using solid casting of icons, the mould is created using
several coatings of different clays on a finished wax model. This process them imparts
fine curves to the cast image.
PRESENT:
The State comprises of 33 districts viz., Adilabad, Bhadradri, Hyderabad, Jagitial,
Janagaon, Jayashankar Bhupalapally, Jogulamba-Gadwal, Kamareddy, Karimnagar,
Khammam, Komaram Bhim Asifabad, Mahabubabad, Mahabubnagar, Mancherial,
Medak, Medchal, Mulugu, Nagarkurnool, Nalgonda, Narayanpet, Nirmal, Nizamabad,
Peddapalli, Rajanna Sircilla, Ranga Reddy, Sanga Reddy, Siddipet, Suryapet,
Vikarabad, Wanaparthy, Warangal Rural, Warangal Urban and Yadadri-Bhuvanagiri.
The capital of the State is Hyderabad which was built by Nizam Dynasty. Telangana is
surrounded by states of Maharashtra; Karnataka; Chattisgarah and Andhra Pradesh.
The state is having 73 Revenue Divisions, 141 towns, 13 Municipal Corporations, 128
Municipalities, 9 Zilla Parishads, 438 Mandal Parishads, 12751 Gram Panchayats and
590 Revenue Mandals, 10434 Revenue villages (as per Census-2011) and 9834
Inhabited villages ( Census -2011) and 600 Un-inhabited villages (census-2011) . As
per 2011 census of India, the population of Telanagana is about 350.04 lakhs which is
2.97% of the total Country‟s population. The density of the population is 312 per Sq
Km. The rural population is 213.95 lakhs. Literacy rate is at 66.54% .
The Hyderabad (Deccan) is the capital of Telangana State. Telugu and Urdu are the
main languages spoken in the region and Marathi and Kannada are also spoken in
some parts of the State. Hyderabad city has a population of about 6.9 million, with
about 9.7 million in Hyderabad metropolitan Region, making it the fourth-most populous
city and sixth-most populous urban agglomeration in India with fastest growing IT
corridor after Bangalore. With an output of US$ 74 billion, Hyderabad is the fifth largest
contributor to India‟s overall gross domestic product.
In the State of Telangana, 45 Banks (Apart from Foreign Banks and Urban Co-operative
Banks) with a network of 5728 branches as on 31st March, 2020. Out of these, 1782
branches are in rural areas, 1282 branches in semi-urban areas, 717 branches in urban
areas and 1947 branches are in metropolitan areas catering the needs of public. For
the overall development of the State, Banks are lending to the priority sector areas for
supporting farm and non-farm activities for giving an impetus to the inclusive growth.
Small Finance Banks and Payment banks operating in the State of Telangana are:
Small Finance Banks: Equitas Small Finance Bank Ltd (14 Branches) Jana Small
Finance Bank Ltd( 1 Branch); Fincare Small Finance Bank Ltd (11 Branches) ;
Suryodaya Small Finance Bank Ltd(1 Br) and Utkarsh Small Finance Bank Ltd (1
Branch). Payment Banks: Airtel Payments Bank Ltd : It is reported that they do not
have branches in Telangana State and they do business through their 2890 Banking
points (BCs).India Post Payments Bank Ltd ( 23 Branches, 5809 Bank Mitra points);
FINO Payments Bank Ltd (1 Branch).
he total geographical area of the State is 114.84 lakh hectares, of which the area
under forest cover is 25.40 lakh hectares, constitutes 22.66% of the land. Gross
cropped area is 62.88 lakh Ha, net cropped area is 49.61 lakh Ha. Gross irrigated area
is 31.64 lakh Ha which accounts for 51.32% of Gross cropped area. Net irrigated area is
22.89 lakh Ha constitutes 46.14% of net cropped area. About 37.25% area is under
cultivation, 14.08% is current fallow lands ( 15.78 lakh Ha) , 7.96% of land is put to non-agricultural uses (8.92 lakh Ha), 5.42% is barren and uncultivable (6.07 lakh Ha) and
7.33% falls under other fallows ( 8.22 lakh Ha) . The remaining 5.29% is under
cultivable waste, permanent pastures and other grazing lands, and land under
miscellaneous tree crops and groves are not included in the net area sown ( 5.93 lakh
Ha). Irrigation intensity i.e., ratio of gross irrigated area to net irrigated area amounted
to 1.36. Erstwhile undivided Nizamabad district had highest irrigation intensity (1.56%)
whereas erstwhile undivided Mahabubnagar had lowest irrigation intensity (1.14%).
As per the Agricultural Census, 2010-11, the number of land holdings in the State is
accounted to 55.54 lakhs and the area held by these holdings is 61.97 lakh Ha. The
average size of the holdings in the State is 1.12 Ha, which is highly uneconomical to
operate. In the State, 62.0 percent of the holdings are marginal (less than 1 Ha) and
the percentage of small holdings ( 1 to 2 Ha) is 23.9%. Thus, marginal and small
holdings constitute about 85.9% of total agricultural holdings in the State, making
agriculture a subsistence source of livelihood for majority of the population. About 14%
of total landholdings in the state were medium, ranging between 2 to 10 Ha, whereas
their share in total area was 40.5%. Fragmentation of landholding and small farm size
pose several challenges in making agriculture a viable activity and calls for “
aggregation” approach by forming farmer producers‟ organizations for reaping the
economies of scale.
Telangana is semi-arid zone area with an annual rainfall of 905.3mm. 80% of which are
from South-West monsoon. The state has four Agro-Climatic Zones(ACZs). Well
irrigation as the main source of irrigation contributes to 82% of the net irrigated area and
the share of canal and tank irrigation is 10% and 4% respectively. The state has been
witnessing high climate variability across all ACZs and drought is a common and
recurrent feature of the State, resulting in fluctuations in net sown area, net irrigated
area and growth of the agriculture sector. 63% of the crop is rainfed, which is exposed
to the hostilities of climate. 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.
Telangana is also drained by several minor rivers such as the Bhima, the Manjira and
Musi etc.,
NEW AGRICULTURE POLICY:
Telangana Government has launched a comprehensive Agriculture Policy by
introducing a new cropping pattern under which farmers will have to cultivate crops in
demand and suit different areas as recommended by the Government. The State is
engaged in consultations with stakeholders, ranging from the academicians to scientists
and farmers, to prepare a “Comprehensive” agriculture policy that would address the
challenges of the State as the arable land increased significantly. The policy would
throw light on the number of rice mills required to process the paddy. The new policy is
aimed at making farming a permanent profitable profession and promote Telangana‟s
agricultural products in the world market.
Farmers will be allowed to take up paddy cultivation in 40 lakh acres and the
Government will suggest what varieties farmers can cultivate.
In view of the huge demand to the Cotton produced in Telangana, the Government
decided to encourage farmers to go for cotton cultivation in 70 lakh acres in the ensuing
Vanakalam(Kharif) season. Govt will provide all marketing facilities to sell quality cotton
at world level so that farmers will get more profits.
Appealing to the farmers to stop cultivating maize in the ensuing farming season,
Government assured farmers to buy Red Gram produced by them. Vegetable will be
grown in 2 lakh acres and normal chillis will be grown in 2 lakh acres in the identified
areas only. The District Collectors to finalize the crop pattern in consultation with the
local agriculture officials. The Govt also announced setting up of food processing SEZs,
establishment of cold storages in every assembly constituency and increase the number
of storage stations in the State.
The Budget process is focused on the following areas
- Crop Production, Maintenance and Marketing
- Investment Credit – spearhead capital formation in agriculture-
- Water Resources
- Farm Mechanization
- Plantation, Horticulture, Sericulture
- Forestry and Waste Land Development
- Animal Husbandry, Poultry, Sheep and Goat Farming
- Agriculture Infrastructure – Storage godowns, Cold Storages and Market Yards
- Land Development
- Food and Agro Processing
- MSME working capital and Investment Credit
- vestment Creditj
- Other Developmental Initiatives
- Area Development Projects
- Doubling of farmers‟ income by 2022
- Climate Change
- Financing of FPOs
The state economy is mainly driven by agriculture. Two important rivers of India – the
Godavari and the Krishna flow through the state providing irrigation. Apart from these
two rivers, there are some other rivers also viz., Bhima, Dindi, Kinnerasani, Manjeera, Manair, Penganga, Pranahitha, Peddavagu, Taliperu etc. Govt. of India has taken up
the river Pranahitha project as National Project.
Rice, cotton, maize, pulses and millets are the major agriculture crops. Horticulture
cops like Mango, papaya, citrus, sapota, tomato, okra are also important crops.
Recently, loose flowers, Gerberra cultivation is started in the state of Telangana. In the
recent times, crops used for vegetable oil production such as sunflower; peanuts and
groundnuts have gain favour.
The state is endowed with variety of soils, ranging from highly fertile alluvial to very poor
sandy soils. The normal annual rainfall of state is 906 mm. It received 80 per cent of
rainfall through South-West monsoon. However, in many parts of Telangana, the
farmers are depending on bore-wells for their agriculture irrigation purpose.
Irrigation in Telangana underwent a major overhaul after rolling out an ambitious
programme to reviving age old projects.
Major Irrigation projects completed:
- Dindi Project
- Kaddam Narayana Reddy Project
- Nagarjuna Sagar Project
- Nizam Sagar Project
- Priyadarshini Jurala Project
- Rajolibanda Diversion Scheme
- Sri Ram Sagar Project Stage-I
Major Irrigation projects on going:
- Dr. BR Ambedkar Pranahita Project
- Flood Flow Canal from SRSP
- Kaleswaram Project
- Lower Manair
- M. Baga Reddy Singur Project
- Mid Manair
- P.V. Narasimha Rao Kanthanapally Sujala Sravanthi
- Sripada Sagar (Yellampally) LIS
- Sriram Sagar Project Stage-II
The state is having rich mineral deposits. The deposits of carbon (coal) are available in
the districts of Adilabad, Karimnagar, Khammam. The state-run Singareni Collieries (a
joint venture with Central Government) is mining the coal in the state. It is a the major
employer in the state. Major limestone deposits are available in the districts of
Nalgonda and Rangareddy where many cement factories are functioning. Apart from the limestone deposits, granite stone and iron ore deposits are also available in the
Khammam district.
Due to high cotton crop, many cotton & ginning mills are located in Adilabad, Nirmal,
Warangal Rural/Urban districts. Because of Nizamsagar, Sriramsagar and Kaleswaram
projects – Karimnagar, Peddapally, Rajanna Sircilla, Siddipet, Warangal, and
Nizamabad districts have become rice bowls for Telangana. Apart from paddy,
Nizamabad is favour for its turmeric crop and the district is having a large market for
turmeric. Apart from these projects, there are another two important projects existed in
Telangana i.e., Nagarjuna Sagar and Srisailam projects.
The Medak, Medchal & Rangareddy districts have a distinction of having biggest
Industrial Cluster at Ramachandrapuram / Patancheru,. Defence factories sites at BDL,
Banu, Ordinance Factory at Eddumailam etc. Manjeera, Singur project, Srisailm project
are main sources of drinking water to Hyderabad city apart from Osmansagar,
Himayatsagar reservoirs.
The Hyderabad Metro and its surroundings housed PSUs like BHEL, HAL, HMT, HCL,
Midhani, DRDL, DLRL, BDL, etc. The city is also famous for its IT companies like –
Infosys, Wipro, Mahindra Satyam, TCS and HCL etc. The world famous pearls are
available at Hyderabad city. There is a special Bangle Market available in the city.
Because of the Govt. of Telangana‟s Industrial Policy many industries are being
established in the region.
(Source: Various magazines & news papers)