Today, the youngest state in India, Telangana, turns eight. The state was officially separated from Andhra Pradesh and became the 29th state on June 2, 2014. Telangana is now India’s 28th state after Jammu and Kashmir were designated as union territories.
On Telangana Formation Day, the Ministry of Culture organised an event at the Dr Ambedkar International Centre. Amit Shah, Union Home Minister, is the chief guest at the event. Meenakshi Lekhi, Minister of State for External Affairs and Culture will also attend the event.
This is the first time the central government will commemorate Telangana Formation Day. The event’s main purpose is to showcase the culture, architectural magnificence, heritage, and real heroes of the land.
Telangana government released the state’s development report
On K Chandrashekar Rao’s eighth year in power in Telangana, which coincided with the state’s formation day on Thursday, the state government released a 172-page ‘progress report’ showcasing the developmental works carried out during his tenure that benefited the public.
The ruling government outlined all the schemes in its report that have benefited a large portion of the state’s population, such as Shaadi Mubarak, KCR kits, Kalyana Laxmi, Rythu Bima, Rythu Bandhu, and Aasara pensions.
According to the reports, approximately 63 lakh farmers have been getting Rythu Bandhu twice a year, whereas, for the Kharif season, nearly 60.83 lakh farmers received the same.
The Rythu Bima, a scheme that benefits 80,861 families, covers 35.64 lakh farmers for whom the state government paid the LIC a premium of around Rs 14,000 crore. Under the free sheep distribution scheme, the government has distributed 81.60 lakh sheep to 3.88 lakh recipients.
As per the KCR Kit scheme, which was launched in 2017 with the goal of increasing institutional deliveries and lowering maternal and infant mortality, the report states that it is relevant to deliveries in government hospitals for two live children and includes a cash component of Rs 12,000 for a male child and Rs 13,000 for a female child.
According to the report, since the government took office in 2014, Rs 1,00,116 each has been paid to 11,45,920 recipients under the Kalyana Lakshmi and Shaadi Mubarak schemes. The scheme covers all Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, and Backward Classes.
As per the KCR Kit scheme, which was launched in 2017 to increase institutional deliveries and lowering maternal and infant mortality, the report states that it is relevant to deliveries in government hospitals for two live children and includes a cash component of Rs 12,000 for a male child and Rs 13,000 for a female child.
According to the report, since the government took office in 2014, 1,00,116 has been paid to 11,45,920 recipients under the Kalyana Lakshmi and Shaadi Mubarak schemes. The scheme covers all Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, and Backward Classes.
Since 2014, 13.31 lakh Arogyasri scheme recipients have received treatment for free, totalling Rs 5.817 crore.
Telangana’s information technology and IT-enabled services exports increased by 26.14 per cent to 1,83,569 crore in the fiscal year ended March 2022, up from 1,45,522 crore in the past year.
Formation of the youngest state: Telangana
On November 1, 1956, Telangana merged with Andhra Pradesh to form a linguistic state with a Telugu-speaking population.
The leaders from the Telangana region accused the Andhra Pradesh government of not investing in the development of Telangana, and they also accused the Andhra Pradesh government of taking their jobs and lands. Andhra Pradesh, especially the Telangana region, saw a violent protest for a separate state in 1969, followed by a separate Andhra Pradesh in 1972.
Various social groups, student unions, and government employees all played important roles in the 1969 agitation. As a result, then-Prime Minister Indira Gandhi devised a six-point formula to speed up the development of backward regions.
When the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) pledged its support to demand a separate Telangana state in 1997, the movement took a political turn. The party also promised “one vote two states” during its election campaign.
In 2001, K. Chandrasekara Rao founded the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) to revive the movement. The formation of states such as Uttarakhand, Jharkhand, and Chhattisgarh fueled demand for Telangana previously. Sonia Gandhi, the Congress president, stated during her campaign for the 2004 Lok Sabha elections that she would respect the sentiments of those who have been calling for a separate Telangana state.
Three years later, TRS allied with Congress and won five seats in Lok Sabha and 26 seats in Assembly.
When TRS President KCR announced a fast-unto-death supporting Telangana statehood, the movement sped up. When he was on his way to the protest site, he was stopped by state police and taken to jail. The movement drew in students, workers, and various other groups from across the state. During the next ten days, the entire Telangana region came to a halt.
As KCR’s health deteriorated, he continued his fast even while in hospital, forcing the UPA government in Delhi to announce the formation of Telangana on December 9, 2009, only to reverse course two weeks later on December 23, 2009. This prompted 17 pro-Telangana students to fast until death in front of Osmania University.
On February 3, 2010, the Centre convened a panel led by Justice (Retd.) B.N. Srikrishna to look into a long-term solution to the problem. After extensive stakeholder consultation, the panel submitted its report, which was released on January 6, 2010.
A panel led by Justice (Retd.) B.N. Srikrishna was formed on February 3, 2010, to “bring about a permanent solution” to the statehood demand. The panel met 30 times, travelled to 23 districts and 35 villages, and met with over 100 organisations. The division was not recommended in the report.
On July 1, 2013, the Congress Working Committee (CWC) passed a resolution recommending the formation of Telangana. Meanwhile, the dissent continued, prompting the Centre to form a Group of Ministers to investigate the situation. In December 2013, the Union Cabinet approved the creation of Telangana with ten districts based on the ministerial group’s report.
In 2014, the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Bill was introduced in Parliament and passed. Hyderabad was supposed to be the common capital at the time.
In the April 2014 general elections, the Telangana Rashtra Samithi won 63 of the 119 seats and went on to form the government. Telangana’s first Chief Minister was K. Chandrashekar Rao. The state of Telangana was formally established on June 2, 2014.
After 57 years, Telangana as a separate state was formed.