A capital city (or just capital) is the area of a ''country, province, region, or state'' regarded as enjoying primary status; although there are exceptions, a capital is almost always a city which physically encompasses the offices and meeting places of the seat of government and is usually fixed by law or by the constitution. An alternative term is political capital, but this phrase has a second meaning based on an alternate sense of the word ''capital''. The capital is frequently, but not necessarily, the largest city of its constituent area and also often a specialized city.

The word ''capital'' is derived from the Latin ''caput'' meaning "head" and, in the United States, the related term ''capitol'' refers to the building where government business is chiefly conducted.

The seats of government in major sub-state jurisdictions are often called "capitals", but this is typically the case only in countries with some degree of federalism, wherein major substate legal jurisdictions have elements of sovereignty. In unitary states, an "administrative centre" or other similar term is typically used for such locations besides the national capital city. For example, the seat of government in a state of the United States is usually called its "capital", but the main city in a region of the United Kingdom is usually not called such, even though in Ireland, a county's main town is usually called its "capital". On the other hand, these four subdivisions of the United Kingdom do have capital cities: Scotland – Edinburgh, Wales – Cardiff, Northern Ireland – Belfast, and England – London. Counties in England, Wales and Scotland have historic county towns, which are often not the largest settlement within the county and invariably no longer exercise political power, as the county is often only ceremonial, and administrative boundaries differ.

In Canada, there is a national capital, and the ten provinces and 3 territories all have capital cities. The states of such countries as Mexico, Brazil (including the famous cities of Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo, capital of their respective states), and Australia all have capital cities. For example, the six state capitals of Australia are Adelaide, South Australia; Brisbane, Queensland; Hobart, Tasmania; Melbourne, Victoria; Perth, Western Australia; and Sydney, New South Wales. In Australia, the term "capital cities" is regularly referred to and includes the aforementioned state capitals plus the federal capital Canberra and Darwin, the capital of the Northern Territory.

In the Federal Republic of Germany, each of its constituent states (or a Länder) has its own capital city, such as Wiesbaden, Mainz, Düsseldorf, Stuttgart, and Munich. Likewise, each of the republics of the Russian Federation has its own capital city.

At the lower administrative subdivisions in various English-speaking countries, terms such as county town, county seat, and borough seat are usually used.

Origins of capital cities

Historically, the major economic center of a state or region often becomes the focal point of political power, and becomes a capital through conquest or federation. These were the cases for Ancient Baghdad, Berlin, Constantinople, London, Madrid, Moscow, Ancient Rome, Peking, Stockholm, Tokyo, and Vienna. The capital city naturally attracts politically motivated people and those whose skills are needed for efficient administration of national or imperial governments, such as lawyers, political scientists, bankers, journalists, and public policy mavens. Sometimes, religious leaders are also involved, such as in the cases of Constantinople (more than one religion), Rome (the Roman Catholic Church), Jerusalem (more than one religion), Ancient Baghdad, London (the Anglican Church), Moscow (the Russian Orthodox Church), Paris, and Peking.

A capital city that is also the prime economic, cultural, or intellectual centre of a nation or an empire is sometimes referred to as a primate city. Such is the case with Athens, Beijing, Brussels, Budapest, Buenos Aires, Cairo, Copenhagen, Dublin, Lima, Lisbon, London, Madrid, Manila, Montevideo, Mexico City, Nairobi, Paris, Prague, Rome, Seoul, Stockholm, Tokyo, Vienna, and Warsaw among national capitals.

The convergence of political and economic or cultural power is by no means universal. Traditional capitals may be economically eclipsed by provincial rivals, as occurred with Nanking by Shanghai, Edinburgh by Glasgow and numerous US state capitals. The decline of a dynasty or culture could also mean the extinction of its capital city, such as occurred with Babylon and Cahokia.

Although many capitals are defined by constitution or legislation, many long-time capitals possess no legal designation. This is the case of Bern, Edinburgh, Lisbon, London, Melbourne, Paris, Toronto and Wellington, for example. They are recognised as capitals as a matter of conventions, and because all or almost all political institutions, such as government departments, supreme court, legislature, embassies, etc., are located in or within close proximity of them.

Deliberately created capital cities

A significant subset of present-day capital cities were deliberately planned by government leaders to house the seat of government of the nation or subdivision. These cities, such as Abuja, Nigeria (1991); Ankara, Turkey (1923); Dhaka, Bangladesh (1971) ; Brasília, Brazil (1960); Canberra, Australia (1927); Islamabad, Pakistan (1960); Frankfort, Kentucky (1792); Jefferson City, Missouri (1821); Jhongsing New Village, Taiwan, Republic of China (1955); New Delhi, India (1911); Oklahoma City, Oklahoma (1889); Ottawa, Canada (1857); Quezon City, Philippines (1948–1976); Raleigh, North Carolina, USA (1792); Washington, USA (1800); and Wellington, New Zealand (1865) satisfy one or both of these situations:

A deliberately planned city that was built expressly to house the seat of government, superseding one that had been located in an established population center. There have been various reasons for this, including overcrowding in that major metropolitan area, and the desire to place the capital city in a location with a better climate (usually a less-tropical one).

A town that was chosen as a compromise among two or more cities (or other political divisions), none of which would allow the other(s) the honor of being the capital city. Usually, the new capital is geographically located roughly equidistant to the competing population centers.

Some examples of the second situation include:

# Canberra, Australia, which was chosen as a compromise located between Melbourne and Sydney. # Frankfort, Kentucky, which is midway between Louisville and Lexington, Kentucky. # Ottawa, Canada, which is located along the boundary between the Province of Quebec and the Province of Ontario - the two most populous of the ten provinces, and also roughly midway between the two most-populous cities of Canada, Montreal, Quebec, and Toronto, Ontario. # Wellington, New Zealand, which is located at the southern tip of the North Island of New Zealand, the more populous island, immediately across the Cook Strait from the South Island. The capital city was moved there from Auckland, in the northern extent of the North Island, due to fears that the then gold-rich South Island would separate to become its own colony.

When the United States of America established its present constitution by writing it in 1787, the question of its capital city arose. Several cities desired to be the national capital: Boston; New York City; Philadelphia; Richmond, Virginia; etc., but none of these were willing to concede this honor to one of the others. Also, there was rivalry between the proposed thirteen States of the United States as to which one would contain the capital city. Given this situation, the compromise was reached to establish a federal district separate from any of the states, and this would contain a brand-new city for the capital. The capital district was given the name District of Columbia, and the capital city of Washington was founded within it. In 1800, Washington was ready to house the federal government for the first time.

The District of Columbia was the first such district to be set aside purposely for a capital city, and this arrangement has been followed by Australia (the Australian Capital Territory), Mexico (the Federal District), and Brazil (where the district and the city both have the same name, Brasília).

Changes in a nation's political regime sometimes result in the designation of a new capital. The newly independent Kazakhstan moved its capital to the existing city of Aqmola. Naypyidaw was founded in Burma's interior with the justification that the former capital, Rangoon, was considered to be overcrowded.

Unorthodox capital city arrangements

A number of cases exist where states have multiple capitals, and there are also several states that have no capital.

Chile: Santiago is the capital even though the National Congress of Chile meets in Valparaíso.

Czech Republic: Prague is the sole constitutional capital. However, Brno is home to all three of the country's highest courts, making it the ''de facto'' capital of the Czech judicial branch.

Finland: During the summer, the President resides at the Kultaranta in Naantali; presidential sessions of the government are held there as well.

France: The French constitution does not recognise any capital city in France. Paris is ''de facto'' capital of France (seat of the presidency, the government, the national assembly and the senate), but the parliament holds its joint congresses in Versailles.

Germany: The official capital Berlin is home to the parliament. However, various ministries are located in the former West German capital of Bonn, which now has the title Federal City. The judicial branch is divided between Karlsruhe, Kassel, and Leipzig.

Malaysia: Kuala Lumpur is the constitutional capital but the federal administrative centre was moved 30 kilometres south to Putrajaya in the late 1990s. The parliament remains in Kuala Lumpur.

Myanmar (Burma): Naypyidaw was designated the national capital in 2005, the same year it was founded, but most government offices and embassies are still located in Yangon (Rangoon).

Nauru: Nauru, a tiny country of only 21 square kilometres (8 sq mi), has no distinct capital city, and thus has a capital district instead.

Sri Lanka: Sri Jayawardenapura Kotte is the official capital and the location of the parliament, while the former capital, Colombo, is now designated as the "commercial capital". However, many government offices are still located in Colombo. Both cities are in the Colombo District.

South Africa: The administrative capital is Pretoria, the legislative capital is Cape Town, and the judicial capital is Bloemfontein. This is the outcome of the compromise that created the Union of South Africa in 1910.

Switzerland: Bern is the ''Federal City'' of Switzerland and functions as ''de facto'' capital. However, the Swiss Supreme Court is located in Lausanne.

Tanzania: Dodoma was designated the national capital in 1973, but most government offices and embassies are still located in Dar es Salaam.

Monaco, Singapore and the Vatican City are city-states, and thus do not have a capital city distinct from the country as a whole.

Capitals that are not the seat of government

Countries in the world where capital and seat of government are currently separated:

Benin: Porto-Novo is the official capital, but Cotonou is the seat of government.

Bolivia: Sucre is still the constitutional capital, but most of the national government long ago abandoned that region for La Paz.

Côte d'Ivoire: Yamoussoukro was designated the national capital in 1983, but most government offices and embassies are still located in Abidjan.

Netherlands: Amsterdam is the constitutional national capital even though the Dutch government, parliament, supreme court, and the residential and work palace of the queen are all located in The Hague. (''For more details see: Capital of the Netherlands'').

International entities

European Union (see details): Brussels, Belgium, is generally considered as the capital of the European Union alongside the French city of Strasbourg where the European Parliament has its main seat and votes because it hosts the major institutions of the EU. However, the judiciary and some of the executive's work is located in Luxembourg and other bodies and agencies are scattered across other cities. Although the main seats are fixed in the EU's treaties which form its legal basis, they do not use the term "capital" for any city.

United Nations: New York City is the main meeting place of the highest bodies of the UN, but significant parts of its structure exist in other cities, such as Vienna, Geneva and The Hague.

The capital as a symbol

With the rise of modern empires and the nation-state, the capital city has become a symbol for the state and its government, and imbued with political meaning. Unlike medieval capitals, which were declared wherever a monarch held his or her court, the selection, relocation, founding, or capture of a modern capital city is an emotional event. For example:

The ruined and almost uninhabited Athens was made capital of newly independent Greece in 1834, four years after the country gained its independence, with the romantic notion of reviving the glory of Ancient Greece. Similarly, following the Cold War and German reunification, Berlin is now once again the capital of Germany. Other restored capital cities include Moscow after the October Revolution.

A symbolic relocation of a capital city to a geographically or demographically peripheral location may be for either economic or strategic reasons (sometimes known as a "forward capital" or spearhead capital). Peter I of Russia moved his government from Moscow to Saint Petersburg to give the Russian Empire a western orientation. The economically significant city of Nafplion became the first capital of Greece, instead of the then unimportant village that was Athens. The Ming emperors moved their capital to Peking from more central Nanking to better supervise the border with the Mongols. During the 1857 war of independence, Indian rebels considered Delhi their capital and Bahadur Shah Zafar was proclaimed emperor, though the ruling British had their capital in Calcutta. In 1877, the British formally held a 'Durbar' in Delhi, proclaiming Queen Victoria as 'Empress of India'. Delhi finally became the colonial capital after the Coronation Durbar of King-Emperor George V in 1911, continuing as independent India's capital from 1947. Other examples include Abuja, Astana, Brasília, Helsinki, Islamabad, Naypyidaw and Yamoussoukro.

The selection or founding of a "neutral" capital city — i.e. one unencumbered by regional or political identities — was meant to represent the unity of a new state when Ankara, Turkey; Bern, Switzerland; Canberra, Australia; Madrid; Ottawa, Ontario; Washington, D.C.; and Wellington, New Zealand became capital cities. Sometimes, the location of a new capital city was chosen to terminate squabbling or possible squabbling between various entities, such as in the cases of Canberra, Ottawa, Washington, and Wellington.

The British-built town of New Delhi represented a simultaneous break and continuity with the past — the location of Delhi being where many imperial capitals were built, e.g., Indraprastha, Dhillika, and Shahjahanabad, but the actual capital being the new British-built town designed by Edwin Lutyens. Wellington, located on the southwestern tip of the North Island of New Zealand, replaced the much more northerly city of Auckland in order to place the national capital close to the South Island and hence to placate its residents.

During the American Civil War, tremendous resources were expended to defend Washington, D.C., which actually bordered on the Confederate States of America (with the Commonwealth of Virginia), from Confederate attack, even though the relatively small Federal Government of the United States of that time could have been moved elsewhere – such as Ohio or New York State relatively easily – in that era of the railroad and the telegraph. Likewise, great resources were expended by the Confederacy, in defending the Confederate capital from attack by the Union, in its deliberately exposed location of Richmond, Virginia, rather than in South Carolina or Alabama.

Capitals in military strategy

The capital city is almost always a primary target in a war, as capturing it usually guarantees capture of much of the enemy government, victory for the attacking forces, or at the very least demoralization for the defeated forces.

In ancient China, where governments were massive centralized bureaucracies with little flexibility on the provincial level, a dynasty could easily be toppled with the fall of its capital. In the Three Kingdoms period, both Shu and Wu fell when their respective capitals of Chengdu and Jianye fell. The Ming dynasty relocated its capital from Nanjing to Beijing, where they could more effectively control the generals and troops guarding the borders from Mongols and Manchus. The Ming was destroyed when the Li Zicheng took their seat of power, and this pattern repeats itself in Chinese history, until the fall of the traditional Confucian monarchy in the 20th century. After the Qing Dynasty's collapse, decentralization of authority and improved transportation and communication technologies allowed both the Chinese Nationalists and Chinese Communists to rapidly relocate capitals and keep their leadership structures intact during the great crisis of Japanese invasion.

National capitals were arguably less important as military objectives in other parts of the world, including the West, because of socioeconomic trends toward localized authority, a strategic modus operandi especially popular after the development of feudalism and reaffirmed by the development of democratic and capitalistic philosophies. In 1204, after the Latin Crusaders captured the Byzantine capital, Constantinople, Byzantine forces were able to regroup in several provinces; provincial noblemen managed to reconquer the capital after 60 years and preserve the empire for another 200 years after that. The British forces sacked various American capitals repeatedly during the Revolutionary War and War of 1812, but American forces could still carry on fighting from the countryside, where they enjoyed support from local governments and the traditionally independent civilian frontiersmen. Exceptions to these generalizations include highly centralized states such as France, whose centralized bureaucracies could effectively coordinate far-flung resources, giving the state a powerful advantage over less coherent rivals, but risking utter ruin if the capital were taken. In their military strategies, traditional enemies of France such as Prussia (in the Franco-Prussian War of 1871) focused on the capture of Paris.

Distances between capital cities (nearest and farthest)

Nearest

:The closest capital cities of two sovereign countries are Vatican City, Vatican, and Rome, Italy, one of which is inside the other (the distance between the middle points, St. Peter's Square/Piazza Venezia is about 2 km).

:The two second closest capital cities between two sovereign countries are Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Brazzaville, Republic of the Congo, which are about 1.6 km (1 mile) apart, one upstream from the other on different banks of the Congo River (the distance between the middle points is about 10 km).

:Vienna and Bratislava, sometimes erroneously considered the two closest capitals, are actually apart.

Farthest

:The longest distance from one capital of a sovereign country to the one closest to it is between Wellington, New Zealand, and Canberra, Australia. Each is nearer to the other than to the capital of any other sovereign country.

:The greatest distance between the capitals of two sovereign countries that share a border is , between Pyongyang, North Korea and Moscow, Russia.

See also

List of capital cities

List of former national capitals

South American capital cities

Temporary capital

Specialized City

List of capital cities by altitude

List of capital cities by relative size

References

Category:Administrative divisions Category:Capitals

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Coordinates	12°58′0″N77°34′0″N
Type	region
Native name	Telangana
Other name	తెలంగాణ
State name	Andhra Pradesh
Capital name	Hyderabad
Largest city	Hyderabad
Skyline	India Telangana locator map.svg
Skyline caption	Map of India with the Telangana region highlighted in red
Official languages	Telugu
Area total	114840
Area total cite
Population total	35286757
Population as of	2011
Population density cite	}}

Telangana (Telugu: తెలంగాణ, ,) is a region in the state of Andhra Pradesh, India. It has borders with the states of Maharashtra on the north and north-west, Karnataka on the west, Chattisgarh on the north-east, Orissa and Coastal Andhra region on the east and Rayalaseema region on the south.

The Telangana region has an area of , and a population of 35,286,757 (2011 census) which is 41.6% of Andhra Pradesh state population.

The Telangana region has 10 districts: Adilabad, Hyderabad, Khammam, Karimnagar, Mahbubnagar, Medak, Nalgonda, Nizamabad, Rangareddy, and Warangal. The Krishna and Godavari rivers flow through the region from west to east.

History

Satavahana dynasty (230 BCE to 220 CE) originated from the lands between the Godavari and Krishna River. Kotilingala in Karimnagar was their first capital, before moving to Dharanikota. Excavations at Kotilingala revealed coinage of Simukha, the first Satavahana emperor. The Satavahana Empire was important in repelling foreign empires from India, such as the Indo-Greeks, and preserving Indian culture.

The region experienced its golden age during the reign of the Kakatiya dynasty, a Telugu dynasty that ruled most parts of what is now Andhra Pradesh from 1083 to 1323. Ganapatideva was known as the greatest of the Kakatiyas, and the first after the Satavahanas to bring the entire Telugu area under one rule. He put an end to the rule of the Cholas, who accepted his suzerainty in the year 1210. He established order in his vast dominion that stretched from the Godavari delta in the east to Raichur (in modern day Karnataka) in the west and from Karimnagar and Bastar (in modern day Chattisgarh) in the north to Srisailam and Tripurantakam, near Ongole, in the south. It was during his reign that the Golkonda fort was constructed. Rudrama Devi and Prataparudra were prominent rulers from the Kakatiya dynasty.

Telangana came under the Muslim rule of the Delhi Sultanate in the 14th century, followed by Bahmanis, Qutb Shahis, and the Mughals. As the Mughal Empire began to disintegrate in the early 18th century, the Muslim Asafjahi dynasty established a separate state known as Hyderabad. Later, Hyderabad entered into a treaty of subsidiary alliance with the British Empire, and was the largest and most populous princely state in India. Telangana was never under direct British rule, unlike the Coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema regions of Andhra Pradesh, which were part of British India's Madras Presidency.

Telangana Rebellion

The Telangana Rebellion was a peasant revolt which was later supported by the Communists. It took place in the former princely state of Hyderabad between 1946 and 1951. This was led by the Communist Party of India.

The revolt began in the Nalgonda district and 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 Osman Ali Khan, Asif Jah VII. The initial aims were to do away with illegal and excessive exploitation meted out by these feudal lords in the name of bonded labour (Vetti Chakiri). The most strident demand was for all debts of the peasants to be written off.

Among the well-known individuals at the forefront of the movement were leaders like Ravi Narayan Reddy, Nalla Narasimhulu, Sateesh Arjula, Anabheri Prabhakar Rao, Puchalapalli Sundaraiah, Chandra Rajeswara Rao, Suddala Hanumanthu, the Urdu poet Makhdoom Mohiuddin, Hassan Nasir, Bhimreddy Narasimha Reddy, Mallu Venkata Narasimha Reddy, Mallu Swarajyam.

The violent phase of the movement ended after the central government sent in the army. Starting in 1951, the CPI shifted to a more moderate strategy of seeking to bring communism to India within the constraints of Indian democracy.

Post-independence

When India became independent from the British Empire in 1947, the Nizam of Hyderabad did not want to merge with Indian Union and wanted to remain independent under the special provisions given to princely states. He even asked for a corridor, a passage from India. Rebellion had started throughout the state against the Nizam's rule and his army, known as the Razakars. The Government of India annexed Hyderabad State on 17 September 1948, in an operation by the Indian Army called Operation Polo. When India became independent, Telugu-speaking people were distributed in about 22 districts, 9 of them in the former Nizam's dominions of the princely state of Hyderabad, 12 in the Madras Presidency (Andhra region), and one in French-controlled Yanam.

The Central Government 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 bureaucrats from Madras State and Bombay State. In 1952, Dr. Burgula Ramakrishna Rao was elected Chief minister of Hyderabad State in the first democratic election. During this time there were violent agitations by some Telanganites to send back bureaucrats from Madras state, and to strictly implement rule by natives of Hyderabad.

Meanwhile, Telugu-speaking areas in the Andhra region were carved out of the erstwhile Madras state on the fast unto death by Potti Sri Ramulu to create Andhra State in 1953, with Kurnool as its capital.

Merger of Telangana and Andhra

In December 1953, the States Reorganization Commission was appointed to study the creation of states on linguistic basis. The States Reorganisation Commission (SRC) was not in favour of an immediate merger of Telangana region of with Andhra state, despite their common language.

Paragraph 382 of the States Reorganisation Commission Report (SRC) said "opinion in Andhra is overwhelmingly in favour of the larger unit; public opinion in Telangana has still to crystallize itself. Important leaders of public opinion in Andhra themselves seem to appreciate that the unification of Telangana with Andhra, though desirable, should be based on a voluntary and willing association of the people and that it is primarily for the people of Telangana to take a decision about their future". The people of Telangana had several concerns. The region had a less-developed economy than Andhra, but with a larger revenue base (mostly because it taxed rather than prohibited alcoholic beverages), which people of Telangana feared might be diverted for use in Andhra. They feared that planned irrigation projects on the Krishna and Godavari rivers would not benefit Telangana proportionately, even though people of Telangana controlled the headwaters of the rivers. It was feared that the people of Andhra, who had access to higher standards of education under the British rule, would have an unfair advantage in seeking government and educational jobs.

The commission proposed that the Telangana region be constituted as a separate state with a provision for unification with Andhra state, after the 1961 general elections, if a resolution could be passed in the Telangana state assembly with a two-thirds majority.

The Chief Minister of Hyderabad State, Burgula Ramakrishna Rao, expressed his view that a majority of Telangana people were against the merger. He supported the Congress party's central leadership decision to merge Telangana and Andhra despite opposition in Telangana. Andhra state assembly passed a resolution on 25 November 1955 to provide safeguards to Telangana. The resolution said, "Assembly would further like to assure the people in Telangana that the development of that area would be deemed to be special charge, and that certain priorities and special protection will be given for the improvement of that area, such as reservation in services and educational institutions on the basis of population and irrigational development." Telangana leaders did not believe the safeguards would work. With lobbying from Andhra Congress leaders and with pressure from the Central leadership of Congress party, 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.

Prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru initially was skeptical of merging Telangana with Andhra State, fearing a "tint of expansionist imperialism" in it. He compared the merger to a matrimonial alliance having "provisions for divorce" if the partners in the alliance cannot get on well.

Following the Gentlemen's agreement, the central government established a unified Andhra Pradesh on November 1, 1956. The agreement provided reassurances to Telangana in terms of power-sharing as well as administrative domicile rules and distribution of expenses of various regions.

Anti-Nehru politics emerged with the repression of the Telengana movement; many within the Congress Party extended their hands to leftist causes. Feroze Gandhi was among them.

Separate Telangana state movement

History of the movement

After the formation of Andhra Pradesh state, the people of Telangana expressed dissatisfaction over the implementation of the agreements and guarantees.

In December 1968 OU students organised a rally to protest against discrimination in government jobs against Telangana people. Keshav Rao Jadhav and Sudershan Singh both teachers supported the students.

Discontent intensified when some of the guarantees agreed upon were supposed to lapse in January, 1969. Student agitation for the proper implementation of the guarantees began at Osmania University in Hyderabad and spread to other parts of the region. This agitation came to an end in September 1972 with the merger of Telangana Praja Samithi with Congress and people realised that the Prime Minister was not inclined towards a separate state of Telangana.

Due to Jai Andhra agitation in the Seema-Andra region in 1973, protesting against the protections (mulki rules) given for Telangana region, the Government of India diluted the protections in Gentlemen's agreement by initiating the Six point formula.

Various political parties were formed on a platform of pursuing for separate statehood for Telangana region, including the Telangana Praja Samithi party in 1969, which won 11 out of 13 Parliamentory seats in 1971.

In the 1990s, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) promised a separate Telangana state if they came to power.

A new party called Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS), led by Kalvakuntla Chandrashekar Rao (KCR), was formed in 2001 with the single-point agenda of creating a separate Telangana State with Hyderabad as its capital.

In the 2004 Assembly and Parliament elections, the Congress party promised a separate Telangana State and the TRS had an electoral alliance in the Telangana region. Congress came to power in the state and formed a coalition government at the centre. TRS joined the coalition government in 2004 and was successful in making a separate Telangana state a part of the common minimum programme of the coalition government.

In September 2006, TRS withdrew support from the Congress-led coalition government because of the failure of fulfilling the promise to create a separate Telangana state.

In July 2008, Devender Goud and E. Peddi Reddy resigned from Telugu Desam Party(TDP) and formed a new party called Nava Telangana Praja Party (NTPP) with Telangana formation as its main goal.

After extensive internal discussions, the TDP, the main opposition party in the state, announced its support for the creation of separate Telangana state on 9 October 2008. The Telugu Desam Party promised to work towards creation of separate Telangana state.

The Praja Rajyam Party (PRP), founded by Telugu Matinee cinema actor Chiranjeevi, supported Telangana statehood. The Nava Telangana Praja Party announced that it would merge with PRP after it concluded that there was not enough political space for two sub-regional Telangana parties that had Telananga statehood as their main agenda.

On 29 November 2009, TRS president K. Chandrashekar Rao (KCR) started a fast-unto-death, demanding that the Congress party introduce a Telangana bill in Parliament. He was arrested by the government of Andhra Pradesh. Student organizations, employee unions, and various organizations joined the movement. General strikes shut down Telangana on 6 and 7 December. Student organizations planned a massive rally at the state Assembly on 10 December. The government warned that the rally did not have permission and deployed police troops throughout Telangana. All opposition parties in the state favoured creation of Telangana state at an all-party meet held on 7 December.

On 9 December 2009, Union Minister of Home Affairs P. Chidambaram announced that the Indian government would start the process of forming a separate Telangana state, pending the introduction and passage of a separation resolution in the Andhra Pradesh assembly. KCR ended his 11-day fast, saying from his hospital bed that this was a "true victory of the people of Telangana."

Pro-Telangana supporters celebrated the central government decision, while those from the Coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema regions (Andhra region) protested. Due to protests in the Seema-Andhra region, On 23 December, the Government of India announced that no action on Telangana would be taken until a consensus was reached by all parties. Rallies, hunger strikes, and suicides continued throughout Telangana to protest against the delay in bifurcating the State. The all-party Telangana Joint Action Committee (JAC) started relay hunger strikes and threatened the resignations of all legislators on 28 January, demanding that the Centre spell out its intentions and create a timetable for change. On 3 February the government announced the five-member Srikrishna committee on Telangana that would look into the issue, with a deadline of 31 December 2010.

Srikrishna Committee report

The Srikrishna committee on Telangana submitted its report in two volumes to the Home Ministry of India on 30 December 2010. In an all-party meeting on 6 January 2011, the Home ministry made the 505-page Srikrishna committee report public. Section 9-3 (page 440) of the report discusses six solutions.

The Committee announced that they were recommending keeping the State united(one of option- which they testified is not possible in present situation), and advised constitutional and statutory measures for socio-economic development and political empowerment of Telangana region through the creation of a statutorily empowered Telangana Regional Council. Telangana leaders say the best option from the Sri Krishna committee report is the formation of separate Telangana state with Hyderabad as its capital. They plan to pressure the Central government to zero in on this option as the only workable one.

On March 23, 2011, Justice L Narasimha Reddy of Andhra Pradesh high court ordered central government to make contents of 8th chapter of Sri Krishna Committee, so called 'secret report'. Justice in his 60 page judgement said "The Committee travelled beyond the terms of reference in its endeavour to persuade the Union of India not to accede to the demand for Telangana". The judgement (in para 75, 80 94) also quoted the SKC report's 8th chapter which advised central govt on how to manage Telangana political parties, how to manage Telangana public opinion using local media virtually owned by Seema-Andhra industrialists and what kind of law and order methods to be used. The justice further said(in para 103) "The maneuver suggested by the Committee in its secret supplementary note poses an open challenge, if not threat, to the very system of democracy."

After the SKC Report

On February 17, 2011 noncooperation movement was started and it last for 16days which was participated by 300,000 government employees and caused Rs 8 billion per day in revenue to government.

In February and March, Assembly session was boycotted for weeks and Parliament session was disrupted for several days by Telangana representatives.

Miilion March was organized by Telangana JAC in Hyderabad on March 10, 2010. In a move to disrupt the march, police shutdown arrested over hundred thousand activists through out the region and closed down entry to Hyderabad city, stopped transaportation service, traffic was diverted and no one was allowed to areas close to the venue 50 to 100 thousand people reached venue by hoodwinking police and organized the march. . Some Telangana activists damaged 16 statues of personalties hailed form Seema-Andhra representing Telugu culture language on Tank Bund, the venue. They threw some of the remnants into the lake. Top leaders of all political parties in the state including KCR and various organizations condemned the vandalism.

On July 4 and 5, 2011, 100 out of 118(1 vacant) Telangana MLAs in the state, 12 out of 15 Telangana ministers, 13 out of 17 Telangana MPs in Lok Sabha, 1 Rajyasabha MP(Congress), 20 MLCs resigned protesting delay in the formation of Telangana. Resigned included 44 out of 53 ruling Congress party's MLAs from Telangana, 9 out of 12 ruling Congress party MPs in Lok Sabha from Telangana. Except 18 MLAs; MIM(7), Congress(9) (including two ministers, Deputy speaker and Deputy CM) CPM(1), Lok Satta(1); the rest of the Telangana MLAs have resigned.

Geography

Telangana is situated in the central stretch of the eastern seaboard of the Indian Peninsula. Of the three regions of the state of Andhra Pradesh, Telangana has the largest area, with . The Deccan plateau is drained by two major rivers, the Godavari and the Krishna. 69% of the Krishna River and 79% of the Godavari River catchment area is in Telangana region. Telangana is also drained by other minor rivers such as Manair, Bhima, Dindi, Kinnerasani, Manjeera, Munneru, Moosi, Penganga, Praanahita, and Peddavagu and Taliperu.

The area is divided into two main regions, the Eastern Ghats and the plains. The surface is dotted with low depressions.

Natural resources

The Telangana region has rich natural resources. 45% of the forest area in Andhra Pradesh state is in Telangana region, spread across five districts. 20% of the coal deposits in the country are in Telangana region. The Singareni Collieries Company excavates coal for industrial purposes and for thermal power stations. The power generated is supplied to the entire of South India. There are limestone deposits in the region, which cater to cement factories. Telangana has other resources such as bauxite and mica.

Demography and language

According to the Backward Regions Grant Fund 2009–10, 13 backward districts are located in Andhra Pradesh; 9 (Except Hyderabad) are from Telangana region and the rest are from other regions.

Telangana (including Hyderabad) has 86% Hindu, 12.4% Muslim, and 1.2% Christian population. Hyderabad city has 55.4% Hindu, 41.2% Muslim, 2.4% Christian population. Other districts in Telangana region (outside of Hyderabad district) have 8.4% of the Muslim population.

More than 90% of Telangana people speak the Telangana dialect of Telugu, which is primarily Telugu with Urdu influences. About 11% of Telangana people speak Hyderabadi Urdu. Urdu speakers are mostly Muslims, though people of other ethnicities also use Urdu for day-to-day life. Hindi is spoken by people from other states of North and Central India. The people boardering other states speak Kannada and Marathi.

Culture and identity

Telangana has its own distinctive culture and identity. The Hyderabad's as Deccani or Dakkini culture is evolved on its own as a distinctive culture due to confluence of different people who came from different places to serve under the Golkonda rulers.

Festivals

Bonalu, Bathukamma, Diwali, Dassera, Eid-ul-Fitr, Eid al-Adha, Milad un Nabi, Christmas and Ugadi are prominent festivals in Telangana. Other festivals of Hindus and Muslims such as Holi, Raksha Bandhan, Eid-ul-Fitr and Milad un Nabi are also celebrated with equal enthusiasm as in rest of India. The Sankranti festival is celebrated at the beginning of harvest season, generally, on January 14 every year. Bathukamma and Bonalu are regional festivals of Telangana.

Literature

BammeraPothana, the poet who composed the classic SriMad Maha Bhagavatamu, a Telugu translation of Sri Bhagavatham, authored by Veda Vyasa in Sanskrit, belongs to Telangana region. Golkonda Nawab Muhammed Quli Qutub Shah had the distinction of being the first Saheb-e-dewan Urdu poet and is credited with introducing a new sensibility into prevailing genres of Persian/Urdu poetry . Other prominent poets of the Telangana region in the early era include Kancherla Gopanna or Bhakta Ramadasu, Gona Budda Reddy, Palkuriki Somanatha, Mallinātha Sūri, Hulukki Bhaskara and in modern era poets include Padma Vibhushan Kaloji Narayana Rao, Sahitya Akademy award recipient Dasarathi Krishnamacharya and Jnanpith award recipient Dr. C. Narayana Reddy. PV Narasimha Rao PM and Well known author of many popular Books. He was awarded by Indian Government for few of his Books.

See also

States Reorganization Act

Kosta/Coastal Andhra

Rayalaseema

Uttarandhra

Samaikhya Andhra

List of notable Telangana people

References

External links

Telugu Greetings for Telangana People

Telangana Talks - Voice your opinion for Separation

Demand for Telangana State: genuine and justified., Vijaya Bhaskar, 2010

Official history of AP on AP Government website

Telangana movement article in US Library of Congress

Committee on Telangana surpluses – 1969 Report by Justice Bhargava

Telangana Information Task Force – by rashu.

Subregionalism in India – A case of Telangana by Duncan B. Forrester. Alternate link

Planning Commission Document: Regional Balances in AP

The Historical Context of Andhra and Telangana, 1949–56 – Economic & Political Weekly, February 20, 2010 vol xlv no 8

State reorganization committee reports at Wiki Source

Fasting, Mining, Politicking? Telangana and the Burdens of History, D. Parthasarathy

Modern Hyderabad(Deccan) by John Law, 1914

The Hyderabad Political System and its Participants by KAREN LEONARD ; Source: The Journal of Asian Studies, Vol. 30, No. 3 (May, 1971), pp. 569–582 Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/2052461

Nizam – British Relations 1724–1857 by Sarojini Regani published 1963

Srikrishna Committee Report – Vol I (Main Report)

Sri Krishna Committee Report – Vol II (Appendix to the report)

Srikrishna Committee on Telangana: Recommendations at Variance with the Analysis - C.H Hanumanth Rao

Category:People from Telangana Category:Regions of India Category:Regions of Andhra Pradesh Category:Proposed states and union territories in India Category:Telangana

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Coordinates	12°58′0″N77°34′0″N
name	10 Years
background	group_or_band
origin	Knoxville, Tennessee, USA
genre	Alternative metal, post-grunge
years active	1999–present
label	Universal Records
website	www.10yearsmusic.com
current members	Jesse HasekRyan "Tater" JohnsonLewis "Big Lew" CosbyBrian Vodinh
past members	Mike UnderdownAndy ParksMatt Wantland }}

10 Years is an American alternative metal band, formed in Knoxville, Tennessee in 1999.

History

Early Years, ''Into the Half Moon'' (1999–2001)

10 Years was initially formed in Knoxville, Tennessee in 1999 with singer Mike Underdown, drummer Brian Vodinh, bassist Lewis Cosby, and guitarists Ryan "Tater" Johnson (also of The American Plague) and Matt Wantland. In 2001, Cosby left and the band recruited Andy Parks on bass. They independently recorded ''Into the Half Moon'' the same year.

''Killing All That Holds You'', ''The Autumn Effect'' (2002–2006)

Lead vocalist Mike Underdown left the band to pursue a career in acting. 10 Years soon recruited current vocalist Jesse Hasek from another local band. In 2002, Parks decided to leave the band and Cosby returned. The band then released their independent album ''Killing All That Holds You'' in 2004.

10 Years was then signed to Universal Records in 2005 and released their major label debut, ''The Autumn Effect'' on August 16, 2005 with the songs "Wasteland" and "Through the Iris" picking up regional radio play. Their first single, "Wasteland" spent over 12 months on the rock charts, finally reaching #1 at active rock radio in December 2005.

That same summer, the band toured with Disturbed and Ill Niño. In the fall of 2005, they toured with Breaking Benjamin and Smile Empty Soul, then followed up with the Masters of Horror tour with Mudvayne and Sevendust. They opened for Korn and Mudvayne on Korn's ''See You on the Other Side'' tour. They also toured with Korn and Deftones on the Family Values Tour, which started in late July 2006.

In mid February 2006, "Wasteland" reached #1 on the ''Billboard'' Alternative Songs chart. "Wasteland" has been certified Gold by the RIAA.

In mid-2006, the band toured Australia in a lineup which included Hatebreed, Disturbed and Korn.

Their first music video, "Wasteland", addresses the social problem of human rights as well as addiction around the world. The video received a nomination for Best Direction and Best Art Direction at the 2006 MTV Video Music Awards, but did not win either.

On March 27, 2006, an EP was released on iTunes containing acoustic versions of "Wasteland" and other tracks from ''The Autumn Effect''.

''Division'' (2006–2008)

On November 19, 2006, 10 Years unveiled and confirmed the title "Division" for their second album. The band would begin recording Division in late June 2007 after spending the better part of a year writing.

Lewis told in an interview that the album is "so different from the first one [The Autumn Effect], but it's still 10 Years," and, "It just sounds like [the songs] would be from a totally different album, which was, you know, the goal." It was also revealed that the track titled "Focus" was co-written with Stone Temple Pilots and former Army of Anyone guitarist Dean DeLeo.

On May 21, 2007 a demo song titled "All Your Lies" from Division was released onto their MySpace along with a post stating the band had chosen producer Rick Parasher to produce the new album. On September 7, the band announced on their MySpace that the album was finished and would be released in 2008, following a tour with Dir En Grey, Sevendust, Operator, Thousand Foot Krutch and Chevelle.

On January 29, 2008, "Beautiful," the new single from Division, was released to iTunes and a snippet was also posted on the band's MySpace page. ''Division'' was released on May 13, 2008 after being pushed back due to finalization of the album's artwork.

10 Years was featured on the Revolution Stage of Linkin Park's Summer Projekt Revolution 2008 tour with Atreyu, Hawthorne Heights and Armor For Sleep.

They went on tour with Mudvayne until mid December 2008.

''Feeding the Wolves'' (2009–present)

10 Years announced that their upcoming third major label album would be entitled ''Feeding the Wolves''. The album was produced by Grammy-nominated producer Howard Benson and mixed by Chris "Lord" Alge. The band has mentioned the album is of their heaviest material to date and "very similar to some of their early songs."

Throughout the first half of 2010, the band went back and forth between putting on live shows and working in the studio. Before the album was released, the band debuted new songs at live performances such as "Dead in the Water", "Now is the Time", and the new album's first single "Shoot It Out".

On June 12, 2010, "Shoot It Out" was featured on Sirius/XM Radio. The track was released to radio later that month, and was made available for download on iTunes July 6. ''Feeding the Wolves'' was released on August 31, 2010.

To promote the album's release, the band opened Shinedown's 2010 Carnival of Madness summer tour alongside Chevelle, Puddle of Mudd, and Sevendust. In the fall they joined Sevendust again on the Hard Drive Live tour with support from Since October and Anew Revolution.

In December, the band went on a mini-headline tour, where they played some older songs that they had not played in some time. February 2011, their new single "Fix Me" releases to radio while they headline a spring tour with Hollywood Undead.

On June 17 and 18 the band shot a music video for "Fix Me" in Columbus, Ohio with production company Thunder Down Country. The video was released via YouTube on August 9, 2011.

Band members

Current

Jesse Hasek – Vocals (2002–present)

Ryan "Tater" Johnson – Guitar, Backing Vocals (1999–present)

Lewis Cosby – Bass (1999–present)

Brian Vodinh – Guitar, Backing Vocals (2009–present); Drums (1999–2009)

Matt Brown – Drums (2010–present)

Live

Sam Anderson – Drums (2010)

Kyle Mayer – Drums (2010)

Former

Mike Underdown – Vocals (1999–2001)

Matt Wantland – Guitar (1999–2009)

Discography

Studio albums

Year	Album details	Peak chart positions
		!style="width:3em;font-size:75%"	!style="width:3em;font-size:75%"
2001	''Into the Half Moon''	* Released: 2001	Compact Disc>CD
2004	''Killing All That Holds You''	* Released: 2004	Universal Records>Universal	* Format: CD
2005	''The Autumn Effect''	* Released: August 16, 2005	* Label: Universal Republic	* Format: CD
2008		* Released: May 13, 2008	* Label: Universal Republic	* Format: CD
2010		* Released: August 31, 2010	* Label: Universal Republic	* Format: CD

Extended plays

2006: ''Acoustic EP''

Singles

Year	Title	Peak chart positions	Album
!style="width:3em;font-size:75%"	!style="width:3em;font-size:75%"	!style="width:3em;font-size:75%"
2005
	"Through the Iris"
"Waking Up"
2009	"Actions & Motives"
2010	"Shoot It Out"
2011	"Fix Me"

References

External links

Official Site

Category:American post-grunge musical groups Category:Musical groups from Knoxville, Tennessee Category:Musical groups established in 1999 Category:Rock music groups from Tennessee Category:Musical quartets

de:10 Years es:10 Years fr:10 Years (groupe) it:10 Years lt:10 Years pl:10 Years pt:10 Years ru:10 Years

Cool Breeze is a 1st generation Dungeon Family artist, and creator of the hip hop term, and subsequent song "Dirty South". The song is featured on Goodie Mob's 1995 debut LP ''Soul Food'', and the term has become the unofficial name for describing the hip-hop nation's southern US region. Cool Breeze has appeared on many Dungeon Family albums, and has appeared on songs with other artists such as Kurupt, Rick Ross, Lee Majors, Nivea & Eightball. He released his debut solo LP, ''East Point's Greatest Hits'' in 1999.

In 2001, he joined up with two rappers from a group called Sniper Unit and became known as Freddie Calhoun. The name 'Calhoun' derives from the street in the East Washingotn Neighborhood of East Point, GA, Calhoun Avenue. Calhoun Avenue runs through Martel Homes and to surrounding outside streets. Cool Breeze makes references to Calhoun Avenue, Martel Homes, O.J. Hurd Homes, Cleveland Avenue, Washington Road, Stone Road, and other known East Point, GA locations throughout his rhymes.

Discography

Albums

''East Point's Greatest Hits''

''Made in the Dirdy South'' (As The Calhouns)

Singles

"Cre-A-Tine" (From East Point's Greatest Hits)

"Watch For The Hook" (From East Point's Greatest Hits) features Outkast and Goodie Mob

"Decatur Psalm" (From ATLiens, Outkast)

"Angelic Wars" (From Set It Off Soundtrack)

"Gangsta Partna" (From Hoodlum (soundtrack))

"Dirty South" (From Soul Food, Goodie Mob)

Filmography

''Mystery Men''

References

External links

Cool Breeze's Official Myspace

Category:Dungeon Family Category:Year of birth missing (living people) Category:Living people

es:Cool Breeze