Factfile on Telangana
The
Factfile on Telangana, The name Telangana is thought to have been derived from
the word Trilinga, as in the Trilinga Desa, which translates to “the country of
the three lingas”.
According
to a Hindu legend, Shiva descended in the lingam form on three mountains,
Kaleshwaram, Srisailam and Draksharama, which marked the boundaries of the
Trilingadesa, later called Telinga, Telunga or Telugu.
Telinga
is mentioned in Mahabharata as “Telingadesha” whose people fought in
Kurukshetra War with the Pandavas against the Kauravas.
The
word “Telinga” changed over time to “Telangana” and the name “Telangana” was
designated to distinguish the predominantly Telugu-speaking region of the
erstwhile Hyderabad State from its predominantly Marathi-speaking one,
Marathwada.
One
of the earliest uses of a word similar to Telangana can also be seen in a name
of Malik Maqbul (14th century C.E.), who was called the Tilangani, which
implies that he was from Tilangana.
He
was the commander of the Warangal Fort (Kaṭaka Pāludu).
Number
of districts: 10. Greater Hyderabad, Ranga Reddy, Medak, Nalgonda, Mahabubnagar,
Warangal, Karimnagar, Nizamabad, Adilabad and Khammam.
Telangana
Geography: Has contiguous area bordering Rayalaseema and Andhra, (parts of the
existing Andhra Pradesh), Karnataka, Maharashtra and Chhattisgarh.
The
region is situated at a high altitude in an upland area. Two major rivers
Godavari and Krishna flow through the region but most of the land is arid.
Greater
Hyderabad, located almost at the heart of Telangana, is a major information
technology hub and is likely to be the capital of the new state.
Telangana
comprises of 10 districts namely, Hyderabad, Ranga Reddy, Medak, Nalgonda,
Mahabubnagar, Warangal, Karimnagar, Nizamabad, Adilabad and Khammam.
The
state borders coastal Andhra, Rayalaseema, Karnataka, Maharashtra and
Chhattisgarh .
It
covers an area of 1.14 lakh sq. km, which makes it the 12th largest state in
the country.
Hyderabad
will be the joint capital of Telangana & Andhra for the first 10 years
Its
35.28 million population of Telangana makes it the 12th most populous state.
The
two main languages spoken in the state are Telugu and Urdu
The
region is situated at a high altitude in a highland area. Godavari and Krishna
are the two major rivers flowing through the state.
Telangana
Assembly will have 119 seats & the new state will send 17 members to Lok
Sabha
The
state contributes 60% of revenues of existing Andhra Pradesh. Majority of
revenue comes from Hyderabad which is a IT hub.
