Book Review

                       

M.V.Arithy

EE10B005

Justice Srikrishna's Injustice

How SKC Report tried to suppress truth

and deceive Telangana

&

Why India should Reject SKC Report

 

 

Bibliography

The book 'Justice Srikrishna's Injustice' at the Telugu University Auditorium in Nampally, Hyderabad on March 20, 2011.

Author :  L.Narasimha Reddy

Title : Justice Srikrishna's Injustice

ebook  Website url  : http://missiontelangana.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/Justice-srikrishnas-injustice-Book.pdf

 

Reviewer's Note

The central government of India on 3rd February, 2010 announced the five-member Srikrishna Committee on Telangana that would look into the issue of creating a separate state of Telangana in the present Andhra Pradesh. 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. A particular section of the report discussed six different possible solutions. There were mixed thoughts about the report. While the government dodged over the issue without any subborn solution, the pro-Telangana activists started to propogatea against the report. They claim that the report is not true in facts, highly biased and is against the sentiments of Telangana people. Since the release of the report, there were numerous strikes in the city of Hyderabad. Till date no proper conclusion has been drawn on the Telangana issue even after months of Srikrishna report. The Telangana supporters started inspiring their fellow people by writing poems, drawing caricatures and publishing books in favour of Telangana. One such book is 'Justice Srikrishna's Injustice' by Narasimha Reddy. The book is contributed by three authors who give evidences to show how the report on Telangana was biased. It is to be noted that the book and its review could contain matter that is highly sentimental and one sided. Readers judgment is best  suggested on such cases. A brief review of the book is given below.

 

Book Review

The book 'Justice Srikrishna's Injustice' is a boon to the Telangana supporters. It not only brings out the need for a separate state but also points out significant errors in the official report of Telangana : Srikrishna Committe Report of 2010.

The first chapter is a report by Sujai Karampuri on 'Why India should reject the Committee's report?'. The author emphasizes that the report fails to provide any practical solutions. The report challenges the ethos of Article 3 of the Indian constitution that gives the will of people the required legitimacy to form a state. The report explains that on a global arena, formation of new nations lead to constraints on its economy. Similarly, bifurcation of a state would lead to instability of economy. The author strongly condemns this with the argument that states in India are not separate nations. These states are democratic and responsible to the centre. They are bound under the single constitution and henceforth could not lead to economic decline. States should not only be formed on the basis of linguistics and economic considerations but also to fulfil the aspirations of its people. A separate state of Telangana would prove to be a helping ladder for the depressed in job opportunities and higher education.

The report argues the if Telangana is formed it would become a landlock i.e., surrounded by landmass. So it would lose all its trade through sea including the rich revenue ports of Vishakapatnam. This would lead to a inflation in Telangana regions of goods that are primarily transported by shipments. The author is totally against this argument.  he gives a contradictory example in his book to prove his stance. In November, 2000 the Indian government formed three new states namely; Chattisgarh, Uttaranchal and Jharkhand from the existing states of Madhya Pradhesh, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar respectively. It is note worthy that all the three states are landlocked. Yet, they were formed and have shown greater progress in the industrial sector than its erstwhile state.

The report came up with six solutions. One of them was to declare Hyderabad as a Union Territory. Another solution which was highly criticized by Telangana activist was  the proposal of a Union territory that includes a few neighbouring mandals and villages. Interestingly, both the Srisailam and Nagarjuna Sagar projects were included in the proposed Union territory limits of Hyderabad. The author feels that it is a move to demoralise the feelings of Telangana people and to make sure that a separate state is not formed. When the country was divided into states based on linguistics, Madras had to be separated from Andhra which was earlier under Madras Presidency. The then decision makers didn't make Madras as a Union Territory when a similar conflict arose in1960s for the city. Today, a similar situation is faced. Why not give Telangana its capital as Hyderabad...?

The yet another chapter that would draw the attention of all Telangana supporters is chapter three on the factual errors in the Srikrishna report compiled by Konathan Dileep and Madahv Mudumbai. They have given numerous examples with solid evidences to prove that the report is biased and is not true in facts. A few examples of such an error are given below, which is an excerpt from the book :

“Andhra Pradesh is planning river lifts in a very major way, particularly from river Godavari.”

[Section 4.4.04, Table 4.5, pp.184 & 185]

Kalwakurty, Bheema, Nettempad, Koilsagar, AMRP Lift Irrigation Schemes are on river Krishna, not Godavari. And the projects are in execution stage, not at planning stage

“Government of India has allocated coal from Singareni coal mines to Kothagudam Thermal Power Station (KTPS) in Rayalaseema.”

 [Section 4.9.02, p.222]

KTPS is in Khammam district of Telangana, not in Rayalaseema.

“At an economic power cost of Rs. 6 per KWh, the annual energy cost per year would be Rs. 536.5 crores per year… the total annual charges would be of the order of Rs. 60,000 per hectare per year… Thus, all such (lift) schemes require a much closer scrutiny.”

[Section 4.4.04, p.185]

Committee argues that Lift Schemes are not viable for Telangana region by taking Rs. 6 per KWh as power cost. However, the Central Power Distribution of AP Limited site shows that the Government is charging only Rs. 2.60 per KWh. The Committee puts the annual

electricity costs per hectare (under KLIS) at Rs. 35352. If we take the tariffs that are in vogue from October 2010, electricity costs for irrigating these 3.75 lakh acres would be Rs. 1965.60 million. Hence energy charges per hectare would be Rs. 13104.00 and not Rs.35352 as the Committee would want us to believe!

Source: http://www.apcentralpower.com/customer/retail%20tariffs-final-

22072010.doc [Consumer category HT IV-A, p.3]

The book tries to bring into light the discrimination towards Telangana and that the report  is biased and against the sentiments of Telangana people. The book contains other chapters including 'Subjuectivity, Rationality and Prejudise in SRK's report' by K Amar Nath. This chapter though similar to the first one is a view from a very different perspective. Probably, thats the reason why this chapter was included. There are many appendices included in the rest of the pages that speaks of Telangana history, how the struggle started and the current scenario in Telangana regarding the state bifurcation issue. Overall, in a nutshell, the book is a boon to Telangana supporters.

 

About the Author

Honble Sri Justice L. Narasimha Reddy was born on 1^st August 1953 in an agriculatural family at Gavicherla Village, Warangal District.Studied Intermediate in the Government Junior College, Narsampet.  Obtained B.Sc. degree from C.K.M. College, Warangal.  Did his Bachelors Degree as well as Masters Degree in Law (International Law) from Osmania University. Functioned as part-time Lecturer in Post Graduate College of Law, Osmania University and took classes for LL.M. International Law Students for a period of one and half years. He has been appointed as Standing Counsel for Osmania University in 1985 and remained so for about two years.He was appointed as Government Pleader for Higher Education in the High Court of A.P. in 1996 and worked for about one year, till resignation in January 1997.  Was also Standing Counsel of the Warangal District Coop. Central Bank. He has been appointed as the Senior Central Government Standing Counsel by the Government of India, in the High Court of A.P., in July, 2000.  Elevated as Judge of A.P. High Court on 10.9.2001.

Book Review:REGIONALISM IN INDIA BY G.R.S RAO

                    Andhra Pradesh has been in news about the agitations for separate telangana state since1968. The book describes the formation present Indian states after independence with linguistical basis. It does not confine only to telangana issue it describes many historical aspects related to India and Andhra Pradesh.this book is about 180 pages with 8 chapters and 12 appendices. Each chapter describes a topic. The book aims to explain the reader about various aspects of the problem in telangana and for finding a solution. Book presents lot of data from various sources which can be used to compare and understand the problem.

    

                  The book describes the the problem of telangana in its first chapter. Author briefly explains the formation of states in india by States Reorganisation Committee. The method of studying the problem by him explained in second chapter most of the information was taken from government sources and communication media. Opinions and attitudes of people about the problem was taken by the author bout the number of people interviewed is very less. Author excluded the opinions on rayelaseema people’s opinion are totally excluded. The study of rayalaseema is extremely important as far as the telangana problem in concerned because the rayaseema is also not developed in comparison with costal Andhra. Chapter 3 describes brief history and people of Andhra Pradesh.  the fourth chapter deals with explaining the formation of Andhra state,processof reorganization of states, Pros and cons of linguistically forming the states but author did not consider problems with states reorganization by language in other areas of India the discussion confines to Andhra Pradesh only. The book states that the problems against redistribution of states is highly locally dependent and cannot be generalized. Author discussed different arguments leaders had some for vishal Andhra some for separate telengana and Andhra states. It mentions many considerations and opinions States Redistribution Committee. But government did not consider all the suggestions made by States Redistribution Committee and declared state Andhra Pradesh merging all telugu spoken areas of the country. Chapter 5 is very interesting it explains about the safeguards allotted for telangana changes the area in ten years of vishal Andhra. The boo describes the safeguards as political, educational,employment ,financial administration and miscellaneous. The author explained all details of safeguards and their results in ten years of enforcement.  All political safeguards are explained with the effects of the safeguard authors says that None of the three items of safeguards in Gentlemen’s Agreement found a place either in the note on Telangana Safeguards or in any follow up legislation because they were “political “ arrangement. The second section talking about the educational safeguards and effects showed many tables with relevant data to analyses development of educational sector in the telangana. It is made clear in the literature that the educational safeguards favored telangana a lot. Number of student in schools and number of scholars in colleges increase substantially compared with other areas of Andhra Pradesh.  And author mentioned that the provision of restrictiong admission to the educational institutions in the telangana region to the students belonging to that region had some times unitended consequences in the foam of difficulties for the education of children of people who shifted to the telangana region in general and the sates capirtal city that is Hyderabad. Similarly author explained about the safeguards provided for the employment of the telangana people and its effect, financial issues, administration machinery and other topics like language, prohibition and sale of agricultural land. The upheaval and the dialogue chapter 4 explains about the politics in the implementation of safeguards  agreed in Gentle men’s agreement  and rise of agitations for separate telangana state in telangana region. It discusses about the measures taken by government if India to solve the problem such as formulating eight point formula and appointment of a high power committee of justice. Then the 7^th chapter is essence of Opinion survey lead by the author. This part discusses about the opinions of different people, teachers in universities and students. It gives a brief summary of sample’s opinions with many data tables .And an elaborate discussion is made in the chapter 8 called Summing Up. The chapter concludes that the expert’s opinion was available at all important stages concerning the Telangana problem but they were unable to assert and exert themselves for most part.

            

                  The appendices added in the end of the book include statements by States Re-organization committee. Terms of The Gentlemen’s Agreement, Note on Telangana Safeguards Tabled in Lok sabha, The Andhra Pradesh Regional Committee Order, 1958, The Public Employment Act 1957 etc.

                 

            The book describes all historical aspects behind the agitations for the separate state. It contains lot of data that can be analyzed to understand the development in different regions. But there were always positive and negative aspects around every measure taken to maintain peace and control which made the problem very complex.

BOOK REVIEW

BANDARU NITIN 
ME10B150
                                                                                                                                                                                                                              

TELANGANA PEOPLE’S STRUGGLE

AND ITS LESSONS

    

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Author      :  Sri Putchalaapali Sundarayya

Title          :  TELANGANA PEOPLE’S STRUGGLE AND IT’S LESSONS

Publisher  :   Cambridge University Press India

URL         :   202.41.85.234:8000/hi-res/hcu_images/G4.pdf

REVIEW

        

The book, running to over 600 pages, does not confine itself to mere portrayal of the various movements and struggles for Liberation of Telangana and the role of the Communist party but also gives a list of martyrs who played a prominent part in the Telangana movement. The book provides a ringside view of the movement of squad, the network of communications and the police terror. It highlights the movement, the years in the forests fighting the Nizams’.

                                          Author starts with the history of Andhra, the Hyderabad state which was formed by the Nizam and the socio–economic life of the people of Hyderabad and especially the people of Telangana which was the unrestrained feudal exploitation that persisted well–nearly till the beginning of the Telangana armed peasant struggle. The people of Telangana suffering from age–old dark feudal oppression, forced labour and illegal extractions, from a cruel and hated feudal rule, their language and culture suppressed, groaning under a cruel, corrupt and autocratic rule, groped their way slowly towards a new life. The peasants cultivating the lands were nothing but bond- slaves reduced to the position of tenants –at–will. The vetti system (forced labour and exactions) was an all-pervasive social phenomenon affecting all classes of people, in varying degrees. The life of the Telangana people was one of utter degradation and of abject serfdom. It had ruined man’s self – respect completely. Hence the movement for its abolition became widespread. They started out for some elementary relief in their miserable life; no vetti( beggar ), no illegal exactions, no land evictions, no torturing and dishonoring; for elementary civil liberties; for education and culture and for responsible self government. It was against such a regime that the growing number of intellectuals and liberals, influenced by the development of the national movement in India, finally succeeded in organizing them-selves under the leadership of the Communist party and the Andhra Mahasabha into a powerful armed people’s struggle for land and liberation, against feudal exploitation and against the hated Nizam’s rule in the Telangana region in 1928. It was an armed resistance of women and men to the feudal oppression or against the princely state in Telangana. It was a struggle against the autocratic rule of Nizam and the Zamindari system.

                                                         The Second World war had broken out in 1939. It spread all over the world, with Hitler attacking the Soviet Union I June 1941. During the period of the Second World War with the then understanding and policies on the all–India level, the Communist party in Hyderabad state could not come out with a clear-cut slogan for abolition of Nizam’s rule, abolition of landlordism and radical land distribution.

                                                    The communists joined with the poor peasants in the Telangana region of Andhra Pradesh during the 1940’s to throw out the regime. It was a sub-movement in the larger independence struggle of India. They participated in the armed struggle against the tyrannical regime of the Nizam during which time they underwent rigorous imprisonment and led underground life. From the beginning of 1944, the Andhra Mahasabha under the leadership of the Communist Party conducted many militant struggles against Zamindars and Deshmukhs.

                                                  Most of the stories mentioned in the book depict the deep anguish of the peasants and small farmers. Popular among these is the victory over Visnur Ramachandra Reddy, the notorious deshmukh which enthused and gave courage to the people of the whole of Telangana. The movement spread within a few weeks to about 300-499 villages in Nalgonda and neighbouring Warangal and Khammam districts. The masses responded enthusiastically and carried out revolution on a mass scale, developing newer and newer forms of resistance, on their own initiative, to big police raids. Many military camps were established in several villages. The raids went on for days and people were harassed. These conditions prevailed till May 1947, when the people found it necessary to control the activities of the traitors, the goondas and other anti-people elements, who were emboldened by the military camps in the villages. It was because of this depth of the mass discontent and upsurge that in the special and peculiar favorable conditions in Hyderabad state, the movement arose again in August 1947 and surged forward even after the bitter blows it had received earlier, when the Nizams refused to join the Indian Union,                                  

       The next few chapters deal with Armed resistance movement against Nizam and Razakars and the martyrdom of a few leading cadre, whose life and death reveal a specific characteristic feature of the Telangana people’s struggle, After independence, the Nizam declared that he would not merge with the Indian union but would remain independent (Azad  Hyderabad). The Indian National Congress was forced to launch a satyagraha struggle in Hyderabad state to bring pressure on the Nizan Nawab to accede to the Indian union. The anti-Razakar, anti-Nizam armed struggle developed in the Telangana area rapidly. This was a heroic saga of the Telangana people’s struggle, of the Telangana heroes and the Telangana martyrs. The regular guerrilla squads with there country weapons became the nuclei of the people’s armed forces that enabled people to destroy the governmental authority in village after village and establish people’s rule in about 3000 villages, to nearly one-third of the Telangana area where “Gram Raj” (village panch-people’s self-government) fighting committees were established. The Nizam’s officials, the hated landlords had to quit the villages, leaving the panch committees to carry on people’s administration. Not only vetti (beggar), illegal exactions, land evictions, usurious loans, torturing and dishonoring by corrupt officials and village oppressors were put an end to but waste lands and surplus lands of the landlords, to the extent of a million acres along with the necessary cattle and agricultural implements were distributed to the rural poor, fair wages for agricultural labourers were enforced and grain distributed. People used to say that for the first time in their lives, they could have two full meals a day. Regular guerrilla squads and village defence squads were organized, the Nizam police, army and the village oppressors were confined to big camps; only from there could they go to their forages during certain hours of the day. Even the enemy press had to admit that the Communists were cheekati doralu (kings at night) meaning thereby that it was the writ of the Communists that prevailed after darkness fell, while the landlords and the police ruled only during day time. The whole Nizam’s state and hit society were shaken to their roots. The movement was spreading to more and more areas, to the whole of Telangana and beyond. It was at this juncture that the Indian Government decided to intervene and send its own army on the plea of curbing Razakar violence on the people, making the Nizam accede to the Indian Union and with the main declared purpose of suppressing “Communist violence”.

                                                  

                                            Author gives a vivid picture of the Communist Party that came as the stalwart defender of toiler’s rights by leading their day-to-day struggles on urgent economic issues. The Communist Party stood against all injustices, inequality, and suppression of fundamental rights. In the social sector, it had fought the devil of untouchability. At the same time he does not hesitate to highlight certain reformist mistakes and politics and their failure in learning lessons from these mistakes. The innumerable illustrations of mass butchery by the government in order to save their exploiting regime, their money bags, their staunch supporters, the Zamindars and the landlords are so very touching and gives us a clear picture of the congress government that swooped down like a mad dog on the Communist Party in Andhra.

                                           In section II the author discusses the post independence era, the Indian army intervention and the role the Communist Party had to play at this juncture. By the middle of 1948, all the developments pointed to the possibility of the Indian government intervening in Hyderabad to force the Nizam to accede to the Indian Union and to suppress the speeding Telangana peasant movement.

                                           There were people for and against the continuation of the armed struggle. During this time the union government launched “police action” o September 13^th, 1948 on Hyderabad state. The people and the armed squads utilized the opportunity of the “police action” and attacked many Razakar and police camps, destroyed them and seized arms and other material. Hindu-Muslim unity sparked in the villages which may be considered as an important achievement of the Telangana movement. The Nizam surrendered to the Indian government, the government of India took over the administration, launched its massive offensive action against the people of Telangana, in districts of Nalgonda, Khammam, Warangal and neighboring areas to suppress and liquidate the people’s agrarian and democratic gains. The military regime under General J.N.Chowdhury launched its attacks on the people of Telangana campaign of suppression of Communists immediately, within a fortnight, by September end. The military started direct attacks on the squads and people. Party members who were caught were inhumanly beaten up and tortured right before the eyes of the people. Sadistic murders, being burnt or buried alive and butchering lead to loss of large number of leading cadre.

                                           A detailed and elaborate description of the situation in the Krishna and Godavari forest regions is given. The disastrous effects of dissolution of squads and organization of camps, actions of squads on police and military patrols and camps on hated landlords and their agents in these areas has been the main theme. During 1947-48 Andhra Mahasabha workers under the leadership of the Communist party organized themselves into guerilla squads and fought against the terrorism in Karimnagar and neighboring Talukas of Medak and Nizamabad districts. They were victorious but these victories of the people had to be won undergoing tremendous sufferings and sacrifices. The people’s upsurge enveloped all the sections resulting in many material benefits. The Union Government took every precaution to prevent the Telangana movement spreading into other districts. There was extensive malicious propaganda campaign against the Communists by the Congress government.

                                                    Movement was weak in the towns, both in the working classes and the middle classes. Yet the impact of the Telangana movement on them was so great. Repeated raids and torture enabled the party organization to break off all links to save itself from great disaster. On January 26^th, 1950 the Nehru government promoted the hated Nizam to the position of Raj Pramukh. Students struck and came out with black flags in demonstrations; workers went into a number of struggles on economic demands.

                                                        A list of a few demonstrations and barbarity of the police has been given which initiates a sense of patriotism and revolutionary feeling and also sympathy for the sufferers among the readers. The army rule intensified repression and perpetrated fascist atrocities but could not get any results. Eleven months of “Congress autocracy” in Hyderabad had torn to shreds, the “liberation mask” on its face, and revealed it as a ferocious dictatorship of the capitalist class maintained at the point of bayonets. Mid September 1948, people were in the streets celebrating their release from the Razakar terror. Hindu-Muslim tension maintained at the point of Razakar bayonets, disappeared. Women played an important role in the Telangana struggle. They actively participated in the land movement, in agriculture labour wage struggles and seizure of landlord’s grain. Their awakening to new social equality, to a new moral and cultural life, their stubborn fighting quality gives us a glimpse of that tremendous revolutionary spirit and energy that is smoldering in our economically and socially oppressed women folk.

                                                      The Telangana movement was called off within a few months, in October 1951. Brief sketches of some of the squad and party leaders who had laid down their lives in various districts of Telangana after the entry of the Indian army which  led to the withdrawal of struggle has been dealt with in detail. The sufferings were so severe that they lead the party leaders to quit from the struggle thereby weakening the movement. The stories of the squad who were forced to go underground are very touching and develop a sense of sympathy and empathy towards them.

                                                          Author does not hesitate to put forth the weaknesses prevailing in the party and also their failure to keep contact with and develop the militants and party members. The failure to develop a strong democratic student movement or even to develop the necessary deep contacts with the educated younger generations- the petty-bourgeois intelligentsia. Party should have understood the very uneven development of the revolutionary democratic movement in  the country, and the necessity of  adopting suitable tactics of concentration and developing the movement all round and all fronts, in key and important areas, first developing them as real political bases, which would set an example for other democratic forces to inspire and guide the course. He further throws light on the disparities creeping up among the party members and the lack of revolutionary vigilance in admitting members into the party, by just seeing certain initiatives and capabilities without seriously taking into consideration their past. He finally admits the lapses in the functioning of the party and the necessity to learn lessons and overcome these mistakes to strengthen the party, solve acute problems of organization, ideological development, defence of advanced movements and of developing movements in other areas and states.

                                                        The great merit of this book is its simplicity. It has the essential virtues of its genre in that it is written in a clear readable style. The writer presents a wide range of ethical, socio-economic and political perspectives. He has taken lot of pains to explain Telugus History - “First freedom struggle of Telangana-1940’s” and   economic reasons behind the Telangana cause. He has picked the more salient points of the struggle and dwelt upon them briefly but effectively. There is a sense of continuity or organic link between one incident and another. The incidents have been especially recreated for today’s youth with an eye on the dramatic element – the outcome is a collection of stories that help in reliving those momentous years and evoke memories of the hardships borne valiantly by these extraordinary men and women. There are too many minute details, many a repetitions, and some accounts appear to be exaggerated and appear unreal.

                                                         This is one of the best books which portrays the inside of Telangana. This book makes for an insightful read to know the struggle for telangana. Rich in content and critical in analysis, this is a recommended read for academics as well as lay students interested in understanding Indian society. It provides a wealth of detail and any account of the Telangana struggle is incomplete without reference to this authoritative work. It is the nostalgic reminiscences of legendaries who laid their lives for the betterment of the people of Telangana. It is an exciting piece of heroic, telangana history and an original parallel campaign of world communist movement. I suggest this book to all those who are interested in learning about Telangana movement and also for those non-Telangana friends who ask Why Telangana?

                                

About the Author:

                  Sri Putchalaapali Sundarayya (1 May 1913-19 May 1985) was a renowned national liberation fighter. He was one of the founders of the Communist movement in India and an indefatigable fighter for the rights of toiling masses of India. He led the glorious Telangana peasant armed struggle in the 1940’s against the despotic rule of Nizam of Hyderabad and liberated many from the shackles of servitude under vetti. He highlights the role of Communist party, its movement and the years in the forest fighting the Nizams and later on the Indian army.

Discussing the Alternatives to Put an End to This Telangana Issue

By: Ranjit Nair

Roll No:  EE10B032

Overview of My Post

Well, as most of my group members have very well described the history and the reasons leading to the demand of a separate state, I won't go much deep in that area. My discussion will be mainly concerned with the following points:

• Analyzing the suggestions of the Sri Krishna Committee.
• Politics over the report and centre's dilemma.
• Coming up with a solution such that everyone gets a piece of Cake.

Srikrishna Committee Report

Will Telengana happen? Is there a solution that will be acceptable to people of Andhra, Rayalaseeme & Telangana regions?What sort of an arrangement will enable people of all regions to chart out their own future peacefully? Will a division be fair to the citizens of Hyderabad? These questions were avidly discussed after the highly anticipated Sri Krishna Committee Report came out in public. Members of the Committee toured the state extensively , received over 20,000 petitions and spoke with numerous delegations, periodically made assurances that they would try to produce a report that would produce a report that would satisfy a majority of the people. They also asserted that the committee would not see any extension and that the report would be handed over to the Government of India on time. At least on that count the committee did not disappoint.


But any hopes that the report would offer a way out of the impasse were belied. The recommendations of the committee were largely seen as a disappointment. The TRS, BJP & TDP possibly got the wind that the report won't favor Telangana and hence they refused to depute its representatives to Delhi on 6th January, when recommendations were to be unveiled. The 635 page report suggested 6 possible solutions. Its first and preferred course of action was status quo: Keep the state of Andhra Pradesh as it is and set up regional development councils for Telangana. The councils would look after the planning and economic development, water and irrigation , education, local administration and public health. At the same time, the committee also said that according to their investigations, districts in the Telangana region were not backward when compared to the rest of Andhra Pradesh. This lead to a huge reaction from the TRS party that questioned the authenticity of the report. They also asked why regional councils were recommended if Telengana did not lag behind in development.


Among other solutions was a proposal to bifurcate the state but not giving the diamond (Hyderabad) to anyone, i.e, to make it a Union Territory. This was because Hyderabad had grown enormously over the preceding decade and had become a part of the global economy for the information technology sector. Besides being an engine of growth, Hyderabad was also home to numerous national, military and defense establishments. Moreover, the committee felt that one-third of Hyderabad consisted of outsiders. Strangely enough, the presence of real estate industry was also was one of the reasons given by committee for recommending that Hyderabad become a Union Territory. It suggested that with Hyderabad as Union Territory, both region will have to develop their own capitals. The report also acknowledged the strong sentiments in many parts of the Telangana region for a separate state. Unemployed youth, lawyers and non-gazetted government employees were the main people behind the demand for a separate state, the report suggested.


An interesting feature of the report ids that one of its chapters was being withheld from the public. It is understood that this chapter, readied after receiving the inputs from intelligence agencies and the police, says that a proposed Telangana state would fall to Maoist which are strong in the neighboring Chhattisgarh.

Politics Over the Report

In India, I believe that an non-controversial report over a major topic is unthinkable :). So, as expected, the report faced severe criticism from various political parties. But it was not merely political parties which were taken aback by the report. The campuses of Osmania and Kakatiya Universities saw trouble once again. Student indulged in heavy stone-throwing after the contents of the report became known. Sensing trouble that it would intensify, P. Chidambaram announced that the committee's report was not the last word on Telangana. It was merely a starting point for the debate. But Telangana activists, MPs, MLAs were far from being satisfied. All these Mps and MLAs served an ultimatum to the party high command: please ensure that a bill to create Telangana is introduced in Telangana in its budget session, or we resign. Political leaders from Telangana were furious over the way Maoism was stated as an excuse against the creation of Telangana.


Though the committee may have overplayed the Maoist angle, it is a fact that ultras ho have their command headquarters in the jungles adjoining Dantewada ( in Chhattisgarh ) keep a close watch on these areas. They also have considerable influence in Telangana, having originally belonged to this area.


What makes it difficult for the centre to take a stand, apart from the contrasting sentiments within the state, is the fact that trying to carve out Telangana from Andhra  Pradesh will bring forth similar demands from other regions in the country. As of date, there are at least seven serious demands for the creation of new states pending with union government. The most well known amongst them are the demands for Gorkhaland( carving a new state from West Bengal ), Vidarbha ( to be created from Maharashtra ) and Bundelkhand and Harit Pradesh ( to be formed from Uttar Pradesh ). If the government bites the bullet on Telangana it will have to seriously consider proposals for the other new states. More importantly, the break-up of Andhra Pradesh will also violate the principle on which Indian states were reorganized in 1956.This was done on the basis of the belief ( right or wrong ) that in India language was the basis of the culture. The principle applied that if you spoke the same language you were culturally homogeneous.


At the same time, it is possible to argue that in the heady decade fallowing the independence, when linguistic states were formed in 1956, integration was the cornerstone of policymaking. The belief among policy makers was that having states on the basis of a common language would foster this. But decentralization is the “Mantra” these days. Small is beautiful. A country like the USA which has only one-fourth the population of India has fifty-one states, so what is the sacrosanct about having only twenty-eight states in a country of 1.2 billion people ? If the integration of Andhra spurred the movement for linguistic states, its bifurcation can pave path path for smaller states across the nation. What is wrong with having Vidarbha, Harit Pradesh , Bundelkhand and many more such states ?  Smaller states will be better administered and will bring the government closer to the people. It will also open up opportunities for the local population and encourage use of local resources. However, some principle must be devised on the basis of which states should be formed. Otherwise, the demand for new states will be a never-ending spiral.


Another option is to have a three-tier system of government: one Central government that looks after only broad subjects like defence, finance and external affairs; a state government that looks after law and order, education, health and a few other subjects; lastly a district-level government that looks after development at the local level. Such a system, though pleasing, is highly unlikely as it would need complete overhaul of the current way of administration. But the decision to new states or not rests completely in the hands of Congress party at the highest level. Only Union Government has been empowered by the constitution to redraw the internal map of India. Will the ruling coalition find it politically favorable ? Well, according to me, quite possibly yes. Despite the political turmoil that it is going through at the moment, with a series of scams, unchecked rise in prices and blah blah blah. The thinking in the upper echelons of the congress is that it is the only national party of consequence in the Country. With the rout of the only other national party- the BJP – in two successive elections, the Congress possibly feels that there is no threat to it from a national party as of now. The only challenge to its hegemony is from a possible coalition of a regional parties like Telugu Desam Party, the Biju Janata Dal, the Janata Dal ( United ) and others. Creation of smaller states would check this potential challenge by converting regional parties into sub-regional parties. A good example of this is TDP whose members in Andhra are espousing opposing points of view. As a result, two different delegations of the TDP went to depose before Srikrishna Committee. Chandrababu Naidu is caught in bind and knows well that no stand that he takes on the issue will satisfy the people on the both sides. Same goes with other parties as well because according to Andhra guys: if you are with Telangana, then you are against Andhra.

Is the Hong Kong Model Apt ?

Change is the essence of the life. Nothing remains constant, things evolve continually. Keeping this in mind it is easy to predict that whatever maybe the wish of die-hard supporters of Andhra Pradesh, status quo is unlikely to prevail in the state. Let's consider the case of Hong Kong for a second. When the British gave Hong Kong back to Chinese after 155 years of occupation, the latter realized that a lot of water had passed under the bridge in the interim. Hong Kong had now become a major trading and financial hub that transacted business worth of billions of dollars, a far cry from the small fishing port and opium trade centre when the English took it over. There was considerable amount of disquiet among the expatriate community about the fate of Hong Kong. Would the Chinese allow them to carry on their business as before was the question on everybody's lips. But the Chinese government took a pragmatic step: they realized that it would be foolish to destroy the hen that that laid the golden eggs. So Hong Kong has its own rules, regulations and laws, much like what it had been during the reign of the Britishers.. So the Hong Kong was made a Special Administrative Region (SAR) of China where normal domestic laws of china did not apply. The effect of this 'One country, Two systems' was salutary. Investors and expatriates were happy that things continued the way they had before. China gained in terms of revenues that business in Hong Kong brought.


Taking cue from Hong Kong model, a similar model can be applied in Hyderabad. Since the major bone of contention is Hyderabad & its brand name, the solution could be to create Telangana and make Hyderabad a special administrative unit under the new state. Hyderabad  could have a its own city government with a legislature and ministers. The city government could be given limited powers with respect to land use, taxation and some aspects of law and order. But it would be incumbent on the city government to give a percentage of its revenues to the Telangana government that would have the responsibility of developing the entire state. Votaries of Telangana would be happy at the prospect because Hyderabad would continue to be under the state. The business community and the Andhra settlers in Hyderabad would be happy because there would be a different dispensation which would administer the city. An alternative idea is to create a state within a state. Instead of Hyderabad as a SAR of Andhra Pradesh. In this case, Telangana will have its own government with limited power, within Andhra Pradesh. This formula has been used once before in India. In April 1970, Meghalaya  was carved out out from two districts of Assam and made an autonomous state within the latter. However, less than two years later, in January 1972, Meghalaya was made a full-fledged state. Similarly, Telangana can be created as an SAR within Andhra Pradesh and after few years made a full fledged state. The Union government, in fact, could possibly be working towards a similar solution, with some reports suggesting that this is the favored solution of the ruling coalition. Nothing, however, is public and the people of Andhra Pradesh seem to be doomed to confusion about the future of events.

Conclusion

         Although people of the state still divided on regional lines, more than anything else they want closure of the issue. “I don't want Telangana but if it is to be given let it be conceded. This atmosphere of uncertainty is killing. It is making us defer business decisions and leaving many ifs and buts. This is impacting on our life. What we want is a final word from the government,” says S.K. Reddy, a leading businessman. Investors from the other parts of the country, who are now looking at destinations outside of Andhra Pradesh for investment opportunities, echo similar sentiments. 'We are now in a scenario of Hyderabad interrupted. The impasse has to be broken. It is necessary for life to go forward,' says Ajit Rangekar, the director of the prestigious Indian School of business (ISB). The all-important question is whether various parties to the debate will be able to rise above their partisan interests and bring the vexatious issue of Telangana to a close.