1
Andhra Pradesh : Prospect and Retrospect History and Historiography
a. HYDERABAD STATE AND TELANGANA
By Prof. (Retd.) V. Ramakrishna Reddy*
Hyderabad State as such, with Hyderabad city as its
capital, and with the two natural divisions of Telangana and
Marathwada, came into being in October, 1724 A.D.
Mir Kamaruddin Chin Qilich Khan, Mughal Subedar or Viceroy
of the Deccan, taking advantage of the weak Mughal
successors after the death of Aurangazeb, the last great
Mughal Emperor, established his independent rule, under the
ti t le, Nizam -ul-Mulk AsafJah. His dynasty, taking its name as
‘Asafjahis’ from his ti t le, ruled the State upto 18 t h September,
1948, i .e. , for a long period of around 225 years. Having
served in the Mughal administration as a high-ranking official,
Nizam -ul-Mulk Asafjah, the founder of the dynasty, tr ied to
introduce in Hyderabad State, features of Mughal
administration, such as the division of his territory into four
Subahs1 ---- those of Medak, Warangal in Telangana and
Aurangabad and Gulbarga in Marathwada ---- and the system
of allotting Jagirs or f iefs of terri tory to nobles, high officials,
royal bodyguard, religious institutions, men of excellence in
l i terature, arts, etc. It is really a point of much significance
and interest that, whereas people speaking one language are
not able to l ive happily together in the present State of Andhra
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* Former Professor of History & Dean, Faculty of Socia l Sciences, Dr. B.R. Ambedkar Open Universi ty, Hyderabad – 33 – A.P.
1 Subah consisted of three or four d istr icts.
2
Pradesh, in contrast, people who spoke four different
languages of Telugu, Marathi, Kannada and Urdu in the former
Hyderabad State could throughout the period of more than two
centuries, excepting in the days of polit ical and economic
turmoil of 1946 to 1948, l ived l ike brethren without any
feelings of i l l-wil l , hatred or animosity towards one another.
Further, the latter took part, as one man or with one voice, in
the different popular movements that were witnessed during
this period, such as the annual conferences of Andhra
Mahabsabha2 Maharastra Parishad3 , Karnataka Parishad4 ,
Library Movement5, Civi l Liberties Movement6 , Vandemataram
Movement7, Congress Satyagraha8 etc.
1. Political Conditions
The kingdom of the first Nizam has extended over a wide
area in the Deccan. It spread from Tapati r iver which lay to
the West of Aurangabad, Ahmednagar and Bijapur, leaving out
small area that belonged to the Marathas, and going along
Mysore and Karnataka, i t extended upto Tiruchinapalli and
Madura in the South9 . On the Eastern coast, the local chiefs
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2 I t has run i ts act ivi t ies among Telugu people in Telangana distr icts for their consciousness about their upl i f tment in pol i t ical , socia l , economic and cul tural f ie lds, f rom 1930 onwards.
3 I t took up simi lar act ivi t ies as that of Andhra Mahasabha in Marathi – speaking areas.
4 Carr ied out s imi lar act ivi t ies as those of Andhra Mahasabha in Kannada – speaking areas.
5 I t st r ived al l over the State s ince 1901 for promot ing l i terary development.
6 Brought out in 1938 for f ight ing against the suppression of Civ i l L ibert ies by the Government machinery.
7 I t was resorted to 1938, essent ia l ly by the hostel inmates of Osmania Universi ty against the ban that was imposed on the singing of ‘Vandemataram’ as a prayer song.
8 The Satyagraha was stated in October, 1938, for the revocat ion of the ban that was imposed on the Congress Party in the State.
9 J.D.B. Gribble, History of the Deccan, Rupa & Co, 2002, P. 2 (contained Vols 1 & 2).
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of the area from Srikakulam to the Southern point, had
acknowledged the suzerainty of Nizam -ul-Mulk Asafjah as a
mark of which, they agreed to pay annual tr ibute to the
former10 . To make his administration over the newly
established Kingdom safe and secure, he has entrusted
mili tary duties among his Muslim followers whom he brought
along with him from Malwa, and non-mil itary duties of the
administration among his Hindu fol lowers and confidants who
were brought along with him. These were allotted Jagirs or
f iefs of terri tory for their upkeep and maintenance 11. Besides
the native Rajas or the Zamindars of the Eastern coast who
paid tr ibute to the first Nizam , some of the Hindu chiefs,
otherwise known as ‘Samasthandars’12 , such as those of
Gadwal, Wanparti, Amarchinta, Palwancha, Domakonda etc. ,
in the Telangana region of the State, have also paid fixed
tribute or ‘Peshkash’ to the Nizam and carried on their
independent administration in their areas. Thus, the State
had broadly, from the administrative as well as economic
points of view, three divisions i .e. , Jagir area, Sarf-i-Khas
or the areas that were kept apart and spread over different
districts for the personal enjoyment of the ruler and his
household, otherwise known as crown property, and the third
division happened to be that of Diwani13 or Government
lands, revenue from which was uti l ised for Governmental
expenditure.
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10 J.D.B. Gribble, History of the Deccan, Op.Cit . , P. 2.
11 J.D.B. Gribble, History of the Deccan, Vol. I , London, 1896, P. 377 (Refers to only Vol. I ) .
12 These refer to Hindu Rajas or chiefs of nat ive States.
13 This is der ived f rom Diwan or the Prime Minister of the State.
4
In his foreign policy or maintaining relations with other or
neighbouring powers, Nizam -ul-Mulk had exhibited lot of tact
and diplomacy with the sole object of saving the Hyderabad
State from any kind of damage or territorial loss. Init ial ly, he
was made to enter into confl ict with the Marathas in 1727 and
1729 regarding the collection of Chauth14 , and
Sardeshmukhi15, from his territories. Though only partial
success was obtained in these encounters, the Nizam could
tactful ly turn the Maratha raids under Peshwa Baji Rao on
the Mughal Emperor, Mohammad Shah from 1734 to 1738,
and the latter was made to conclude treaty with the former,
thereby acknowledging Peshwa’s sovereign authority over
Malwa and the area between Narmada and Chambal rivers 16.
After his relations getting settled with the Marathas, the first
Nizam was made to turn his attention to the developments in
the Karnataka. Here, the French and the English East India
Trading Companies, trying to gain polit ical foothold in the
area, started interfering in the local power polit ics. As part of
this game, when the French army in 1746 under Labourdane
attacked Madras and occupied it, Anwaruddin, the Nawab of
the Karnataka resisted it, and in the fight that took place at
St. Thome, the latter’s army was routed 17. This proved that
Indian soldiers trained under Europeans are better than the
native sepoys in f ighting battles. This French attack and
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14 I t refers to a k ind of levy that was col lected by the Marathas f rom the neighbouring areas @ 25% of yearly income of a State, for not resort ing to ra ids on the lat ter.
15 I t was also a k ind of levy that was extracted by the Marathas f rom the neighbouring or cont iguous areas @ 10% of yearly income of a State, for not ra id ing on the lat ter.
16 J.D.B. Gribble, History of the Deccan, Op.Cit . , pp. 9 & 10.
17 Ib id. , P. 14
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victory forced the Kanatak Nawab to seek English
Company’s help. Thus, Ango-French rivalry for supremacy in
the South and the Deccan, has commenced. Nizam -ul-Mulk,
however, in this Karnatak polit ics, stood on the side of Nawab
Anwaruddin and the English East India Company who offered
rich and desired presents to the former in 1743 for seeking his
hand of fr iendship18 .
Nizam -ul-Mulk, the first Nizam , nearly becoming 100
years old, breathed his last in 1748, few months after the
death of the Mughal Emperor, Mohammad Shah. He has
shone as an able general, sound administrator and a clever
diplomat or strategist in cultivating relations with other and
neighbouring powers. Above all these, he takes his rank as
one of the great empire-builders that we come across in the
history of India.
The death of Nizam -ul-Mulk led to war of succession
among his six sons and also a grandson, or the son of one of
his daughters. As already observed, the English and the
French Trading Companies which have already, for gaining
polit ical influence and authority, began interfering from 1746
in the internal matters of the Karnatak 19 , now extended their
scene of operations to the Hyderabad State or the Deccan.
Rival claimants fought for occupying the seats of the Nizam
of Hyderabad State and the Nawab of Arcot or Karnatak.
Whereas Nasir Jung, the second son20 of Nizam-ul-Mulk, and
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18 J.D.B. Gribble, History of the Deccan, Op.Cit . , pp. 12 & 13.
19 Refer to the earl ier para in th is chapter.
20 First son was Ghazi-ud-din who had no wish to come to Hyderabad as he was in h igh of f ice in the Mughal Court at Delhi – J.D.B. Gribble, History of the Deccan, Op.Cit . , P. 15.
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Anwaruddin were supported by the English Company for the
respective thrones of Hyderabad and Arcot, their r ival
claimants of Muzaffar Jung, grandson of the first Nizam and
Chanda Saheb were supported by the French Company for the
respective seats of power. As fortunes of this f ight changed
from one side to another during 1750 and 1751, both the
claimants to the Hyderabad throne got kil led by the disgruntled
Nawabs of Kurnool, Cuddapah and Savanur21, and as a
result, the third son of Nizam -ul-Mulk, Salabat Jung, was
made the Nizam in March, 1751, under the protection of the
French army under the command of Bussy22 . Mohammad Ali,
the second son of Anwaruddin, ult imately in June, 1752, with
the English army under the headship of Robert Clive
defeating the French army under the command of General
Law at Tiruchinapalli , could succeed to the throne of
Karnatak or Arcot in the South. Thus ended the first bout of
succession23 war.
The fight for the Hyderabad throne continued. Though
Bussy, the French mili tary commander, was ably protecting
Salabat Jung against the attempts of his rival brothers,
Ghaziuddin, the eldest one and Nizam Ali , the youngest one,
to dethrone the former, certain tactical blunders of the French
East India Company, totally reversed the situation. The
recall of Dupleix, the able French Governor, the recall of
Bussy with his French army from Hyderabad to Madras for
attacking the latter which was under the English Company
and the defeat of the French army at Visakhapatnam and
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21 J.D.B. Gribble, Op.Cit . , pp. 26 & 29.
22 Ib id. , P. 29
23 Ib id. , P. 31
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Machilipatnam in March and April , 1759, and the final and
crushing defeat of the latter at the hands of the English at
Wandiwash in the South on 21 s t January, 1761, sealed the
fate of French power in India, and paved the way for the
English mastery, both in Karnatak and at Hyderabad 24.
When Salabat Jung moved to the Northern Circars to help
the French against the English attack, and thereby left the
capital Hyderabad, his brother Nizam Ali seized the
opportunity by occupying the throne and putting the former in
prison. His other surviving brother, Basalat Jung was given
additional areas of Guntur and Cuddapah, besides his
Adoni Jagir , and was thus pacified 25. Thus ended the
war of succession for the Hyderabad throne.
From Nizam Ali Khan (1762 – 1803) onwards, al l the
rulers of Hyderabad State --- Sikander Jah (1803 – 1829),
Nasiruddaulah (1829 – 1857), Afzaluddaulah (1857 – 1869),
Mahaboob Ali Khan (1869 – 1911) and Mir Osman Ali Khan
(1911 – 1948) --– who began to call themselves as ‘Nizams’,
fully came under the control l ing influence of the Brit ish
Resident at Hyderabad and the Company’s and the Crown’s
Government at Calcutta and later at Delhi. Appointments to
higher posts in the State, such as Diwan26 , Peshkar27 , etc. ,
foreign policy of the State, and key Departments of Home,
Finance and Revenue, have all come to be made, conducted
and run only with the clear approval, consent and personnel of
the English Company and Brit ish Indian Government. As
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24 J.D.B. Gribble, Op.Cit . , pp. 38 – 63.
25 Ib id. , P. 60
26 I t referred to the of f ice of the Prime Minister of the State.
27 I t referred to the post of Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister.
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years rolled by, even the private matters of the Nizam ’s
household, such as the education and marriages of the
princes and princesses, have also come under the purview
and scrutiny of the English, and were f inally decided only
with the latter’s approval and nod 28 .
Mil i tary danger from the Marathas and their raids on the
contiguous Nizam ’s terri tories for the forcible collection of
‘Chauth’ and ‘Sardeshmukhi’ , have, in a way, prompted the
Nizams to seek the help of English army 29. This was also
sought for containing or suppressing the rebellions of the
princes of the royal family against the throne 30 . Further,
when Nizam Ali Khan, the second Nizam , entered into
Subsidiary All iance with the English Company in 1798,
mili tary units of the former, such as the Rohil las, were
allowed to remain without any control or work, and
consequently, they added to the forces of lawlessness and
disorder31. Northern Circars of Rajahmundry, Eluru,
Mustafanagar or Kondapall i , Murtuzanagar or Guntur and
Chikakol or Srikakulam in 1766 32 ; Ceded Districts of
Bellary, Anantapuram, Cuddapah and Kurnool which the
Nizams received as gains for their participation in the
Anglo-Mysore Wars in 180033 ; and Berar, Osmanabad and
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28 T. Uma, ‘ the Bri t ish Residency in Hyderabad’ in Hyderabad – 400 Saga of a City by the Associat ion of Br i t ish Counci l Scholars, Andhra Pradesh, Chapter, Hyderabad, 1993, Edited by K.S.S. Seshan, P. 30.
29 See para No. 3 in th is chapter.
30 The rebel l ion of Al i Jah, the eldest son of Nizam Al i against h is aging father in June, 1795, forced the Nizam to seek Engl ish al l iance and support - -- J.D.B. Gribble, Op.Cit . , pp. 96 – 97.
31 Ib id. , P. 121.
32 Ib id. , pp. 115 & 116
9
33 Ib id. , P. 120
Raichur Districts in 185334 , have all been surrendered to the
English Company, in l ieu of the payment for the
maintenance of the English Subsidiary Force, excepting
the last-named ones which were given away in l ieu of the
uncleared debt of 32 lakhs of rupees to the English 34. Huge
expenditure that was incurred in maintaining, besides the
Subsidiary Army, Russel Brigade or Hyderabad Contingent,
forcing Sikandar Jah after 1811, to contract loans from a
Commercial Company formed by the English men, and going
by the name of Palmer & Company at the abnormal interest
rate of 25%35 and financial mal-adminis- tration that prevailed
in the State before 1853, with dominant features of tax-
farming, no land surveys which made the cultivators give up
cultivation and desert their vi l lages 36 , had forced the Nizams
to seek huge debts from the English Company as well as
private agencies, restricting their freedom or discretion in
running the administration of the State.
A si lver l ining in the chequered administrative history of
Hyderabad State was witnessed with Salar Jung I (1853 –
1883) assuming charge as Diwan in 1853. Abolit ion of tax-
farming, introduction of land survey, establishment of Central
Treasury, Board of Revenue, reorganisation of districts
(Zil labandi), abolit ion of private mints and introduction of a
new coinage, known as “Hali sicca ”, reorganisation of
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34 J.D.B. Gribble, Op.Cit . , P. 224
35 Raza Al i Khan, Hyderabad 400 Years (1591 – 1991) , Secunderabad, 1990, P. 94.
36 Saroj in i Regani, Nizam – Bri t ish Relat ions, 1724 – 1857, Hyderabad, 1963, P. 237.
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various Departments, including Forest, Revenue, Customs,
Postal administration and Mint, have all been witnessed
under his stewardship37 . As a result of these measures, the
economy was put on sound footing. The total revenue of the
State increased from Rs.6.8 mil l ion in 1853 to Rs.29.6
mill ion in 186538. During the later decades also, especially,
during the reign period of the seventh and last Nizam ,
Mir Osman Ali Khan, certain beneficial measures, such as the
creation of the Departments of Agriculture and Industries and
Commerce, construction of irr igation projects such as the
Nizamsagar Project, evolving of improved seeds and manures,
etc. , have been taken up.
But, these well- intentioned measures fai led to yield
desired or satisfactory results. The reasons are not far to
seek. There was huge gulf or unbridgeable distance between
the rulers and the ruled. Only the microscopic and urban-
based minority who could know Urdu or English, could have
access to the Governmental machinery at al l levels.
Regarding the ruler or the Nizam , i t was aptly remarked that
he was ‘unseeable, unapproachable and unknowable’ 39 .
Further, glaring inequalit ies in the possession of land in
respect of peasants and tenants, paltry wages for labourers,
non-availabil i ty of easy credit and rawmaterial to the artisans
or craftsmen, had depressing effect on their l iving condition
and also on agricultural and industrial production. Landlords
who had thousands and even lakhs of Acres of land, never
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37 Hyderabad 400 years, Op.Cit . , P. 121.
38 Ib id. ,
39 Rajendra Prasad, Asaf jahis of Hyderabad, Their Rise and
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Decl ine , Vikas Publ ishing House, Delhi , 1984, P. 294.
cultivated them personally, and peasants and tenants who day
in and day out spent their t ime on cultivation, never had
adequate lands or no lands at al l . Added to these gross
inequalit ies, al l these toi l ing masses groaned under the
weight of heavy exploitation of services from the above.
Neither representation nor dissent was allowed against these
centuries-old inequality, exploitation and injustice. The
suppressed balloon got burst violently during 1946 – 51,
breaking old barriers and paving the way for a Government
that the people at large desired.
2. Administration at a glance
The administration of the former Hyderabad State was
presided over by the ruler or the Nizam . He was assisted by
an Executive Council which was headed by a President and
consisted of seven members, holding the portfol ios or heading
the Departments, such as Finance, Law, Mil i tary, Revenue,
Public Works and Polit ical Affairs40 . There was also a
Legislative Council, but i t was constituted on the basis of
nomination. It concerned itself chiefly in framing laws and
bye-laws which were first examined by the Executive Council
and forwarded to the Nizam with i ts opinions. No Bill could be
passed without the ruler’s sanction 41. But, as was observed42
earl ier, the Nizams were so fully under the control and
influence of the Brit ish that the key portfol ios of Finance,
Revenue and Police or Home were held by the English men,
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40 K. Krishnaswamy Mudira j , Pictor ia l Hyderabad, Vol. I , 1929, Chandrakant Press, Hyderabad – Dn, P. 5.
41 Ib id. ,
12
42 See the f .n. No. 28 in th is Chapter.
and even the matters of education and marriages of the
members or the princes of the Nizam ’s family have come to be
decided and dictated by the Brit ish Resident at Hyderabad.
The Brit ish would never favour the introduction of a real
democratic Government either in Brit ish India or in the Indian
States43 .
At the middle and lower levels of the administrative
set-up also, power and responsibi l i ty were centered and
concentrated in the hands of different graded officials rather
than in the hands of popular and representative elements. The
impact of this kind of system has been that the administration
of the State never moved closer to the common people who up
to 88% , resided in far and distant vi l lages 44. The latter had
no participation nor representation in the governing bodies or
the Legislature, al l of which have been fi l led by the officials
and nominated non-officials. As these elements owed their
position and promotion to the patronage of the Nizam , they
never raised their voice against any measure of the
Government, even if the interests of the people at large are
affected. Further, the Taluk and District Local Fund
Committees which catered to the sanitation, health, transport,
water and educational needs of the people, have also been
fi l led with official and nominated members, with the result that,
these Committees which were located at headquarter towns,
always strived and spent 90% of the funds at their disposal for
the civic reads of the urban areas who formed less than 15%
of the total population, thereby totally
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43 Vasant K. Bawa, ‘ Const i tut ional and Administrat ive Structure of Hyderabad State and some speculat ions on i ts demise’ in Hyderabad – 400 Saga of A City. , Op.Cit . , P. 30.
13
44 Y. Vaikuntham, State, Economy and Socia l Transformat ion in Hyderabad State, 1724 – 1948 , Manohar Publ icat ions, Delhi 2002, P. 24.
neglecting the needs of the overwhelming rural people 45.
This kind of neglect and deliberate disregarding of the
interests of the people at large or the base, went on
unchecked ti l l the end of regime and the installation of the
popular government46.
On the other hand, the regime patronised and propped
up the middle layer of Jagirdars47, Samasthandars48,
Inamdars49, Deshmukhs50, Deshpandyas51 , Patels52 , and
Patwaris53, who happened to be hereditary feudal elements,
and acted as a reactionary force, and big stumbling blocks
between the Government and the people. The strict
censorship that was imposed over the press and the
holding of public meetings through the most-hated Ghasti54
No. 53, has further widened the gulf between the ruler and
the ruled. Further, the poor and the most unsatisfactory
condition of transport and communications in
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45 A Peep into Hyderabad (Deccan) – A survey of the Administrat ion of the Nizams Dominions , 25 t h September, 1938, pp. 9 – 10.
46 Rule of the Nizams came to an end on 18 t h September, 1948, through Pol ice Act ion of the Indian Government and popular Ministry assumed authori ty af ter the General Elect ions in 1952.
47 Holders of assigned lands.
48 Chiefs of areas who paid t r ibute or Peshkash to the Nizam .
49 Those who received Inams or land gi f ts, e i ther for f ixed service or in recognit ion of service or meri t .
50 Local landlord chiefs with vast inf luence in Government c irc les.
51 Big landlords with Accountant background.
52 Vil lage of f ic ia ls with huge landed power, and discharging the dut ies of maintain ing law and order.
53 Vil lage of f ic ia ls with vast lands and discharging the dut ies of land tax col lect ion and maintain ing the detai ls of land ownership.
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54 Government c ircular which imposed restr ict ions on the f reedom of the press, speech and assembly.
the countryside has further prevented the frequent movement
of the people of different areas within a District, Suba and
the State. Added to these factors, even though Telugu
happened to be the mother-tongue of the people in Telangana,
and Marathi and Kannada in Marathwada, the fact that Urdu
continued to be the medium in Government Offices,
communications, Courts and schools made the people at
large feel as strangers residing and moving in a foreign
land.
3. Economic Development : Salient Features
Natural, mineral and human resources that are essential
for the agricultural and industrial development of former
Hyderabad State, have been adequate or considerable in a
larger measure. Hill ranges in the area afforded the
construction of forts, such as at Bhongir, Rachakonda and
Devarkonda, al l in Nalgonda District, and also the
formation of big lakes such as at Pakhal in Warangal
District55, and also river projects. Big rivers of Godavari
and Krishna, and their tr ibutaries of Penganga, Pranahita,
Manjeera, Musi, Dindi, Palair, Wyra, Maner, Muner, etc. ,
f low for hundreds of miles in this State, serving as
sources of irrigation. Besides these river sources, there
are large tanks, smaller tanks or kuntas and wells ; the
latter two constructed by the individual farmers and the
first ones have been so huge that they could provide water
for two crops56 , have also served as sources of irr igation,
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55 Abdul Qayyam Khan, ‘ I r r igat ion in Hyderabad State’ in Hyderabad Government Bul let in on Economic Af fairs , Vol . I , No. 9,
15
(December, 1948), P. 1068.56 Tanks, such as Ramappa, Pakhal and Laknavaram, al l in
Warangal Distr ict , had such a water storage capacity that they could provide water for two crops.
running cumulatively in thousands in every district 57,
particularly in Telangana area. Black soils, chalka soils,
laterite soils, pinkish and grey sandy loams are spread over
in the State, with the first one predominating in Marathwada
region and others in the Telangana area, enabling the
cultivation of cotton, sugarcane and turmeric in the former, and
rice, jawar , bajra , groundnut, chil l ies, tobacco, pulses, etc. , in
the latter, principally as irrigated crops, and some as rain-fed
ones. Besides timber from the forests, minerals or industrial,
rawmaterial, such as coal, iron ore, clay deposits, graphite,
mica, corundum crystals, l imestone of different colours, quartz,
granite, felspars, etc., have been found in different parts of the
State and in varying quantit ies, which could be uti l ised for the
starting of different industries, both of large-scale or medium
scale. Coal resources have been estimated to be of the order
of 1000 mill ion tons58 under the charge of Singareni Coll ieries
Company Limited and cottage industries, such as handloom
weaving of cotton, si lk and woollen fabrics which provided
employment, next to agriculture, to 3 to 4% of the total
population of the State59, carpet and durri-making, brass
fi l igree works, toy- making carpentry and blacksmithy works,
basket-making, poultry, milch cattle got spread in most of the
districts, more
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57 For instance, Nalgonda Distr ict of Medak Suba had in 1943 – 44 (1352 Fasl i ) 1,083 tanks, 2,844 Kuntas and 19,817 other sources that included wel ls, tota l l ing 23,744 sources -- - Fi le No. 3 of 1352 Fasl i (1943 – 44) & R.No. 446 of Subedari Gulshanabad, Medak.
58 H.E.H. the Nizam ’s Government, Stat ist ical Year Book, 1941 – 42 to 1944 – 45 , P. 1125.
59 H.E.H. the Nizam ’s Government, Industr ia l Stat ist ics
16
(Quinquennial) f rom 1345 to 1349 Fasl i (1935 – 36 to 1939 – 40) and f rom 1350 to 1354 Fasl i (1940 – 41 to 1944 – 45), Hyderabad – Dn, Government Press, 1948, P. 154.
particularly in Nizamabad, Karimnagar, Warangal, Nalgonda
and Mahaboobnagar Districts. Labour, both for agriculture as
well as industries, was never in short supply in the State.
But, all the same, the economic development of the State
was not in commensuration with its plentiful resources. A fair
number of people in the rural areas seldom got two square
meals a day60 . Economic enquiries held as late as 1949 – 51
revealed that the monthly per capita income worked at Rs.15-
11-0, whereas per capita expenditure stood at Rs.14-7-0,
thus giving a bare margin of Rs.1-4-0 61. Compared to
adjacent States, the standard of l i fe in Hyderabad State was
decidedly lower62. The reasons for this poor and
unsatisfactory economic development of the former
Hyderabad State could be analysed, basing on the Subedari ,
State Government Records, newspapers, Reports,
Investigations and the secondary sources that are available.
3.1 : AGRICULTURE : Revealing Scenario
(i) Among the factors that affected agricultural develop-
ment in the former Hyderabad State, i ts division into
Diwani63, and non-Diwani vi l lages, stands prominent.
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60 A.I . Qureshi, The Economic Development of Hyderabad, Vol. I , (The Orient Longman’s Ltd. , Madras, 1941), P. 34.
61 S. Kesava Iyengar, Rural Economic Enquir ies in Hyderabad State, 1949 – 51, Op Cit . ,pp. 382 & 588.
62 Ib id. ,
17
63 I t was derived f rom ‘Diwan ’ or Pr ime Minister, referr ing to areas direct ly administered by the State.
The former happened to be those under the direct
administration of the Government and the latter
turned out to be assigned lands, either with l i tt le control
of the Government over some of them, and complete
independent authority in respect of others. The former
referred to Sarf-i-Khas or crown lands64, and non-
exempted Jagirs, and the latter comprised Paigah or
Zamiat Jagirs65 , and exempted Jagirdars. Out of the
total number of 22,457 vi l lages in the State, Diwani
vil lages numbered 13,961 or 61.9% 66. Among non-
Diwani vi l lages, Sarf-i-Khas vil lages numbered 1,961 or
8.7% and the Jagir vi l lages numbered 6,535 or 29.5%
of the total number of vi l lages in the State 67 . As
Governmental control over these assigned lands was
almost nil or non-existent, the tenure-holders indulged in
al l kinds of anti- ryot and anti-people measures, such as
not conducting land survey68 ; not regarding the
pattedari r ights of the farmers of long standing and
consequently evicting them from their lands 69; collecting
unjustly heavy land tax of Rs.150/- per Acre
-------------------------
64 Refers to lands meant for personal and family expenses of the Crown.
65 These were bestowed by the second Nizam , Nizam Al i (1761 – 1803) on close conf idants of the royal family to provide for the maintenance of Household Troops which was aimed to serve as counter–balancing mi l i tary force between himself and his t roops.
66 S. Kesava Iyengar, Rural Economic Enquir ies in the Hyderabad State, 1949 – 51, Op.Cit . , P. 20
67 Ib id. ,
68 Administrat ive Report for 1349 Fasl i (06-10-1939 to 06-10-1940 ) ,
18
Hyderabad, 1942, P. 18.69 Golkonda Patr ika (Bi-weekly), 29-06-1939.
as against Rs.10/- in the neighbouring areas 70 ; not
extending remission and suspension of land revenue to
the extent that i t was sanctioned in the Diwani areas71 ;
collecting i l legal and unjust cesses, such as ‘Shadi-
Patti72 (marriage cess) ‘Ghar-Patti ’ (house tax) ;
Mohtarfa (tax on handlooms) grazing tax73 etc. ,
numbering in toto as many as 35 74 ; and extracting vetti
or forced and mostly free labour from all the sections of
the local population, including all the farmers 75. As
against these excesses and negative measures, these
tenure-holders took no measures or spent nothing of
their incomes on the development of education, public
health, water supply, veterinary and agricultural
sectors76 . Hence, agricultural development in as
many as 8,496 villages or 38.1% of the total villages
in the State, stood in a depressingly rock-bottom
level.
----------------------------------
70 A.V. Raman Rao, Andhra Pradesh Economy since Independence (1947 – 1992), Kalyani Publ ishers, Hyderabad, 1993, pp. 13 – 14.
71 V. Venkatraman, Land Reform in India with Specia l reference to Hyderabad , unpubl ished Ph.D. thesis, (Osmania Universi ty, 1957), P. 71.
72 H.E.H. the Nizam ’s Government, Report of the Tenancy Commit tee, 1940, P. 15.
73 Golkonda Patr ika (Bi-weekly), 29-08-1939 & 03-07-1939 ; Meezan , 11-10-1945.
74 Patt i in local par lance referred to compulsory cess.
75 S. Kesava Iyengar, Economic Invest igat ions in Hyderabad State, Vol. I , 1929 – 30, Hyderabad – Dn, 1931, P. 13.
76 Jagir Administrat ion Report , Vol. I , 1952, pp 15 – 16 ; Golkonda Patr ika , (Bi-weekly), 10-04-1939 ; Report of the Royal
19
Commission on Jagir Administrat ion and Reforms , H.E.H. the Nizam ’s Govt . 1356 Fasl i (1947 ) , Bangalore, pp. 79 – 80.
(i i) As against this unhappy situation that obtained in the
assigned areas, the conditions that prevailed in the
Diwani area did not also augur well for agricultural
development in the State. The pattern of land
distribution that was then in vogue resulted in grave
inequalities which became a potent factor for the
outbreak of the Peasants Movement of 1946 – 51.
These could be glanced at from the Table No. I which
could be seen on the next page.
From Table No. I , i t could be observed that, on one
hand, small pattedars with meagre holdings of 5 Acres
and 5 to 10 Acres, accounted for more than one-third of
the total number of pattedars in the State, but could
possess only less than 6% of the total land that was
available ; as against this, big pattedars who owned
holdings of the sizes of 25 to 50 Acres, 50 to 100 Acres
and 100 to 150 Acres, even though they accounted for
less than 30% of the total number of pattedars , were in
possession of more than 50% of the total land that was
available in the State. It was a glaring case of
utter scarcity and starvation in the case of majority
of smaller peasants who did take up personal
cultivation, as against huge monopolisation and
concentration of land in the case of big farmers
who were in lesser number and resorted to absentee
landlordism . This resembled the condition of pre-
20
Table No. I : Number of Pattedars and the size of their
Holdings in 1354 Fasli (1945) in the Hyderabad State.
S.No.Size of the
HoldingNumber of Pattedars
Their percentage (%) out of the total No.
of Pattedars
Extent of the Acreage of land held (maximum
size of the holding was
taken for
computation)*
Percentage (%) of the Acreage of land held out
of the total cultivated and uncultivated land of
1934 – 35 i.e.,
3,89,35,251 Acres*
(1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6)
1. 5 acres 2,13,515 22.87
36.
10% 10,67,575 2.74
5.93
%
2. 5 to 10 acres 1,24,481 13.33 12,44,810 3.19
3. 10 to 15 acres 1,07,036 10.14 16,05,540 4.12
4. 15 to 20 acres 96,543 10.03 19,30,860 4.95
5. 20 to 25 acres 84,101 9.00 21,02,525 5.40
6. 25 to 50 acres 1,61,646 17.31
29.4
7% 78,52,341¥ 20.16
54
.23%
7. 50 to 100 acres 89,029 9.05 89,02,900 22.86
8. 100 to 150 acres 29,113 3.11 43,66,950 11.21
9. 150 to 200 acres 13,100 1.40 26,20,000 6.72
10. 200 to 250 acres 8,011 0.85 20,02,750 5.14
11. 250 to 500 acres 4,974 0.53 24,87,000 6.38
12. 500 to 1000 acres
1,509 0.16 15,09,000 3.87
13. 1000 to 2000 acres
444 0.04 8,88,000 2.28
14. 2000 to 5000 acres
49 0.005 2,45,000 0.62
15. Above 5000 + acres
11 0.001 1,10,000 0.28
* Own calculations. + Maximum size of 10,000 acres is taken.
¥ Out of the maximum computed f igure 2,29,959 acres have been deducted to br ing the tota l acreage f igure to the level of 1934 – 35 A.D.
Compiled from : H.E.H. the Nizam’s Govt . Agricul tural Stat ist ics (Quinquennial) f rom 11350 to 1354 Fasl i (1940 – 41 to 1944 – 45 A.D . , )
1949, P. 395.
21
Revolutionary France of 1789 77. The number of small
pattedars who demonstrated land hunger, appeared
more, respectively in Warangal, Medak, Gulbarga and
Aurangabad Subas of the State78 . Accordingly, the
Peasants’ Movement of 1946 – 51 was more widely
and virulently prevalent in Telangana than in
Marathwada, and then, in Telangana, i t was more
intensive and strong in Warangal Suba than in Medak
Suba , excepting of course, Nalgonda District of the
latter . Jannareddy Pratap Reddy of Suryapet Taluk in
Nalgonda District, owning 1,50,000 Acres of land 79, and
Kallur Deshmukh in Madhira Taluk of Warangal District,
owning 1,00,000 Acres80 could be cited as two
individual cases of highest land monopolisation and
concentration.
This feature is also noticeable in the case of Exempted
Jagirdars who enjoyed vast landed, administrative,
judicial and Police powers over not one vi l lage, but
--------------------------------
77 V. Ramakrishna Reddy, Economic History of Hyderabad State (Warangal Suba ) , 1911 – 1950 , Delhi , 1987, P. 129.
78 Warangal Suba comprised the three Eastern Distr icts of Warangal, Karimnagar and Adi labad ; Medak Suba consisted of Medak, Mahaboobnagar, Nalgonda and Nizamabad Distr icts ; Gulbarga Suba consisted of Gulbarga, Bidar, Bi japur and Osmanabad Distr icts ; and Aurangabad Suba consisted of Aurangabad, Bhir , Nanded and Parbhani Distr icts.
79 P. Sundarayya, Veera Telangana Viplava Poratam – Gunapatalu, Vijayawada, 1973, P. 19.
80 Ib id. ,
22
several vi l lages that spread over several districts, of
the State. For instance, Raja Shivaraj Dharamvanth
Bahadur’s Jagir estate was spread over 12 districts of
the State, with a total number of 222 vi l lages and an
annual income of Rs.7,00,00081 . Further, the State
has been so much drained and got depleted of i ts tax
revenues that, merely 19 Jagirdars netted more than
rupees f ive crores in taxes, when the entire land
revenue of the State totalled up to no more than rupees
eight crores82 .
(i i i ) Besides the grave inequalit ies in the system of land
distribution, the pattern of land uti l isation that obtained
in the former Hyderabad State left much to be desired,
and did not at al l contribute for growth in agricultural
production . Table No. II that is furnished on the next
page, provides some interesting and useful details in this
regard.
--------------------------
81 Golkonda Patr ika (Bi-weekly), 13-08-1936.
23
82 Rajendra Prasad, Asaf jahis of Hyderabad, Their Rise and Decl ine, Op.Cit . , P. 295.
24
25
Though the data furnished in Table No. II is not adequate
in al l the respects, yet, the basic trends that obtained in the
State in respect of land uti l isation could be noticed. First of
al l , the State being primari ly agriculture – based, i t is
significant to note that the percentage of cultivated area to
total area, and in turn, that of irr igated area to total area
cultivated, throughout the 20 t h century, do not at al l seem
encouraging. The percentage of the former never rose above
56%, and that of the latter, never came up above 6% 83 ,
whereas the latter f igure for Part ‘A’ States in India stood three
times higher at above 18%84. Further, and more alarming
is the fact that the cultivated area went sl iding down
appreciably from 1937 – 41 to 1949 - 50 85 . The position
was equally bad, and even worse, with regard to irrigated
area. It started fall ing down steeply right from 1922 – 26,
and could never touch up the 6% mark throughout the rest of
the period86 .
It is equally interesting to notice from Table No. II that,
the per capita cultivated area and irrigated area, are abysmally
poor, sl iding and stationary . The former, which stood at 2.14
Acres during 1922 – 26, went on sl iding to 2.01 during 1932
– 36 and to 1.59 Acres during 1942 - 46 87.
----------------------------
83 Rural Economic Enquir ies in Hyderabad State, 1949 – 51, Op.Cit . , P. 23.
84 Ib id . ,
85 See i tem No. 2 in Table No. I I of th is wr i te-up.
86 Refer to I tem No. 7 in Table No. I I of th is wri te-up.
87 See i tem No. 8 in Table No. I I of th is wr i te-up.
26
per capita irr igated area, sti l l more pitiably and contrastingly,
stood stationery at 0.08 Acre from 1922 – 26 to 1942 - 46 88,
for which the figures are available. For a State whose forest
area formed only 11.6% of the total area, as against 15.5%
for Part ‘A’ States of India 89, and which was endowed with
varied and rich soils in abundance, and ever-ful l irr igational
projects, such as Ramappa, Pakhal, Laknavaram, Ghanpur,
Palair, Nizamsagar90, etc., these per capita poor and stunted
figures are highly amazing and perplexing.
The reasons or the underlying factors for the lack of
growth in cultivated area and irrigated area are not far to
seek. The increase in culturable waste from 22.05 lakh Acres
in 1912 – 13 to 35.75 lakh Acres during 1942 - 46 91 ; the rise
in porampoke or unassessed waste from 72.60 lakh Acres
in 1937 – 41 to 99.35 lakh Acres during 1942 -
4692, forming on an average not less than one-fi fth of the
Government or Diwani area in the State ; and the current
fallows during the quinquennial periods, ranging from 1927 –
31 to 1947 – 51, remaining not only on the
-----------------------------
88 Refer to i tem No. 9 in Table No. I I of th is wr i te-up.
89 Rural Economic Enquir ies in Hyderabad State, 1949 – 51, Op.Cit . , P. 23
90 Ramappa, Pakhal, Laknavaram and Ghanpur had been projects constructed over tanks that have been or iginal ly dug under the Kakat iyas, whereas Palair and Nizamsagar had been projects constructed during later t ime over the r ivers Palair and Manjeera. Al l these projects, except ing Nizamsagar, had been located in the then Warangal Distr ict , as against the lat ter being located in Nizamabad Distr ict .
91 See the i tem No. 15 in Table No. I I of th is wri te-up.
92 Refer to i tem No. 11 in Table No. I I of th is wri te-up.
27
constant rise, but getting i tself more than trebled during
this quarter century93 ; have cumulatively contributed for the
decrease in cultivated area in the State. Regarding the fal l
in irr igated area, notable presence of big pattedars with vast
estates of irr igable land under their absentee ownership 94 ;
insufficiency of water in the tanks brought about by the
lowering of F.T.L. (Full Tank Level) at the time of the
restoration of tanks ; inordinate delay in the construction of
f ield channels ; and the neglect and indifference with which
the tanks and canals were maintained 95 ; late release of water
; non-provision of water for sowing of seedlings for
transplantation ; unpredictabili ty regarding the release of water
; corruption in the release of water ; faulty f ixing of forecast
areas and also height of sluices of f lank channels ; delay
in conducting phodi96 of ayacut lands and grant of their
pattas ; forest and shikargah97 areas intervening cultivated
lands ; prevalence of malarial cl imate in the irr igated areas ;
and poor communication facil i t ies to majority of the vi l lages,
etc. , have been cumulatively responsible.
Further, i t needs to be noted in this connection that,
culturable waste or porampoke or unassesed waste lands
were allotted for development not to any of 3,28,000 small
-------------------------------
93 See the i tem No. 13 in Table No. I I of th is wri te-up.
94 Warangal Subedari (W .S.) Fi le No. 5 of 1340 Fasl i (1931) & Record No. (R.No.2458) of 1344 Fasl i (1935).
95 Agricul tur ists ’ Associat ion, Immediate Agrar ian Problems, Hyderabad State, Hyderabad – Dn, 1949, P. 65.
96 Demarcat ion of surveyed land for the grant of patta .
97 Area exclusively earmarked for royal hunt ing.
28
pattedars with meagre holdings of 5 Acres and 5 Acres
to 10 Acres98 , but to people l ike Sir Fazalbhoy, a Bombay
capitalist entrepreneur99 ; Sir Amin Jung, a high dignitary
in the Sarf-i-Khas Department100 ; Sifatul-Islam , a Muslim
service organisation101 ; and a host of War-returned
soldiers102; al l of whom stayed away from the lands in lakhs
and hundreds of Acres that have been al lotted to them, and
the net result of this exercise has been that the former two
have returned back the lands to the Nizam ’s Government at
higher rates than what they have paid earlier 103 ; and the
latter two have sold away their lands to local landlords at
name – sake rates and thereby contributed for further addition
to the land monopolisation of the latter 104.
-------------------------------
98 Refer to Sl. Nos. 1 & 2 in Table No. I of th is wr i te-up.
99 W.S. Fi le No. 48 of 1351 (1942) & R.No. 1827 of 1354 Fasl i (1945).
100 Ib id . ,
101 W.S. Fi le No. 4 of 1353 Fasl i ( I944) & R.No. 1827 of 1351 Fasl i (1942).
102 W.S. Fi le No. 3 of 1350 Fasl i (1941) & R.No. 1365 of 1351 Fasl i (1942).
103 W.S. Fi le No. 48 of 1351 Fasl i (1942) & R.No. 1827 of 1354 Fasl i (1945).
104 W.S. Fi les No. 87 of 1353 Fasl i (1944) & R.No. 441 of 1353 Fasl i ; 123 of 1354 Fasl i (1945) & R.No. 619 of 1355 Fasl i (1946) and 49 of 1355 Fasl i (1946) & R.No. 654 of 1355 Fasl i .
Last, but not the least, the least importance and
preference that the State Government has given for the
development of the nation-building Department of
29
Agriculture is amply demonstrated by the fact that it
spent on the latter, meagre and lowest amounts which
ranged from 0.05 lakhs in 1911 – 12 to 9.65 lakhs in
1943 - 44105 . Throughout this long period of 33 years,
Government spending on Agriculture Department never
touched the figure of 10 lakhs106 .
3.1.1 : Resultant Agricultural Production and Yields
Per Acre
(a) Higher yields and incomes from the cultivation of non-
food crops since 1934 - 35 107, and Governments’
introduction of Grain Levy system in October, 1943 108 ,
led to inadequate foodgrains production, especial ly
paddy, with the result that the State, on a minimum, had
to import 1,00,0000 tons of r ice per year from the
neighbouring areas of the Madras Presidency of the
Brit ish109. Even the cultivation of commercial crops l ike
groundnut, cotton, sugarcane, tobacco, chil l ies and
sesamum , has also been drastically affected by the
Governments’ Cash Crops Restriction Regulation of
-------------------------
105 Rao, R.V., A Review of Hyderabad Finance, 1951 , pp. 249 – 251.
106 Ib id . ,
107 Hyderabad Informat ion Vol. IV , No. 10 (Shahrewar , 1353 Fasl i (July, 1944).
108 Qureshi, A. I . , The Economic Development of Hyderabad, Vol. I , . Op.Cit . , P. 314.
109 Hyderabad Government Bul let in on Economic Af fa irs, Vol. I , No. 9, December, 1948, P. 1071.
1943 – 44 by imposing heavy penalty for the area in
excess of 1/3 of the total area of a cultivator 110.
30
(b) Equally important was the fact that the yield per Acre of
the cultivated land has also been, compared to adjacent
and even distant areas of the Brit ish Indian Government,
has been so low, that i t could form only 1/3 r d of the
latter111 . For instance, in respect of maize crop, the
yield per Acre that was set in respect of Warangal
Suba Districts where it was grown as an irr igated or wet
crop, was 450 lbs, as against 475 lbs in respect of the
State, 635 lbs in Madras Presidency and 933 lbs in All
India112. Even this lowest yield per Acre figure of 450
lbs has never been exceeded by any of the Suba
Districts during 1935 – 47 period113 .
(c) The reasons for this low crop yields in the State are self-
evident. First and foremost among these reasons has
been poor application of improved seeds, manures,
pesticides, and methods of cultivation by the farming
community in the State. The improved seed that was
developed by the Agriculture Department covered only
-------------------------
110 Department of Agricul ture, H.E.H. the Nizam’s Government, Fi le No. 32/8, S.No. 97 of 1357 Fasl i (1948), P. 9 ; The Deccan Chronic le , 8-5-1947.
111 Golkonda Patr ika (Bi-weekly), Editor ia l , 10-04-1939 ; The Hyderabad Informat ion, Vol. IV , No. 3, Bahman, 1353 Fasl i (December, 1944) ; H.E.H. the Nizam’s Government, Agricul tural Stat ist ics, 1940 – 41 to 1944 – 45 . , pp 2 – 11.
112 H.E.H. the Nizam’s Government, Agricul tural Stat ist ics (Quinquennial) , Notes and Est imates of area and yie ld of Pr incip les crops in Hyderabad State f rom 1345 to 1349 Fasl i (1935 – 36 to 1939 – 40 A.D.), Government Central Press, Hyderabad - Dn 1942, P. 86 ; Agricul tural Stat ist ics, 1940 – 41 to 1944 – 45 ; Op.Cit . , P. 189.
113 Ib id . ,
about 5% of the total cultivated area 114. The financial
resources of an ordinary cultivator remained very much
31
l imited, not leaving margin for investment on agricultural
inputs115.
(d) Meagre funds that had been allotted to the State
Agriculture Department and spent on irr igation
development had considerable bearing, the former
indirectly, and the latter directly, on low and poor
agricultural yields in the State. The percentage of
State’s expenditure on the Department of Agriculture to
the total State expenditure ranged from 0.94 in
1934 – 35 to 1.57 in 1950 - 51 116 . With such meagre
funds, the Department could neither effectively organise
demonstration, nor conduct research and propaganda
that are conducive for creating better awareness and
knowledge among the ryots . Similarly, on irrigation
development that is absolutely life-giving for crops
and nation-building for the State, the spending on it
by the Hyderabad State ranged in a miserable
manner, from 23.27 lakhs in 1911 – 12 to 30.17 lakhs
in 1948 - 49, an increase of 6.90 lakhs over a
period of 37 years, with, of course, wider falls in
between, amounting to 9.36 lakhs in 1934 – 35 and
8.01 lakhs in 1935 - 36117. What increase or
----------------------------
114 Director of Agricul ture, Hyderabad State ‘ A Note on Agricul tural condit ions in Hyderabad State in the year, 1947 – 48’ in Agricul ture Department, Seria l No. 103, Fi le No. 40/8 of 1357 Fasl i (1948).
115 Ib id . ,
116 Memoranda submit ted to the Taxat ion, Enquiry committee, 1953 , P. 189.
117 Rao, R.V., Op.Cit . , P. 251.
better yield per Acre in agriculture could be
expected in a State where such a mere pittance was
32
spent on the main or the basic ingredient of
irrigation facility or service ?
3.2 : Industrial Development : A glance
(i) Next to irr igation, industries, particularly cottage or home
industries, served as l ivelihood or employment sources
to the people at large in the former Hyderabad State.
This is evident from the fact that 4.77 lakh workers daily
earned their l ivel ihood through handloom weaving, and
the cloth woven by them met the clothing requirements of
half of the total population of the State 118. As such
cottage industries came to provide source of l ivel ihood
not only to artisans, but also to small farmers as part-
t ime occupations, the Government of the last Nizam
could take on 1 s t January, 1918, the measure of starting
a separate Department for looking after industrial
matters119. But, even though this was done, the
amounts that were allotted and spent on this nation-
building Department had been highly inadequate, meagre
and name-sake. Its expenditure ran from Rs.1.45 lakhs
in 1920 – 21 to 3.70 lakhs in 1930 – 31 ; 4.88 lakhs in
1945 – 46 and 13.45 lakhs in
---------------------------
118 H.E.H. the Nizam’s Government, Industr ia l Stat ist ics (Quinquennial) , Op.Cit . , P. 154.
119 Triennial Report on the Administrat ion of the Department of Industr ies and Commerce for the years 1918, 1919 & 1920 A.D., Hyderabad – Dn, 1922, P. 154.
1950 – 51, with of course, levels fal l ing down to 1 lakh in
1925 – 26 and 3.16 lakhs in 1940 - 41 120. Even these
33
meagre amounts were largely spent on the maintenance
and administration of this Department 121 . This
phenomenon gains further significance in view of the fact
that the State adopted a hostile policy against outside
capital and even prohibited non-mulkies122 establishing
industries123. To make matters worse, the local
enterprise was not resourceful and banking facil i t ies
stood meagre with the consequence that capital was in
short supply124 . Though Industrial Trust Fund was
created in 1928 – 29, i t has extended financial
assistance, by way of purchasing shares, only to few and
selected large-scale industries125.
(i i) Just as agriculture, so also industrial development in the
State got suffered and neglected. Large-scale,
industries, such as cotton mil ls, r ice mills, oi l mills, etc. ,
being predominantly agro-based, depended on highly
uncertain crop conditions which got alternated off and
on. Further, as these large-scale industries got located
in District or Taluk headquarter towns, needy
---------------------120 Dr. B.K. Narayan, Finances and Fiscal Pol icy of Hyderabad State,
1900 – 1956, Hyderabad, 1973, P. 51.121 Ib id . , P. 50.
122 Mulkies refer to nat ives of the State.
123 Dr. B.K. Narayan, Finances and Fiscal Pol icy of Hyderabad State, Op.Cit . , P. 50.
124 Ib id . ,
125 Ib id . ,
34
unemployed persons in the rural parts which counted for
86% of the total population, could get no succour or
assistance from them.
(i i i) Industrial production in the State was marked by low
productivity and under-utilisation of the resources or
the materials. To cite the instance of coal-mining which
served as the leading large-scale industry in the State,
the Singareni Coll ieries Company during 45 years ending
in 1944, could extract only about 33 mil l ion tons of coal
as against the estimated resources of 1000 mil l ion tons
of coal in the Dominions126 . In the same way, as against
an annual capacity of 20 lakhs tons of the two large coal
mines at Kothagudem and Tandur, only 10 lakh tons had
been extracted on an average, during the period 127 . Low
prices, rising costs of production, old and uneconomical
machinery, transport bottlenecks for export, shortage of
labour and its discontent, had all contributed, each in i ts
own way for low production 128. Another factor which
vital ly affected industrial development in the State
happened to be that rawmaterials have been more
exported than imported and manufactured items have
been, more imported than exported . For instance,
groundnut, castor seed, sesamum , hides and skins
etc. , have been largely
---------------------------
126 Stat ist ical Year Book, 1941 – 42 to 1944 – 45 , P. 1125.
127 Industr ia l Stat ist ics. , Op.Cit . , P. 310.
128 Trade Stat ist ics, H.E.H. the Nizam’s Government for 1352 Fasl i (1942 – 43), Government Central Press, Hyderabad – Dn, 1944, P. 10.
35
exported as raw products, and their f inished products –
groundnut oil , castor oil , gingelly oil and leather --- have
been imported to a considerable extent 129 .
(iv) Medium, small and cottage industries, on the other hand,
languished more due to dearth of f inance, and shortage
of rawmaterials rather than the supply of labour or the
managerial element. External competit ion and effects of
World War, trade cycles and price fluctuations had only
aggravated, their decaying condition. The decline of the
handloom weaving industry, especially of cotton, led to
considerable rural unemployment and the consequent
diversion of these elements for employment in factories.
(v) Labour discontent that grew out of poor wages and rising
prices, led to spoliation of industrial relations and
production. 80% of the male labourers received a wage
of Rs.18/- per month or ten annas per day and female
labourers and child workers received only Rs.5/- per
month and two to four annas per day respectively 130 .
These wages were hardly enough for two meals a day.
Though Trade Union activity in the State was started
very late in the forties, i t was suppressed in the bud with
an autocratic hand131.
-----------------------------
129 Industr ia l Stat ist ics Op.Cit . , P. 507.
130 Romesh Thapar, Storm over Hyderabad , Kutb Publ ishers, Bombay, 1947, P. 11.
131 AITUC Papers, Fi le No. 110, P. 15.
36
3.3 : Trade Development : Broad Trends
Regarding trade that considerably affected the fortunes
of the people, i t is significant to note that nearly three-fi fths of
total period, 1905 – 1950, was marked by more imports, less
exports, and hence, adverse trade balances. Besides
unfavourable crop or rainfal l conditions, impact of the World
Wars, World Economic Depression and Inflation, certain other
factors contributed for this unwelcome trend. First and major
one happened to be that, as observed earl ier 132, agricultural
products that were grown in record level in the State, such as
castor seed, groundnut, sesamum , l inseed and cotton, have
been exported as raw products mostly to the neighbouring
Brit ish Indian Provinces instead of manufacturing them into
oi ls, yarn or cloth, which in other words, were imported from
the latter, even through related oil mil ls, cotton-ginning,
pressing, spinning and weaving mills were there in the State.
Consequently, as raw exports fetched lesser price and
manufacture imports carried higher price, the State suffered
huge loss in i ts trade transactions.
Further, as hoarding and smuggling of foodgrains in the
1940s by the big landlords and merchants has taken place on
such a heavy scale that the State was forced to import the
foodgrains of r ice, jawar and jawar f lour on an unprecedented
scale which also contributed not a l i tt le for the unfavourable
balances of trade that were witnessed in the last decade of the
last Nizam ’s reign period133. In addition, the system of
-----------------------
132 See i tem No. ( i i i ) in the ‘Sect ion : Industr ia l Development :
A glance’ in th is wri te-up.133 Meezan , (Engl ish), Editor ia l , 26-08-1948 & 13-09-1944 (Telugu).
37
collecting customs duties on the goods at the Brit ish Indian
sea ports, and again on their entry into the Hyderabad State,
has also proved burdensome to the traders, as well as the
customers, by way of additional r ise in prices, and thus
affected trade development134.
4. Social Conditions : Character and Impact
Society of the former Hyderabad State was essentially
rural-based, as around 88% of the population resided in
vi l lages135. Poor l i teracy rate which stood at 70 li terates per
1000 persons in 1940 – 41 remaining lowest not only as
compared to Brit ish Indian Provinces, but even as compared to
some of the Native States, such as Travancore, Cochin,
Mysore Central Provinces and Berar136 and undeveloped
means of transport and communications affected internal and
external exchange and impact. Organisation of society
became essential ly based on the crafts or occupations that
were pursued by the different sections of the society. Castes,
such as Kapus, or cultivators, Kammari or blacksmith, Sale or
weaver, Golla or shepherd, Madigas or cobblers etc. , have
developed on their basis. But, i t is significant to realise that
agriculture and the castes that got engaged in i t, became the
focal point or the axis around which the vast rural social
organisation revolved. Brahmins who attended to the
performance of marriages, funeral r i tes and religious
-------------------------
134 Hyderabad Government Bul let in on Economic Af fairs, Vol. I , December, 1947, No. 2, P. 210.
135 Y. Vaikuntham, Op.Cit . , P. 24.
38
136 Meezan (Telugu), 20-02-1945.
ceremonies, patwaris or vi l lage Karnams or accountants who
looked after the preparation and maintenance of vi l lage land
records and revenue matters, and patels or vi l lage headmen
who looked after the maintenance of law and order in the
vi l lage, were all held in high esteem and regard by the
vi l lagers.
Jawar , bajra , r ice, wheat, ragulu or taidulu formed the
chief food articles of the people 137. Besides these, maize
also formed another important foodgrain. Regarding dress,
sherwani and trousers became the common dress of al l the
communities very much imitating the rulers or the governing
class138. At the same time, as there was Brit ish rule in the
provinces surrounding the former Hyderabad State and also
overriding influence and control over the latter, there was the
influence of the Brit ish on the dress style of some sections of
the people. But, however, as times progressed, Western
influence has increased over the dress and other habits of the
people, such as hair dressing and close shaving. Regarding
women of course, wearing of sari became the common dress,
irrespective of communities. But, the way of wearing a sari
turned out to be different in respect of various communities,
such as the Parsis, Marathas, etc.
Construction of houses varied in the form of huts,
‘penkuti l lu’139 and buildings with spacious rooms and even
---------------------------
137 Sastrula Raghurama Sharma (ed), Medak Seema Vijnana Sarvasvam , Hyderabad, 2001, P. 13.
138 Census of India, 1941, Vol. XXI, H.E.H. the Nizam’s Dominions, (Hyderabad State), Part - I – Report , Government Central Press, Hyderabad – Dn, 1945, P. 231.
39
139 Roofed by br icks.
two floors140 , depending respectively on the poor, middle level
and rich economic status of the people. There was the usual
hunger of women for gold and si lver ornaments. Their tastes
have, however, become more refined and simpler. People
were amused and entertained by a wide variety of traditional
plays and amusements.
Lambadi or Banjaras, Erkalas , Chenchus , Gonds, Koyas
and Hil l Reddis , formed the important tr ibesmen that inhabited
in the former Hyderabad State. Starting as wandering bullock-
carrier merchants, the Banjaras, when transport and
communications began to develop, resorted to settled li fe,
getting engaged in cattle – breeding and also agriculture 141.
Within no time, out of hunger for land, they fel l upon the lands
of the aboriginal tr ibes, such as the Chenchus , Koyas, Gonds
etc., and turned out to be their exploiters and ex-
proporiators142. On the other hand, Erkala men worked as
basket and mat-makers day labourers and musicians, while the
women wandered from vil lage to vi l lage as fortune-tel lers and
tatooers143. But, they never turned nor took up agriculture.
Chenchus are an aboriginal tr ibe found mainly in
Mahaboobnagar District144. They speak Telugu, the local
language. They inhabit in the Amrabad and Farahabad
plateau of Mahaboobnagar District. This was made as the
-------------------------
140 Medak Seema Vi jnana Sarvasvam, OP.Cit . , P. 11.
141 Christoph Von Furer Haimendorf , Tr ibal , Hyderabad , Four Reports , publ ished by the Revenue Department, Government of H.E.H. the Nizam , Hyderabad, 1945, P. 8.
142 Ib id . ,
40
143 Siraju l Hassan, The Castes and Tribes of H.E.H. the Nizam’s Dominions, Madras, 1989, P. 185.
144 Tribal Hyderabad, Four Reports, Op.Cit . , P. 5.
“Chenchu Reserve” in 1942, granting several facil i t ies and
concessions for giving special protection to these aboriginals
from the exploitation and incursions of the marauders from the
plains145. Simultaneously, a Rural Reconstruction Scheme
was also launched for promoting the education, health,
employment and other developmental needs of the
Chenchus146. But, inspite of these Governmental measures
to bring about a change in the economic and social
organisation of these Chenchus , there was l i tt le or negligible
change in this regard. Even though land for agriculture was
there in the “Chenchu Reserve” and bullocks were provided
for t i l l ing, these were not uti l ised, and instead, they continued
their primitive habit of going on hunting and search and
collect the available forest and animal produce. These
vi l lage chenchus have, however, been greatly influenced by
the local Hindu population, with whom they l ive in symbiosis
and on whom they are, for the most part, economically
dependent.
Gonds and Koyas, forming important tr ibes in the
Dominions after the Banjaras , took up podu147 or shift ing
type of agriculture. Both had their own languages or
dialects. But, they indulged in excessive drinking which
consumed their earnings or savings and made them.
Prone to fal l into the debts to money- lenders. Added to
------------------------------
145 Syed Khaja Abdul Gaf foor, The Socia l and Tribal Welfare , Hyderabad - Dn., 1951, P. 40.
146 Ib id . ,
41
147 In th is type of cul t ivat ion, the t r ibals chose virgin land every year which would be fu l l of fert i l i ty and af ter one year’s cul t ivat ion, they shi f t to another virg in land, in another area. This a lso made them escape f rom the payment of land revenue.
this, the Forest Department’s indiscriminate extension of the
limits or the boundaries of the Reserved Forest areas, and
more important, the speedy dispossession of their lands
by the non-aboriginal Watandars148, forest contractors and
immigrants from the plains, have totally worsened their
condition.
Adi-Hindus or the Scheduled Castes, as per 1921
Census, numbered about 19 lakhs in the State. This was
nearly 20% of the Hindu population and 18% of the total
population of the State149 . They consisted of 34 sub-castes,
such as Mala and Madigas in Telangana, and Dhed , Mang
and Mahar in Marathwada150. The occupation of the Adi-
Hindus in the vi l lages was field labour and domestic service in
European and Muslim households in Hyderabad city and
Secunderabad town151. There were also leather workers,
scavengers and masons among them152 . These Adi-Hindus
adopted all Hindu customs in their auspicious ceremonies and
consequently al l the evils of Hindu society were imitated and
they even observed untouchabil i ty among the sub-castes 153 .
The greatest evil which sapped the very vitals of their
economic structure was the evil of drink which was consumed
-------------------------------
148 These referred to feudal and hereditary landlords and vi l lage or d istr ict of f ic ia ls, such as Patels , Patrwaris , Deshmukhs , Deshpandyas , etc.,
149 K. Chandraiah, Hyderabad 400 Glor ious Years , Hyderabad, 1996, P. 199.
150 Ib id . ,
42
151 Ib id . ,
152 Ib id . ,
153 Ib id . ,
on rel igious and social ceremonies 154 . As these Scheduled
castes were subjected to forced labour at the hands of big
landlords, patels and patwaris , pioneers of several
organisations fought relentlessly against this inhuman labour
without wages155.
When such was the condition of Scheduled Castes in the
former Hyderabad State, three reformist personalit ies –-----
M.V. Bhagya Reddy Varma, B.S. Venkat Rao and Arige
Ramaswamy ----– strived hard for awakening them, educating
them and fighting for their r ights 156. These leaders go down
in the history of the Scheduled Castes of Hyderabad, as the
“Great Trinity” of the movement 157 . It was through their
untir ing service, they uplifted the downtrodden out of the
rut of caste untouchabili ty and social bondage 158.
Regarding social customs, i t so happened that whereas
child marriages and polygamy remained, very much in vogue,
divorce and widow marriage have not received approval and
social sanction. Seclusion of women or purdah159- keeping
was prevalent during the period among the Muslim famil ies
and also among the nobles, feudal lords and vi l lage officers.
The social evi l of taking of dowry from the bride’s father in the
form of cash, gold, land, house or providing a secure job has
been very much prevalent, as a kind of social exploitation and
--------------------------
154 K. Chandraiah, Hyderabad 400 Glor ious Years , Hyderabad, 1996, Op.Cit . , P. 199.
155 Ib id . ,
156 Ib id. , .
43
157 Ib id . ,
158 Ib id. ,
159 Ladies keeping a vei l over their face and body.
turning the sacred marriage into a kind of commercial
transaction. Common or general festivals were celebrated in
communal amity and brotherhood. Only since the second half
of 1940s, relations got strained due to the Muslim
fundamentalists gaining upper hand over the Nizam and in
the administration.
But, all the same, it is sad and unfortunate that
education and health, being the two welfare areas that
formed the basis for the all-round development of the people in
the State, have been very much neglected, and least and
paltry amounts of the State budget have been spent on them,
with a result that even Primary Schools, Middle Schools and
High Schools, let alone colleges and universit ies, and
dispensaries with beds in them, have been woefully deficient,
thereby leaving more than 95% of the people il l i terate and
devoid of even minimum medical faci l i t ies or support. For
instance, as late as 1931 and 1936, 4 Taluks in Medak
District ; 5 Taluks in Nizamabad District ; 5 Taluks in
Mahaboobnagar District and 6 Taluks in Nalgonda
District had no High School at all . These 20 Taluks had as
many as 2,424 Khalsa or Diwani vi l lages160 . Sti l l worse
was the fact that, on an average, 75% of the total number of
vi l lages in a Taluk were deprived of even the benefit of
Primary School for their children 161 . In respect of medical
facil i t ies, on an average, a Taluk, consisting of 73 to 172
vi l lages, had one dispensary, which again, was located at
Taluk headquarters which could, in no way, meet even the
minimum medical and health needs of the people coming under
its care162 . As far as education was concerned, 85%
160 V. Ramakrishna Reddy, Socia l and Economic Dynamics of Medak
44
Suba of former Hyderabad State, 1905 – 1950 A.D., unpubl ished ICHR Project Report , Hyderabad, 2012, P. 70.
161 Ib id . , P. 72.
162 Ib id . , P. 79
of the people or non-Muslims could not have instruction
through their mother-tongue, nor individuals or organisations
related to them, were permitted to establish vernacular
schools. This trend could be reversed to the happiness of the
majority of the people only after the integration of the State
with the Indian Union in September, 1948, and the instal lation
of a popular and duly elected Government in 1952.
5. Cultural Conditions : A glimpse
Former Hyderabad State is very well noted for i ts
composite or cosmopolitan culture. People speaking Persian,
Urdu, Telugu, Marathi and Kannada languages l ived together
as members of one community. Persian remained as official
language upto 1893, and from this year upto the end of the
regime in 1948, Urdu occupied the official language status 163 .
Besides these, Hindi and English are also spoken, but not as
primary languages164. Because of the cosmopolitan nature of
Hyderabad city, people from all parts of India and foreign
lands flocked to it, and lived harmoniously and peacefully,
though professing different rel igions 165 . Telugu li terature got
enriched during the rule of the Qutbshahis, the il lustrious
predecessors of the Asafjahis166 . Addanki
-------------------------
163 Prof . A.R. Kulkarni (ed), History of Modern Deccan, 1724 – 1948, Vol. I I , Hyderabad, 2009, P. 373.
164 Ib id . ,
165 Ib id . ,
45
166 Dr. Zareena Parveen ‘The Eff lorescence of Hyderabad Composite Culture’ in Hyderabad State : Society, Economy and Pol i t ics, 1724 to 1956, a Pre -Seminar Volume of Internat ional Seminar held at Osmania Universi ty, Hyderabad, 17 t h to 19 t h December, 2010, P. 95.
Gangadhara Kavi of 16 t h century and a native of
Golconda, dedicated his work ‘Swayamvaropakhyanam’ to
Ibrahim Qutbshah167 . Saranga Tammayya, a Karnam167 (a)
of Golconda at the time of Quli Qutbshah, wrote ‘ Vaijayanti
Vilasam’168.
If Muhammad Quli Qutub Shah was the founder of
Hyderabad city, Nawab Sir Mir Osman Ali Khan, the seventh
Nizam ’ can be called the maker of modern Hyderabad in a
variety of ways. The buildings constructed during his reign
are impressive and represent a rich variety of architecture,
such as the magnificent Osmania University, synthesising
the modern, medieval and the ancient styles of architecture ;
the sprawling Osmania General Hospital in the Mughal style ;
the lofty High Court in Indo-Saracenic style ; the Assembly
building in Saracenic – Rajasthani style, symbolising his
desire to build modern and majestic Hyderabad 169. The
engineers or the architects and craftsmen of the period
deserve to be congratulated for their talent and skil l .
Hindu influence is i l lustrated in the motifs of decoration170.
The architectural forms and artistic designs are generally
Persian in character171 . The Osmania University Arts College
reflects the perfect blending of culture trends in Hyderabad for
------------------------167 Dr. Zareena Parveen., Op.Cit . , P. 95.
167(a) Another name for Patwari who maintained vi l lage land and land revenue detai ls.
168 Dr. Zareena Parveen, Op.Cit . , P. 95.
169 Tahseen Bi lgrami, ‘Cultural Synthesis in the Deccan, Hyderabad’ in History of Modern Deccan, Vol. I I , 1724 – 1948 (ed) by Prof . A.R. Kulkarni and others, Op. Cit . , P. 173.
46
170 Dr. Zareena Parveen., Op.Cit . , P. 96.
171 Ib id . ,
a span of four centuries172.
The paintings of 17 t h century Hyderabad are noted for
their bril l iant colours, exquisite gold decorated in the
background, f ine arabesque flowering trees, gorgeous
costumes, sweeping postures, etc.173 The most remarkable
feature of Qutub school was the production of large-size
painting on cotton cloth, typically Deccan 174 .
Hyderabad also offers a glimpse into the amazing
spectrum of performing arts. Kuchipudi , the classical dance
form of the State presents vignettes from the great Hindu
mythological tales through fascinating dance - dramas 175.
Shadow puppetry is another famous art performed with leather
puppets and bamboo sticks, depicting mythological characters
from the Epics, against a bri l l iant lamp l i t in the background.
This is performed along with lyrical narration 176. Their cultural
repertoire is a profusion of dances, folk songs and religious
celebrations177 .
Different rel igious groups in Hyderabad practiced their
own ways and manners of social etiquette without interference
in their religious178 principles. Court culture was, however,
adopted by the Hindus equally with their Muslim brothers 179.
----------------------------
172 Dr. Zareena Parveen., Op.Cit . , P. 96.
173 Ib id . ,
174 Ib id . ,
47
175 Tahseen Bi lgrami, Op.Cit . , P. 376.
176 Ib id . ,
177 Ib id . ,
178 Ib id. , P. 375.
179 Ib id . ,
The Akkanna and Madanna temple stands as an outstanding
example of religious toleration. Sri Khaja Bolda had donated
his land for the renovation of the temple 180. Similarly,
Mrs. Irayatullah Khan came forward and donated the adjacent
land for the ritual purpose181. In the same vein, Nizam VII
issued a farman182, dated 29 t h September, 1912, sanctioning
Rs.3,000/- to Roman Catholic Church and Rs.900/- to
Methodist Church in Hyderabad for making lighting
arrangements and install ing electrical fans, thereby indicating
the former’s broad catholic composite spiri t 183. Important
festivals are celebrated by one and al l , without any
communal t inge or preference. Thus, Tavernier, the foreign
traveller has observed that, Muharram at Golconda was
celebrated very devotedly and Hindus participated in the
celebrations with great enthusiasm 184 . Socio-rel igious reform
Movements aiming at rel igious reformation and social
amelioration had also been witnessed in the former Hyderabad
State. Arya Samaj and Adi-Hindu Movements 185 stand as
prominent instances in this regard.
6. EPILOGUE
It would be clear from what has happened that the
foundations of the Asafjahi State or rule were based on
------------------------
180 Dr. Zareena Parveen, Op.Cit . , P. 95.
48
181 Ib id . ,
182 Royal Order
183 Dr. Zareena Parveen, Op.Cit . , P. 97
184 Ib id . , P. 95
185 See the last but one para in the ‘Sect ion : Socia l Condit ions : Character and Impact ’ in th is wri te-up.
military, diplomatic and even administrative support of the
Brit ish Government of India, and then on the loyalty of the
nobil i ty in the form of Jagirdars, Watandars , Police and
administrative staff. But, the people at large in the form of
peasants, tenants, agricultural and industrial labour, artisans
craftsmen, merchants, etc. , had no voice at any level of the
administration, either directly or indirectly for the redressal of
their grievances. Even if they want to make a formal
representation, they have to trek long distances to Taluk
headquarters, as the road transport remained very much
scanty and scarce. Added to this, they were not in a position
to directly communicate with the office staff as the medium
happened to be Urdu which only a microscopic educated
section could learn. As a result, the vi l lagers have to seek the
help of middle men who exploited them in the shape of mamuls
to the office staff, other sundry payments and their own
charges. Inordinate delay running to years also took place in
deciding of the matters presented. Consequently, the former,
in majority of the cases, were forced to decide to stay at their
own habitations and make whatever customary or forcible
payments that have been demanded either by the
administrative officers, Jagirdars , Watandars, Maqtedars,
Inamdars185(a) etc.
This helpless condition of the rural population who
formed 86% of the total population in the State, was exploited
49
to their advantage by the vested and feudal elements referred
to above. This took shape in varied forms, such as meagre
------------------------------
185(a) See the f .n. Nos. 47 to 53 in th is wri te-up
and highly inadequate land holdings in the hands of 75% of the
peasantry and huge concentration of land in the hands of few
landlords running even to the extent of thousands and lakhs of
Acres ; high degree of absentee landlordism of the latter
leading to rack-renting and frequent eviction of tenants from
the lands that they have been cultivating ; high land revenue
assessments ; collection of 35 il legal cesses or patties by the
fief-holders and Watandars ; extraction of vetti or forced and
free labour from all the sections of the community by the
latter ; collection of forcible levy grain from the small and
middle farmers to the exclusion of the rich landlords,
Deshmukhs , Patels, and Patwaris ; introduction of Controls
and Rationing since 1943 – 44, leading to large-scale hoarding
and black-marketing of foodgrains and even items such as
yarn for weavers, iron for agricultural implements, thread for
tailors, etc. , which could not be had in required quantit ies and
at the rates which the latter could afford etc. Hunger for land of
the peasants and the tenants, and the cry of the agricultural
and industrial labourers for at least mini-mum wages and
freedom from bonded slavery or ‘Baghela’186 situation, have
remained long and unfulfi l led desires of these poorer sections
of the population. Distribution of land for development, in
thousands and hundreds of Acres was made to non-cultivating
capitalist elements and mili tary soldiers 187, rather than to
needy farmers and Kowldars ; and all efforts for
50
------------------------
186 Agricul tural labourers of bonded type are known as ‘ Bhagelas ’ , very much prevalent in Warangal Distr ict . These labourers, having fai led to get f reed f rom the hereditary debt burden that they owed to their masters, are forced to accept wages f ixed by their landlords – S.M. Bharucha, Agricul tural Indebtedness in the Nizam’s Dominions , Hyderabad, 1937, pp. 50 & 51.
187 W.S. Fi le No. 48 of 1351 Fasl i (1942), & R.No. 1827 of 1354 Fasl i (1945) ; W.S. Fi le No. 4 of 1353 Fasl i (1944) & R.No. 1946 of 1355 Fasl i (1946).
increase in labourer wages were suppressed with an iron
hand, so much so that no trade union activity could be there
unti l 1945 in the State188 .
Under such conditions that prevailed in the former
Hyderabad State, the common people at large got convinced
that they could expect a change in their l iving condition only
when the existing Government gets changed and replaced by
another one in which they could have a say or voice. Luckily
for them, the Communist Party of coastal Andhra or Krishna
District, started efforts after 1934 – 35 to come closer to the
hearts, minds and desires of the land-hungry peasants and
tenants, and better wages-prone agricultural and industrial
labourers. P. Sundaraiah, functioning as Secretary of the
Communist Party of Vijayawada 189 and R. Sathyanarayana,
editor of ‘Praja Sakti’ which served as the Party’s
mouthpiece190, took active part in guiding the party’s activit ies
in Suryapet, Huzurnagar, Madhira, Khammam and Warangal
Taluks of Telangana that bordered Krishna District of Madras
Presidency. As the Party’s influence over the masses began
to grow, other local leaders of the party, such as Ravi
Narayana Reddy, Arutla Lakshminarasimha Reddy, Arutla
Ramachandra Reddy, Bhimreddi Narasimha Reddy and
Mallu Swarajyam from Nalgonda District ; Baddam Yella
51
Reddy from Karimnagar District and Devulapall i
Venkateswara Rao, Nallamala Giriprasad,
-----------------------------------
188 The Deccan Chronic le , 10-12-1948 & 4-6-1949.
189 He, as an important Lef t ist leader, took an act ive part in guid ing the post – 1948, Telangana Struggle.
190 Hyderabad Residency Records, Fortn ight ly Report for the fortn ight ending on 15 t h Apri l , 1945, in the Fi le No. 6 (7) p/45, contained in Micro Fi lm, Reel No. 1 Acc. No. 44 .
S. Ramanadham, Chirravuri Lakshminarasaiah, D. Seshagiri
Rao and P. Chalapati Rao from Warangal District, came on to
the centre stage191.
Thus, when the people were seething with discontent and
disaffection against the regime, and when the Communists got
ready to offer leadership for any action of the former, popular
suffering that resulted from the extraction of levy grain and
introduction of Rationing, frequent eviction of tenants from the
lands that they have been cultivating, led to the outbreak of
the Peoples’ Struggle in or around November, 1946. Last
Nizam ’s refusal to accede to the Indian Union and the people
al l over the State resorting to Join Indian Union Movement
since, July, 1947, and the resultant massacre and bloodshed,
turning every vi l lage into a scene of f ighting with the
Government’s Police, Mil i tary and their-supported Razakars or
the armed band of Ittehadul Muslimeen Party192 , brought
matters to such a crisis that the Indian Government has to
intervene and conduct Police Action which brought the 225
year rule of the Asafjahis to an end. This Peasants’ Struggle,
though redistribution of agricultural land was l imited to only
Nalgonda District and Madhira Taluk of Warangal
-----------------------
52
191 The Deccan Chronic le 19-03-1949 ; P. Sundaraiah, Veera Telangana Viplava Poortam – Gunapatalu, Op.Cit . , P. .89 ; Meezan 23-04-1946 (Telugu edit ion) ; Conf ident ia l Report of Warangal Distr ict for the f i rst fortn ight of Amardad , 1356 Fasl i (June, 1946 – 47) f rom First Taluqdar of Warangal to Subedar , Warangal, contained in W.S. Fi le No. 15 of 1356 Fasl i and R.No. 14 of 1356 Fasl i .
192 Started in 1927 and began assert ing by 1940s that the Nizam and the ‘Crown’ were the embodiment of the pol i t ical and cul tural sovereignty of the Musl ims of the Deccan – Fortn ight ly Report of the Hyderabad Resident to the Viceroy for the period ending 31 s t
March, 1944, in Reel No. 2, Accession No. 45, Crown Representat ive Reports (Micro Fi lms avai lable in Nat ional Archives, Delhi) .
District193, i t had the far-reaching and beneficial effects of
Jagirs abolit ion on 15 t h August, 1949, also of the abolit ion of
Sarf-i-khas194 on 5 t h February, 1949, and the passing of the
Protected Tenancy and Agricultural Lands Act in June, 1950
which ensured protection to the tenants and fixation of the size
of minimum and maximum holdings. A new chapter in the
history of the former Hyderabad State has begun.
7. HISTORIOGRAPHY
I. Manuscript Records, in the form of Files , form the
Primary sources for studying the history of former
Hyderabad State. These are preserved, of course, in a
highly britt le and unsatisfactory condition, at two places
here in Hyderabad. Whereas Medak and Warangal
Subedari Records, Revenue Department Records and
Home Department Records, are preserved in the Interim
Repository, housed in ‘K’ Block of the State Secretariat
premises, records of the other Departments of the
Nizam ’s Government, such as Finance, Supply,
Agriculture, Industries and Commerce, Police, Judicial
etc. , are preserved in State Archives , Tarnaka. More
than 90% of all these Primary Records are in Persian
and Urdu with Table f igures in Arabic. Unfortunate thing
53
--------------------------------
193 P. Sundaraiah. , Op.Cit . , pp. 91 – 92 ; Devulapal l i Venkateswara Rao (Struggle organiser especia l ly af ter Pol ice Act ion in Nalgonda Distr ict ) interview, 1974, c i ted in Barry Pavier, The Telangana Armed Struggle, 1944 – 51 (Ph.D., Dissertat ion), P. 163.
194 The Report of the Agrar ian Reforms Commit tee, 1949, Hyderabad – Dn, P. 2.
about them is that, they contain good number of f ly
leaves195 and again, nearly 60% of them relate to
succession cases. If the present catalogues which are
in Urdu, are translated into English, i t would be of much
help to non-Urdu knowing Research scholars to pick up
the needy fi les for getting the details translated with the
help of a Urdu-knowing resource person.
II. Economic Investigations in 1929 – 30 by S. Kesava
Iyengar, Economic Adviser to the Nizam ’s Government,
relating to the State as a whole, as well as Warangal and
Nizamabad Districts ; Rural Economic Enquiries in 1949
– 51 by the same Kesava Iyengar ; Report on Agricultural
Indebtedness in 1937 by S.M. Bharucha, Additional
Secretary, Nizam’s Government ; Tenancy Committee
Report, 1940 ; Report of the Royal Commission on Jagir
Administration and Reforms, 1947 ; Report of the
Agrarian Reforms Committee, 1949 ; Jagir
Administration Reports, Vol. I & II ; etc., deserve to be
ranked as first-hand information sources.
III. Contemporary newspaper issues , such as those of
Golkonda Patrika (Daily, Bi-weekly & Weekly) ; Meezan
(Daily196 , published simultaneously in English, Telugu
and Urdu) ; The Deccan Chronicle (Daily) ; Andhra
54
Patrika (Daily, available in State Archives) ; Andhra
Prabha (Daily, available in Saraswathaniketan Library,
---------------------------
195 I t refers to s ingle sheet in the Fi le wi th only i ts t i t le and no other detai ls.
196 I t was publ ished simultaneously in Urdu, Telugu and Engl ish in the former Hyderabad State.
Vetapalem) ; and Journals, such as Hyderabad
Information (Monthly) ; The Hyderabad Bulletin (Monthly)
and the Hyderabad Government Bulletin on Economic
Affairs (Monthly) etc. , are also important Primary
Sources.
IV. Next comes the Census Reports of Hyderabad State ;
Administration Reports of the Departments of
Agriculture, Industries and Commerce ; Agricultural
Statistics, 1925 – 26 to 1944 – 45 ; Industrial Statistics
1935 – 45 ; Revenue Administration Report 1914 –
15 A.D. ; Statistical Year Books ; District Gazetteers,
Labour Census , etc., which provide lot of useful data, and
more so in English and printed form. These are
preserved in the Documentation Section of State
Archives, Tarnaka.
V. Last, but not the least, come a host of Secondary
sources which include works by Research scholars on
varied aspects relating to the former Hyderabad State ;
works by the Communist party leaders who were
associated with the popular movements and Peasants’
Armed Struggle, such as P. Sundaraiah, M. Basava
Punnaiah, Ravi Narayana Reddy, D. Venkateswara
Rao, and leaders of other parties, such as Ramananda
55
Tirtha, M. Narasinga Rao, D. Ramanuja Rao,
M. Hanumantha Rao, V. Manikya Rao, etc., and a
host of noted non-party writers, such as A.I. Qureshi
(Economic Development of Hyderabad, 2 Vol.s) ;
J.D.E. Gribble (History of the Deccan , 2 Vols) ;
A.M. Khusro (Economic and Social Effects of
Jagirdari Abolit ion and Land Reforms in Hyderabad ) ;
K. Krishna Swamy Mudiraj, (Pictorial Hyderabad ,
2 Vols) ; Christoph Von-furer Haimendorf (Tribal
Hyderabad ), Syed Khaja Abdul Gaffoor (Tribes and
Tribal Welfare in Hyderabad ) etc. ,
Only when Primary Manuscript sources, as
outl ined above, are brought within the reach of non-Urdu
knowing Research Scholars by the preparation of catalogues
in English, good and extensive research could take place in
respect of former Hyderabad State. These Records or Files
are in several thousands, but gathering dust at present.
State Archives has to seriously think about this vital
aspect.
56
BIBLIOGRAPHY
MANUSCRIPT PRIMARY SOURCES
• Warangal Subedari Records
• Medak Subedari Records
• Agriculture Department Files of H.E.H. the Nizam’s
Government.
• AITUC Papers, File No. 110 (Available at NMML, Delhi).
• Hyderabad Residency Records (Micro Films available at
National Archives, Delhi).
PRINTED PRIMARY SOURCES (GOVERNMENT PUBLICATIONS)
• Administrative Report for 1349 Fasli (6-10-1939 to
06-10-1940 ), Hyderabad 1942.
• H.E.H. the Nizam’s Government, Agricultural Statistics,
1335 to 1339 Fasli (1925 – 26 to 1934 – 35) & 1345
to 1349 Fasli (1935 – 36 to 1939 – 40) .
• H.E.H. the Nizam’s Government, Agricultural Statistics
(Quinquennial), 1350 to 1354 Fasli (1940 – 41 to 1944
- 45 ), 1949.
• H.E.H. the Nizam’s Government, Statistical Year Book,
1941 – 42 to 1944 – 45.
• H.E.H. the Nizam’s Government, Industrial Statistics
(Quinquennial) from 1345 to 1349 Fasli (1935 – 36 to
57
1939 – 40) and from 1350 to 1354 Fasli (1940 – 41 to
1944 – 45 ), Hyderabad – Dn, Government Press, 1948.
• Memoranda submitted to the Taxation Enquiry
Committee, 1953 .
• Trade Statistics, H.E.H. the Nizam’s Government for
1352 Fasli (1942 – 43), Government Central Press,
Hyderabad – Dn, 1944.
Reports, Investigations & Enquiries
• Census of India, 1941, Volume XXI, H.E.H. the Nizam’s
Dominions, (Hyderabad State), Part – I Report ,
Government Central Press, Hyderabad – Dn, 1945.
• H.E.H. the Nizam’s Government, Finance Department,
Decennial Report, 1912 – 1922 .
• Kesava Iyengar, S. Economic Investigations in
Hyderabad State, Vol. I, 1929 – 30 .
• Kesava Iyengar, S. Rural Economic Enquiries in
Hyderabad State, 1949 - 51 , Government Press,
Hyderabad, 1951.
• H.E.H. the Nizam’s Government, Report of the Tenancy Committee, 1940.
• Jagir Administration Report, Vol. I, 1952 .
• H.E.H. the Nizam’s Government, Report on the Working
of the Departments under the Secretary & Director –
General of Revenue, 1926 – 29.
• Report of the Agrarian Reforms Committee, 1949 ,
Hyderabad – Dn.
58
• Triennial Report on the Administration of the Department
of Industries and Commerce for the Years, 1918, 1919
& 1920 A.D ., Hyderabad – Dn, 1922.
Contemporary Newspapers
• Golkonda Patrika (Daily, Bi-weekly & Weekly).
• Meezan (Daily, published simultaneously in English,
Telugu and Urdu).
• The Deccan Chronicle (Daily)
Journals
• Hyderabad Government Bulletin on Economic Affairs
Hyderabad Information .
• Hyderabad State : Society, Economy and Polit ics, 1724
– 1956, a Pre -Seminar Volume of International Seminar
held at Osmania University, Hyderabad, 17 t h to 19 t h ,
December, 2010.
SECONDARY SOURCES
Thesis and Dissertations
• Pavier, Barry, The Telangana Armed Struggle, 1944 – 51
(Ph.D. Dissertation).
• Venkataraman, V. Land Reform in India with Special
Reference to Hyderabad , unpublished Ph.D. thesis,
Osmania University, 1957.
59
W R I T I N G S
• A Peep into Hyderabad (Deccan) – A Survey of the
Administration of the Nizam’s Dominions , 25 t h
September, 1938.
• Agriculturists’ Association, Immediate Agrarian
Problems, Hyderabad State , Hyderabad – Dn, 1949.
• Association of Brit ish Council Scholars, K.S.S. Seshan
(ed)., Hyderabad – 400 Saga of a City , Hyderabad, 1993.
• Chandraiah, K., Hyderabad – 400 Glorious Years ,
Hyderabad, 1996.
• Christoph Von Furer Haimendorf, Tribal Hyderabad,
Four Reports , H.E.H. the Nizam’s Government,
Hyderabad, 1945.
• Gaffoor, Syed Khaja, The Social and Tribal Welfare ,
Hyderabad – Dn, 1951.
• Gribble, J.D.B., History of the Deccan, Rupa & Co., 2002
• Hassan Sirajul, The Castes and Tribes of H.E.H. the
Nizam’s Dominions , Madras, 1989.
• Krishnaswamy Mudiraj, K., Pictorial Hyderabad, Vol. I ,
Chandrakant Press, Hyderabad – Dn, 1929.
• Kulkarni, A.R. Prof. (ed), History of Modern Deccan,
1724 – 1948, Vol. II , Hyderabad, 2009.
• Narayan, B.K. Dr., Finances and Fiscal Policy of
Hyderabad State, 1900 – 1956 , Hyderabad, 1973.
• Qureshi, A.I., The Economic Development of
Hyderabad, Vol. I , The Orient Longman’s Limited,
Madras, 1941.
60
• Raghurama Sharma, Sastrula, Medak Seema Vijnana
Sarvasvam , Hyderabad, 2001.
• Rajendra Prasad, Asafjahis of Hyderabad, Their Rise and
Decline , Vikas Publishing House, Delhi, 1984.
• Ramakrishna Reddy, V., Economic History of Hyderabad
State (Warangal Suba ) 1911 – 1950 , Delhi, 1987.
• Ramakrishna Reddy, V., Social and Economic Dynamics
of Medak Suba of Former Hyderabad State, 1905 – 1950
A.D., unpublished ICHR Project Report, Hyderabad,
2012.
• Raman Rao, A.V., Andhra Pradesh Economy since /
Independence (1947 – 1992 ), Kalyani Publishers,
Hyderabad, 1993.
• Rao, R.V., A Review of Hyderabad Finance , 1951.
• Raza Ali Khan, Hyderabad 400 Years (1591 – 1991),
Secunderabad, 1990.
• Sarojini Regani, Nizam – Brit ish Relations, 1724 – 1857,
Hyderabad, 1963.
• Sundaraiah .P, Veera Telangana Viplava Poratam –
Gunapatalu , Vijayawada, 1973.
• Thapar, Romesh, Storm over Hyderabad , Kutb
Publishers, Bombay, 1949.
• Vaikuntham, Y. State, Economy and Social
Transformation in Hyderabad State, 1724 – 1948 ,
Manohar Publications, Delhi, 2002.