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Hello All,

I wish you and your family, friends, near and dear........

A very happy, honoring and joyful State Formation Day wishes (01/11/09).

This is applicable to all the four South Indian states (AP, KN, KE, TN) and also MP, Rajasthan, Punjab, Haryana (1966) and Chhattisgarh (2000). The criterion for formation of Indian States is Language. The formation of linguistic states is the single most important event in the history of South Indian languages, as it provided an opportunity for these languages to develop independently, each of them having a state to support.

At the time of British rule and prior to independence all the current south Indian states were known as Madras State (Madras Presidency, also known as Madras Province) as a whole entity. Madras made a significant contribution to the freedom movement in the early decades of the 20th century. Madras was the first province in British India where the system of dyarchy (or Diarchy, a form of government where power is shared between two joint authorities) was first implemented. The Presidency was dissolved when India became independent on August 15th, 1947. On January 26th, 1950, when the Republic of India was inaugurated, Madras was admitted as one of the states of the Indian Union. India became a Republic in the year 1950 and in same year linguistic provinces were formed.

On November 1st, 1956; Andhra Pradesh (AP) was formed with Hyderabad as its capital. Kerala (KE) and Karnataka (KN/Karunadu) states were formed on the same day, getting separated from Madras state. In 1968, Madras State was renamed Tamil Nadu (TN), meaning Land of Tamil. The name of the Mysore State was changed to Karnataka on November 1st, 1973. Madhya Pradesh (abbreviated as MP, meaning ‘Middle Province’), often called the Heart of India, is a state in central India. Its capital is Bhopal. Madhya Pradesh was originally the largest state in India (now, Rajasthan) when formed on November 1st, 1956 until November 1st, 2000 when the state of Chhattisgarh was carved out. Chhattisgarh was formed on November 1st, 2000 with Raipur as its capital. Rajasthan was formed from erstwhile province known as Rajputana which was merged into the Dominion of India. It encompasses most of the area of the large, inhospitable Great Indian Desert or Thar Desert. Jaipur, also popularly known as the Pink City, is the capital of Rajasthan.

Punjab (means 'Land of Five Rivers') in India, historically forms a part of the larger Punjab region, which includes the Pakistani province of Punjab and the North-West Frontier Province, the Indian states of Haryana and Himachal Pradesh, parts of Jammu and Kashmir and the Union Territory of Chandigarh. Punjab is considered to have the best infrastructure in India; this includes road, rail, air and river transport links that are extensive throughout the region. Also, it has the lowest poverty rate and the lowest level of hunger in India. Haryana was administered as a part of the Punjab province of British India, and was later carved out as a separate state on linguistic lines on November 1st, 1966. The name Haryana means ‘The Abode of God’ in Sanskrit. Haryana was the cradle of the Indus Valley and Vedic Civilizations.

Most of the states in India are formed/established in the month of November over the years. Officially, the new states formed/born on November 1st celebrate this day every year as birthday of the state. This is popularly called as Rajyotsava/Rashtravatarana day. Rajyotsava means "State festival" and Rashtravatarana means "State formation".

Many many happy returns of the day.

All the best and take care….

With thanks, regards and best wishes,
G.Srikanth.