Long struggle culminates in joy and cheer

Hyderabad: Thousands of people in the Telangana region of Andhra Pradesh came out on the streets Thursday to celebrate victory in a five-decade struggle for a separate state.

The celebrations followed an announcement by Union Home Minister P Chidambaram around midnight on Wednesday that the process was being initiated for the formation of Telangana state out of Andhra Pradesh.

There was a dramatic decrease in the tension in Hyderabad and other parts of the region after the announcement.

While Telangana Rashtra Samiti President K Chandrasekhara Rao broke his 11-day long fast to death after hearing Chidambaram's statement that the state government was asked to move a resolution in the state assembly to pave the way for the creation of Telangana state, thousands of students in Osmania University in Hyderabad and Kakatiya University in Warangal sang and danced to mark their own celebrations.

 The Joint Action Committee of the Osmania students, which had organised its agitation separately from the TRS movement, were happy with the turn of the events but were not willing to celebrate victory as the goal was yet to be achieved.

Security

Despite the decrease in the tension and the Osmania University students cancelling their plans of storming the state assembly Thursday, the strict security arrangements involving 18,000 police personnel and paramilitary forces remained in place.

A curfew-like situation prevailed in almost half of the city as all the major roads were closed for the traffic.

As a measure of precaution, the Osmania University campus was also cut off from the city and five big flyovers in different parts of the city were also closed from the traffic.

The massive traffic restrictions and diversion of vehicles caused a lot of hardship to the people.

But this count not stop the JAC and other organisations to take a procession from Baghlingampally to Osmania University to pay respect to the martyrs of the Telangana movement. Akhil Bharatiya Vidhyarthi Parishad, student wing of the BJP however organised a victory rally with in the campus.

JAC has warned that they will continue to apply pressure on the government and intensify their agitation if the resolution was not moved in the state assembly with in four days.

People also celebrated the occasion in other nine districts of Telangana region and took out processions and held meetings.

"The message is clear that voice of the people has a respect in Indian democracy," Rao said from hospital. "I am happy and all the people of Telangana are happy," he added.