The story of how Andhra Pradesh came to exist, and later split, is one of the most reliable sources of questions in APPSC Group 1 and Group 2, AP Police SI and constable papers, and DSC general knowledge sections. It is also a topic where small wording differences decide the answer. Andhra State and Andhra Pradesh are not the same thing. The Sri Bagh Pact and the Gentlemen's Agreement are two different documents signed almost twenty years apart. A capital, a High Court and a university were each placed in different towns at different times. This guide walks through the whole arc in order, from the British acquisition of Telugu territory to the bifurcation of 2014, and flags the points examiners return to.
The 2014 part is kept short on purpose, because it has its own post: AP Reorganisation Act 2014 explained. For the wider exam landscape, see the Andhra Pradesh government exams 2026 guide. Dates here are checked against the text of the Acts and the Constitution, government and High Court pages, parliamentary and commission material, and standard references; the list of pages opened is at the end. Where sources differ, or where only secondary sources could be reached, the text says so instead of picking a side.
1. How the Telugu country became part of British India
Before the 1800s, the Telugu-speaking land was divided among several powers. The coast from Srikakulam to Guntur was known as the Northern Circars. The inland south-west, now Rayalaseema, had been under the Vijayanagara successors, the Nawabs and Mysore. The north-west, the present Telangana, lay inside the Nizam's Hyderabad State. The British reached these regions in stages.
| Region | How the British acquired it | Key dates |
|---|---|---|
| Northern Circars | Grant from the Mughal emperor Shah Alam II to the East India Company (Robert Clive), later confirmed by treaties with the Nizam | Grant 1765; treaty with the Nizam 12 November 1766; Treaty of Masulipatam 1 March 1768 |
| Guntur Circar | Came under the Company after the earlier jagir arrangement ended | 1788 |
| Nizam's remaining claim on the Circars | Bought out by the Company | 1823 |
| Ceded Districts | Ceded by the Nizam under the Subsidiary Alliance with the Company | 1800 |
| Kurnool | Princely Nawab's territory annexed by the Company | 1839 |
| Hyderabad State (Telangana) | Remained a princely state until Indian integration | Police action 13 to 17 September 1948 |
Northern Circars
The five Circars were Chicacole (Srikakulam), Rajahmundry, Ellore (Eluru), Mustafanagar (Kondapalli) and Murtuzanagar (Guntur). The 1765 grant is associated with Robert Clive and Shah Alam II. Because the Nizam also claimed rights over the area, the Company signed separate arrangements with him, in 1766 and 1768, and it eventually paid out his claim in 1823. For exams, remember that the Circars were won by diplomacy and grants over many years, not by one battle, and that the Guntur Circar joined last, in 1788.
Ceded Districts
The name explains itself. In 1800 the Nizam, under pressure from Mysore and the Marathas and seeking British military protection, ceded the territories he had received after the Mysore wars as the cost of the Subsidiary Alliance. The territory covered Bellary, Anantapur and Cuddapah (Kadapa) and parts of what is now Kurnool district. Together these correspond broadly to today's Rayalaseema, plus Bellary. When Andhra State was formed in 1953, the Bellary district went to Mysore State, and only three of its taluks were added to Andhra State. Thomas Munro was the first Principal Collector of the Ceded Districts, serving from 1800 to 1807 with Bellary as headquarters. Kurnool's Nawab was a separate case, and that territory was annexed in 1839.
The regional name Rayalaseema is generally credited to Chilukuri Narayana Rao, a Telugu lecturer from Anantapur. The account usually given is that he found the colonial label "Ceded Districts" unflattering and moved a resolution for the new name at the Andhra Mahasabha and Ceded Districts Conference held at Nandyal in November 1928, which the delegates accepted. The word looks back to the Vijayanagara period, whose rulers used the title Raya. The sources I could reach for this are secondary, so quote the name of the proposer only if your syllabus gives it; the safe exam fact is the year 1928 and the Nandyal conference.
Madras Presidency
Once the Circars and the Ceded Districts were in British hands, both were governed as part of the Madras Presidency, with the Fort St George at Madras as the seat. The Presidency had Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam and Kannada speaking areas. Telugu speakers were one of its largest language groups. In 1925 the Godavari district was split into East and West Godavari. On 1 April 1936 the new Orissa Province was created, and parts of the Ganjam and Vizagapatam districts of the Madras Presidency were transferred to it. Orissa is usually described as the first province in British India created on a linguistic basis, so it became a reference point for the Andhra demand.
2. The Andhra movement before independence
The Andhra movement was a long campaign for a separate Telugu province, first inside the Madras Presidency and later as a state within India. It grew out of the sense among Telugu leaders that their language, culture and share of public jobs and education were not given due weight in a Presidency dominated by Madras city.
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 1911 and 1912 | Early organising by Telugu leaders for a separate province; the movement is usually dated from these years |
| 1913 | First Andhra Mahasabha (provincial conference) at Bapatla, 26 and 27 May, presided over by Bayya Narasimheswara Sarma (knighted later, in 1923); Konda Venkatappayya was its secretary |
| 1918 | B. N. Sarma moves a resolution in the Imperial Legislative Council recommending linguistic provinces |
| 1920 | The Indian National Congress, at its Nagpur session in December, reorganised its Provincial Congress Committees on a linguistic basis |
| 1926 | Andhra University formally inaugurated, at Bezawada (Vijayawada); its main campus later grew at Waltair, Visakhapatnam |
| 1928 | Name Rayalaseema adopted at the Nandyal conference (November); the Nehru Report of the same year also favoured linguistic provinces |
| 1936 | Orissa becomes a separate province (1 April), taking parts of Ganjam and Vizagapatam districts |
| 1937 | Sri Bagh Pact, 16 November |
The Andhra Mahasabha at Bapatla
The first Andhra Mahasabha of May 1913, held in the town hall at Bapatla, was attended by several hundred delegates. It put the demand for an Andhra province before the public, and the annual conferences that followed kept the demand alive. Konda Venkatappayya, Bhogaraju Pattabhi Sitaramayya and Pingali Venkayya are among the names tied to this stage. The Bapatla meeting is the standard answer to "Where was the first Andhra Mahasabha held?" and Sir Bayya Narasimheswara Sarma is the standard answer to "Who presided?".
A common trap: another body with a similar name, the Andhra Mahasabha of the Nizam's Hyderabad State, was a different organisation. It grew out of the Andhra Jana Sangham, begun in November 1921 in Hyderabad after Telugu speakers were sidelined at a social reform meeting conducted in Urdu and Marathi. The Sangham's first conference was held in February 1922 under Konda Venkata Ranga Reddy. By 1928 Madapati Hanumantha Rao was leading its transformation into the Andhra Mahasabha, whose first session was at Jogipet in 1930 under Suravaram Pratapa Reddy. It worked for Telugu language and culture and against feudal practices in the Nizam's territory, and between 1930 and 1945 it held thirteen sessions. It is the Telangana body, not the Madras Presidency body.
Andhra University and the Congress position
Andhra University was set up under the Andhra University Act, 1925 (Madras Act II of 1926) and was formally inaugurated in 1926 at Bezawada (Vijayawada) by the Chancellor, Governor Lord Goschen, with C. R. Reddy as the founding Vice-Chancellor. This corrects a common shortcut: the university did not start at Waltair. It was Waltair, in Visakhapatnam, that later became its main campus, and the science and arts colleges there date from the early 1930s. The Maharaja of Jeypore, Vikram Deo Verma, is recorded as a major donor of land and money in its early years. The university is one of the institutions that gave the Andhra movement an academic home. On the Congress side, the Nagpur session of December 1920 reorganised the party's provincial committees on language lines, which is why Telugu leaders expected the idea to be carried into independence.
3. The Sri Bagh Pact, 16 November 1937
By the 1930s a Telugu province looked possible, and with it a different worry. Leaders of Rayalaseema feared that a province dominated by the coastal districts would place all the main institutions on the coast. They wanted written guarantees.
The result was the Sri Bagh Pact of 16 November 1937, signed between leaders of the coastal districts and of Rayalaseema. Sri Bagh was a house in Mylapore, Madras, the residence of the Telugu entrepreneur and editor Kasinathuni Nageswara Rao. Pattabhi Sitaramayya is credited with drafting it, and the pact was reported to have been ratified by the Andhra Provincial Congress Committee in December 1937. Eight leaders are listed as signatories, drawn from both regions: Rayalaseema leaders such as K. Koti Reddy and Kalluri Subba Rao, together with coastal leaders including Pattabhi Sitaramayya and Konda Venkatappayya.
| Area | What the pact aimed at |
|---|---|
| Location of institutions | The university, the High Court and the seat of government were to be placed in different regions, with Rayalaseema given the choice of which to host |
| University | Two university centres under Andhra University, one at Visakhapatnam and one at Anantapur |
| Irrigation | Priority for major projects for Rayalaseema, for example on the Tungabhadra, Krishna and Penna |
| Legislature | Seats distributed on an equal district basis |
Exams ask the practical outcome more than the full text. When Andhra State was formed in 1953, the capital went to Kurnool in Rayalaseema, and the High Court went to Guntur on the coast. That arrangement is commonly described as the pact being honoured. After 1956 both the capital and the High Court moved to Hyderabad. The Madras house in Mylapore is the commonly accepted location of the signing.
4. Independence, committees on linguistic states and the Madras question
After 1947 the demand for linguistic states met a cautious central government worried about unity after Partition. Two committees looked at the question in 1948 and 1949, a further inquiry followed in 1953, and the SRC then took it up.
| Committee | Year | Outcome in brief |
|---|---|---|
| Dar Commission (Linguistic Provinces Commission), headed by S. K. Dar, with J. N. Lal and Panna Lall | Appointed 17 June 1948 by the President of the Constituent Assembly; report dated 10 December 1948 | Concluded that provinces should not be formed on exclusively or even mainly linguistic considerations, citing the need for unity and stability at that time |
| JVP Committee: Jawaharlal Nehru, Vallabhbhai Patel, Pattabhi Sitaramayya | Set up by the Congress in December 1948; reported in April 1949 | Advised postponing new linguistic provinces, but said Andhra could be considered first if its supporters gave up their claim on Madras city |
| Wanchoo inquiry (Justice K. N. Wanchoo) | Headed from January 1953; report reported as 7 February 1953 | Examined the financial and other implications of forming Andhra State |
| States Reorganisation Commission | Appointed December 1953 (22 December); report 30 September 1955 | Recommended the broad pattern of states in 1956 |
The sticking point was Madras city. Telugu leaders campaigned under the slogan "Madras Manade" (Madras is ours), while Tamil leaders, including the Chief Minister of Madras at the time, rejected the claim. Tanguturi Prakasam, a prominent Andhra Congress leader, was at the centre of the Andhra case. The city stayed with Madras State. This is the origin of the later search for a separate Andhra capital.
The JVP Committee is a favourite for matching questions because it names three people. Remember it as "Jawaharlal, Vallabhbhai, Pattabhi". The Dar Commission (1948) and the JVP Committee (1948 to 1949) both fall before the Andhra fast of 1952. The JVP Committee did not refuse Andhra outright; it made Madras city the price.
A simple way to separate the three bodies in a comparison question is by their question and their answer. The Dar Commission asked whether provinces should be formed on language at all, and said not at that time. The JVP Committee, set up by the Congress itself, accepted that a strong public demand could not be ignored and named Andhra as the first case, on one condition about Madras city. The States Reorganisation Commission, five years later, accepted language as one important factor among several and drew the national map, while treating Telangana as a special case. If an option says that the Dar Commission recommended an Andhra state, it is wrong; if an option says that the JVP Committee recommended immediate linguistic states for the whole country, it is also wrong.
5. Potti Sriramulu: the fast and the death
Potti Sriramulu was born on 16 March 1901, and his family is associated with the village of Padamatipalli in the Nellore region (sources differ on the exact present-day district, so do not rely on it). He worked with Mahatma Gandhi, took part in the freedom movement and in Harijan temple entry work, and had undertaken earlier fasts. In 1952 he began a fast unto death in Madras to demand a separate Andhra State, at the home of Bulusu Sambamurti, on 19 October 1952 according to most accounts. The Union government did not respond for weeks. He died on the night of 15 December 1952. Some sources record the date as 16 December because the death was close to midnight. The fast is usually described as lasting 56 to 58 days; 58 follows the simple count from 19 October, and some authors give 56.
His death was followed by serious disorder in several Telugu towns. On 19 December 1952 Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru announced that a separate Andhra State would be formed. That is only a few days after the death.
| Detail | Fact |
|---|---|
| Born | 16 March 1901 (family village Padamatipalli) |
| Fast began | 19 October 1952 (most accounts) |
| Died | Night of 15 December 1952 (some sources: 16 December) |
| Where | Madras |
| Government announcement | 19 December 1952 |
| Later honour | Called Amarajeevi (the immortal one); Sri Potti Sriramulu Nellore district bears his name |
A note for exams: Potti Sriramulu is often described as the second person in modern Indian history, after Jatindra Nath Das, to die on a fast. Treat this as a popular comparison rather than a fact to quote in an answer unless the question uses it.
6. Andhra State, 1 October 1953
After Nehru's announcement, Parliament passed the Andhra State Act, 1953 (Act 30 of 1953), which received the President's assent on 14 September 1953. Andhra State came into being on 1 October 1953, with Kurnool as its capital, and Prime Minister Nehru took part in the inauguration there. It was the first state formed on a linguistic basis after independence.
| Item | Fact |
|---|---|
| Formed | 1 October 1953 |
| Law | Andhra State Act, 1953; assent 14 September 1953; in force 1 October 1953 |
| Capital | Kurnool |
| High Court | Guntur; established in 1954 (5 July 1954); Justice Koka Subba Rao the first Chief Justice |
| Districts | 11 whole districts: Srikakulam, Visakhapatnam, East Godavari, West Godavari, Krishna, Guntur, Nellore, Chittoor, Anantapur, Kadapa, Kurnool (plus three taluks of Bellary) |
| Regions | Coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema |
| Governor | C. M. Trivedi (the only Governor of the state) |
| First Chief Minister | Tanguturi Prakasam, from 1 October 1953 to 15 November 1954 |
| President's Rule | 15 November 1954 to 28 March 1955 |
| Last Chief Minister | Bezawada Gopala Reddy, from 28 March 1955 to 31 October 1956 |
| Deputy Chief Minister | Neelam Sanjiva Reddy (1 October 1953 to 15 November 1954, under Prakasam) |
| Ended | 31 October 1956 |
Two points for revision. First, the capital was placed at Kurnool in keeping with the Sri Bagh Pact, and the new state also needed a seat of government quickly, so it began in a modest provincial town. Second, Prakasam's coalition lost a no-confidence motion by a single vote and his government fell on 15 November 1954. The state was then under President's Rule until Bezawada Gopala Reddy took over on 28 March 1955, after the 1955 elections. Examiners sometimes ask who the last Chief Minister was; the answer is Bezawada Gopala Reddy.
7. The States Reorganisation Commission and Vishalandhra
Once Andhra State existed, a bigger question appeared: should all Telugu-speaking areas, including the Telugu districts of the Nizam's old Hyderabad State, be in one state? The ideal was called Vishalandhra (Greater Andhra). The Telangana region had been part of Hyderabad State, which became part of India after Operation Polo (13 to 17 September 1948). Telangana's own experience of the Nizam's rule, the 1946 to 1951 peasant uprising and the Telugu cultural movement of the Andhra Mahasabha gave it a distinct political history.
The central government set up the States Reorganisation Commission (SRC) in December 1953. Its members were Justice Fazl Ali (chairman), K. M. Panikkar and H. N. Kunzru. It submitted its report on 30 September 1955, and the report was tabled in the Lok Sabha on 14 December 1955.
On Telangana, the SRC did not recommend an immediate merger. In paragraph 386 it suggested that the Telangana area be constituted into a separate state for the time being, to be known as Hyderabad State, with provision for unification with Andhra after the general elections likely in or about 1961, if the legislature of that residuary Hyderabad State expressed itself in favour by a two-thirds majority. The Commission noted that opinion in Telangana had not yet taken settled shape. It also recommended ending the Part A, B and C classification and the office of Rajpramukh.
| Body | Position, 1955 |
|---|---|
| SRC report | Telangana area a separate Hyderabad State for now; unification possible after the 1961 elections with a two-thirds vote of its legislature |
| Andhra State Assembly | Resolution in favour of Vishalandhra, reported as 25 November 1955, with assurances of safeguards for Telangana |
| Hyderabad State Assembly, 25 November to 3 December 1955 | Debated an official resolution on the SRC report. Secondary accounts say that most members who spoke favoured Vishalandhra, while a notable section of the Telangana members opposed or wanted firm safeguards. Exact head-counts differ between accounts and could not be checked against the Assembly record, so none is given here |
| Central government | Accepted the merger idea subject to safeguards |
8. The Gentlemen's Agreement, 20 February 1956
To bridge the gap between the SRC's caution and the political support for merger, leaders from both sides reached an understanding on 20 February 1956. It is called the Gentlemen's Agreement. Sources agree on the date; the venue is usually given as Delhi, but the sources I could open do not name the place, so do not memorise a venue. The reported signatories were Bezawada Gopala Reddy, Neelam Sanjiva Reddy, Gouthu Latchanna and Alluri Satyanarayana Raju on the Andhra side, and Burgula Ramakrishna Rao, K. V. Ranga Reddy, Marri Chenna Reddy and J. V. Narsing Rao for Telangana.
The agreement was meant to protect Telangana, which was less developed in education and had a smaller number of government jobs held by locals. It was not a statute, but later governments and agitations kept returning to it.
| Provision | Summary |
|---|---|
| Regional committee | A Regional Standing Committee of the Assembly members from Telangana (the Chief Minister excluded) for matters such as local self-government, public health, education, agriculture and industries; its advice would normally be accepted, with the Governor deciding any dispute |
| Finances | Expenditure on the Telangana region would be shared proportionally, and the surplus revenue of Telangana would be spent on its development |
| Jobs | Telangana treated as a unit for recruitment to subordinate services, with the existing Hyderabad Mulki rules (15 years of residence) kept for those posts |
| Ministers | Cabinet shared in a 60 to 40 proportion between Andhra and Telangana, with one Muslim minister from Telangana among the 40 per cent; if the Chief Minister came from one region, the Deputy Chief Minister was to come from the other |
| Language | The position of Urdu in administration and the courts preserved for five years |
| Review | Reported to be reviewable after ten years |
The wording of some of these clauses is reported slightly differently across sources. The residence period for the domicile rule is stated as 15 years in the text of the agreement as reproduced in the sources I could open, which also mention an undertaking to stay in the area; some retellings say 12 years, and that figure should be treated as an error. The Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister clause does belong to the agreement. Examiners usually test the date, the existence of the Regional Committee, the 60:40 ministerial ratio and the domicile period. Prefer those points in your notes.
9. 1 November 1956: Andhra Pradesh is formed
Parliament passed the States Reorganisation Act on 31 August 1956, and it came into force on 1 November 1956. The same day, the Seventh Constitutional Amendment ended the Part A, B and C classification. The country was reorganised into 14 states and 6 Union Territories.
Andhra Pradesh was formed by merging Andhra State with the Telugu-speaking districts of Hyderabad State. Hyderabad State was dissolved. Its Marathi-speaking districts went to Bombay State and its Kannada-speaking districts to Mysore State. Hyderabad became the capital of Andhra Pradesh, and the High Court was set up there with eleven judges, with Koka Subba Rao continuing as the first Chief Justice of the new court.
| Item | Fact |
|---|---|
| Date | 1 November 1956 |
| Law | States Reorganisation Act, 1956 (31 August 1956), with the 7th Constitutional Amendment |
| Merged units | Andhra State (11 districts) and Telangana region of Hyderabad State (9 districts) |
| Total districts | 20 |
| Telangana districts in 1956 | Hyderabad, Medak, Nizamabad, Adilabad, Karimnagar, Warangal, Khammam, Nalgonda, Mahbubnagar (Rangareddi appears in the 2014 list because it was carved out of Hyderabad district later) |
| Capital | Hyderabad |
| First Governor | C. M. Trivedi (continued from Andhra State) |
| First Chief Minister | Neelam Sanjiva Reddy |
| First Telangana-origin Chief Minister | P. V. Narasimha Rao, from 30 September 1971 |
Note the difference between Andhra State (1953, Kurnool) and Andhra Pradesh (1956, Hyderabad). A question that mixes them will usually pair "Kurnool" with 1953 and "Hyderabad" with 1956.
10. The Telangana unease and the 1969 agitation
The safeguards were applied unevenly, according to Telangana leaders, while Andhra leaders disagreed about how far they were binding and pointed to the practical difficulties of applying them. The history of the next twenty years should be read as two perspectives on one set of institutions, not as a ruling on who was right.
The 1952 Mulki agitation had already shown tension over local employment. From late July to mid-September 1952 students in Hyderabad protested against the recruitment of outsiders under the Mulki rules, and police firing on 3 and 4 September 1952 killed several people; accounts differ on the number. The 1956 merger did not end that debate. In 1968 and 1969, concerns over the implementation of the safeguards and the movement of employees became a major issue.
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| 8 January 1969 | A student hunger strike at Khammam, over the expiring safeguards, is usually described as the start of the agitation |
| 19 January 1969 | All-party accord on implementing the Telangana safeguards |
| January to April 1969 | Spreading protests, police firing, and deployment of the army in some places (an order on 29 January is reported) |
| 1969 | Telangana Praja Samithi (TPS) formed (first organised by Madan Mohan); Marri Chenna Reddy took over as the leading figure |
| 11 April 1969 | Eight-point plan announced by the Prime Minister in the Lok Sabha: committees on the Telangana surplus, development, plan implementation, grievances of public servants and a committee of jurists on safeguards |
| May 1971 | TPS wins 10 of the 14 Lok Sabha seats in Telangana |
| September 1971 | TPS leaders return to the Congress; a Telangana-origin Chief Minister, P. V. Narasimha Rao, takes office on 30 September 1971 |
The number of deaths in 1969 is reported very differently. Telangana memorial and movement sources cite 369, other accounts say "more than three hundred", and accounts of individual incidents give much lower numbers; I found no settled official count. An answer should say "reported" and give a figure only if the question insists. The Prime Minister's plan is dated 11 April 1969 in the sources that cite her Lok Sabha statement, but a few accounts give 12 April, so do not bet on it unless the option set is unambiguous.
11. The Jai Andhra movement, 1972 to 1973
The next crisis came from the opposite side. In October 1972 (3 October is the date usually given) the Supreme Court held that the Mulki rules, the old residence-based rules that gave locals in the Telangana area priority in government jobs, continued in force there. That decision set off a strong agitation in coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema, known as the Jai Andhra movement. The Andhra-region demand was either for the removal of the rules or, in its strongest form, for a separate Andhra State.
Student and political groups in the coastal districts led it, and there were deaths in police firing in several towns in November and December 1972, and counts differ by source. Nine ministers from the coastal region withdrew their support, the Chief Minister, P. V. Narasimha Rao, stepped down on 10 January 1973, and the state came under President's Rule soon afterwards. The movement is remembered mainly through the settlement that followed.
| Item | Fact |
|---|---|
| Trigger | Supreme Court's 1972 decision on the Mulki rules |
| Region | Coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema |
| Chief Minister's resignation | 10 January 1973 |
| Political step | President's Rule in early 1973 |
| Settlement | Six-Point Formula, 21 September 1973 |
| Constitutional step | Constitution (Thirty-second Amendment) Act, 1973, assented to on 3 May 1974 and brought into force by notification in 1974, inserting Articles 371D and 371E |
| Later order | Andhra Pradesh Public Employment (Organisation of Local Cadres and Regulation of Direct Recruitment) Order, 1975 under Article 371D (reported date 18 October 1975), creating six zones |
The Six-Point Formula covered accelerated development of backward areas, uniform preference for local candidates in admissions to educational institutions and a new central university at Hyderabad, local preference in recruitment to non-gazetted posts with local cadres, an administrative tribunal for service grievances, a constitutional amendment to prevent litigation over its implementation, and the replacement of the Mulki rules and the Regional Committee. Article 371D allowed the President to provide for equitable opportunities in public employment and education across different parts of the State, which is the origin of the zonal system in local-status rules. Article 371E reads that Parliament may by law provide for the establishment of a University in the State of Andhra Pradesh, and the University of Hyderabad followed in 1974. Both articles were inserted by the same amendment. Examiners like to ask "Which Article, giving effect to the Six-Point Formula, was added for Andhra Pradesh by the 32nd Amendment?" The answer is Article 371D, unless Article 371E is one of the options. Link this with your notes on AP polity and Panchayati Raj.
12. From 1973 to the road to 2014
After 1973 the question of Telangana statehood did not disappear, but it became less visible for years, with the 371D framework as the main legal structure. Other important events came later.
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 1985 | G.O.Ms. No. 610 (December 1985; case reports give 30 December), directing that non-local candidates appointed in deviation of the 1975 Presidential Order be identified and moved to their own local cadres |
| April 2001 | Telangana Rashtra Samithi formed (27 April) to press for a separate state; the Girglani Commission was also constituted in 2001 to examine the implementation of G.O. 610 |
| 9 December 2009 | The Union Home Minister announced that the process of forming Telangana would be started |
| 23 December 2009 | The Union government announced that further steps would follow a wider consensus among political parties |
| 3 February 2010 | Srikrishna Committee (Committee for Consultations on the Situation in Andhra Pradesh) constituted |
| 30 December 2010 | Srikrishna Committee submitted its report |
| 30 July 2013 | Congress Working Committee resolution recommending a separate Telangana |
| 18 and 20 February 2014 | Bill passed by the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha |
| 1 March 2014 | Presidential assent |
| 2 June 2014 | Appointed day: Telangana formed |
The Srikrishna Committee
The Committee was headed by Justice B. N. Srikrishna, a retired Supreme Court judge. It reviewed six options: continue as it was; divide into two states with Hyderabad as a Union Territory; divide into Rayala-Telangana and coastal Andhra; divide into Seemandhra and Telangana with an enlarged Hyderabad as a Union Territory; divide into Seemandhra and Telangana with Hyderabad as the Telangana capital and a new capital for Seemandhra; and keep the State united with an empowered Telangana Regional Council and other measures for the development of Telangana. The Committee preferred the last option and treated bifurcation as the second best, to be taken only if it was unavoidable and could be reached amicably among the regions. The report was a set of options and did not itself divide the State. Its other members were Ranbir Singh, Abusaleh Shariff, Ravinder Kaur and Vinod Duggal, who served as member-secretary.
For the exam, memorise the committee's name, its date of constitution (3 February 2010) and its report (30 December 2010), and know that it listed six options.
13. The 2014 bifurcation in summary
The Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2014 divided the State into Telangana and a residuary Andhra Pradesh. The Lok Sabha passed the Bill on 18 February 2014 and the Rajya Sabha on 20 February 2014. The President gave assent on 1 March 2014. The appointed day was 2 June 2014, when Telangana became the 29th State of the Union; section 10 of the Act inserts "29. Telangana" into the First Schedule. Under section 5, Hyderabad was to be the common capital for a period not exceeding ten years, after which it would be the capital of Telangana alone and Andhra Pradesh would have a new capital. Telangana began with ten districts, and residuary Andhra Pradesh with thirteen.
That is all that belongs in a history note. Legal provisions, financial schedules, Polavaram, Special Category Status and the later change in the capital provision are in the separate post, AP Reorganisation Act 2014 explained. Keep the two documents separate in your notes, because the 2014 Act and the 1956 States Reorganisation Act are easily confused under pressure.
Both perspectives are worth knowing for descriptive answers. Supporters of Telangana statehood pointed to the history of the Nizam period, the Mulki rules, the alleged non-implementation of safeguards, and regional disparity. Those who preferred a united State pointed to the common language, the economic integration since 1956, and concerns on river waters, employment and the future of Hyderabad. A fair answer to a descriptive question gives both sides in neutral language and avoids judging either.
14. Personalities at a glance
| Person | Link to the history |
|---|---|
| Bayya Narasimheswara Sarma | Presided at the first Andhra Mahasabha, Bapatla, 1913; also moved the 1918 resolution on linguistic provinces |
| Konda Venkatappayya | Secretary of the 1913 Mahasabha; a leading Andhra nationalist; signatory of the Sri Bagh Pact |
| Chilukuri Narayana Rao | Generally credited with proposing the name Rayalaseema, 1928 |
| Bhogaraju Pattabhi Sitaramayya | Drafted the Sri Bagh Pact; member of the JVP Committee |
| Tanguturi Prakasam | Leader in the Andhra campaign; first Chief Minister of Andhra State |
| Potti Sriramulu | Fasted from 19 October 1952; died December 1952 |
| Madapati Hanumantha Rao | Main organiser of the Andhra Jana Sangham and Andhra Mahasabha of Hyderabad State |
| Suravaram Pratapa Reddy | Presided over the first Hyderabad Andhra Mahasabha at Jogipet, 1930 |
| Burgula Ramakrishna Rao | First elected Chief Minister of Hyderabad State, from 1952; signatory of the Gentlemen's Agreement |
| Bezawada Gopala Reddy | Last Chief Minister of Andhra State; signatory of the Gentlemen's Agreement |
| Neelam Sanjiva Reddy | Deputy Chief Minister of Andhra State; first Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh; signatory of the Gentlemen's Agreement |
| Fazl Ali, K. M. Panikkar, H. N. Kunzru | Members of the SRC |
| K. N. Wanchoo | Conducted the 1953 inquiry on the implications of forming Andhra State |
| Marri Chenna Reddy | Leader of the Telangana Praja Samithi from 1969; signatory of the Gentlemen's Agreement |
| P. V. Narasimha Rao | Chief Minister from 30 September 1971 to 10 January 1973 |
| B. N. Srikrishna | Chaired the 2010 committee |
For more such names, see AP personalities: freedom fighters, poets and reformers.
15. Master timeline
| Year or date | Event |
|---|---|
| 1765 | Grant of the Northern Circars to the East India Company |
| 1766 | Treaty with the Nizam (12 November) |
| 1768 | Treaty of Masulipatam (1 March) |
| 1788 | Guntur Circar under the Company |
| 1800 | Ceded Districts handed over by the Nizam |
| 1823 | Nizam's claim on the Circars purchased |
| 1839 | Kurnool annexed |
| 1913 | First Andhra Mahasabha at Bapatla (26 and 27 May) |
| 1920 | Congress (Nagpur, December) reorganises its provincial committees on language lines |
| 1926 | Andhra University inaugurated at Bezawada; main campus later at Waltair |
| 1928 | Name Rayalaseema adopted at Nandyal (November) |
| 1936 | Orissa province formed (1 April) |
| 1937 | Sri Bagh Pact (16 November) |
| 1948 | Hyderabad integrated into India (September); Dar Commission appointed 17 June, report 10 December; JVP Committee set up in December |
| 1949 | JVP Committee report (April) |
| 1952 | Potti Sriramulu's fast from 19 October; death on 15 December; announcement of Andhra State on 19 December |
| 1953 | Wanchoo report (7 February); Andhra State Act assented to 14 September; Andhra State formed on 1 October |
| 1953 | SRC constituted in December |
| 1954 | High Court at Guntur (5 July); Prakasam ministry falls (15 November) |
| 1955 | SRC report (30 September; tabled 14 December); Andhra Assembly resolution (25 November); Hyderabad Assembly debate (to 3 December) |
| 1956 | Gentlemen's Agreement (20 February); SR Act (31 August); Andhra Pradesh formed on 1 November |
| 1969 | Telangana agitation; eight-point plan (11 April) |
| 1971 | TPS wins 10 of 14 seats (May); P. V. Narasimha Rao Chief Minister (30 September) |
| 1972 to 1973 | Supreme Court decision on Mulki rules (October 1972); Jai Andhra movement; Six-Point Formula (21 September 1973) |
| 1974 | 32nd Amendment (Articles 371D and 371E): assent 3 May, in force later in 1974 |
| 1975 | Presidential Order under Article 371D (zonal local cadres) |
| 1985 | G.O. 610 (December) |
| 2001 | TRS formed (April); Girglani Commission constituted |
| 2009 | Announcements of 9 and 23 December |
| 2010 | Srikrishna Committee: 3 February and 30 December |
| 2014 | Bill passed 18 and 20 February; assent 1 March; Telangana formed 2 June |
16. Exam traps and how to avoid them
- Andhra State versus Andhra Pradesh. 1953 and Kurnool are Andhra State. 1956 and Hyderabad are Andhra Pradesh.
- Two Andhra Mahasabhas. Bapatla 1913 belongs to Madras Presidency. Jogipet 1930 belongs to Hyderabad State.
- Sri Bagh Pact and Gentlemen's Agreement. One was between coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema leaders in 1937. The other was between Andhra and Telangana leaders in 1956.
- Death date of Potti Sriramulu. Most textbooks give 15 December 1952. Some sources give 16 December. If both appear as options, read the question for clues, and prefer 15 December.
- Announcement date. Nehru's announcement came on 19 December 1952, after the death, not before.
- Capital versus High Court in 1953. Kurnool was the capital. Guntur was the High Court.
- SRC recommendation. The SRC did not recommend an immediate merger of Telangana. It suggested a separate Hyderabad State for the time being, with a possible union with Andhra after 1961. The merger went ahead through the 1956 political agreement.
- Article 371D and 371E. Both came from the 32nd Amendment. 371D concerns equitable opportunities in public employment and education in Andhra Pradesh; 371E allows Parliament to provide for a University in the State.
- Telangana's rank. The 29th State, not the 28th.
- Mulki rules. The residence-based rules of the Nizam's Hyderabad State, which the Supreme Court held to be still in force in the Telangana area in 1972.
- Domicile period. The Gentlemen's Agreement kept the Hyderabad Mulki rules, which meant 15 years of residence, not 12.
- Andhra University. It was inaugurated at Bezawada in 1926, not at Waltair.
Key facts for exams
- The Northern Circars were obtained by the East India Company in 1765 from the Mughal emperor and secured by treaties with the Nizam in 1766 and 1768; Guntur joined in 1788.
- The Ceded Districts came from the Nizam in 1800 under the Subsidiary Alliance; Thomas Munro was the first Principal Collector.
- The first Andhra Mahasabha met at Bapatla on 26 and 27 May 1913 with Bayya Narasimheswara Sarma presiding.
- The Sri Bagh Pact, 16 November 1937, set the pattern of placing the capital and High Court in different regions.
- Potti Sriramulu began his fast on 19 October 1952 and died in December 1952; Nehru announced Andhra State on 19 December 1952.
- Andhra State was formed on 1 October 1953 with Kurnool as capital, 11 districts and Tanguturi Prakasam as first Chief Minister.
- The High Court of Andhra State began at Guntur in 1954 under Koka Subba Rao, and Andhra University was inaugurated at Bezawada in 1926.
- The SRC (Fazl Ali, Panikkar, Kunzru) submitted its report on 30 September 1955.
- The Gentlemen's Agreement was reached on 20 February 1956, with a Regional Committee, a 60:40 ministerial split, a Deputy Chief Minister clause and a 15-year domicile rule.
- Andhra Pradesh was formed on 1 November 1956 by merging Andhra State with nine Telangana districts; Hyderabad became the capital.
- The Jai Andhra movement of 1972 led to the Six-Point Formula (21 September 1973) and Articles 371D and 371E.
- Telangana became the 29th State on 2 June 2014, after assent on 1 March 2014.
Practice MCQs
1. Where was the first Andhra Mahasabha held in 1913? A) Guntur B) Bapatla C) Rajahmundry D) Nellore Answer: B) Bapatla
2. The Sri Bagh Pact of 1937 was between leaders of which two regions? A) Coastal Andhra and Telangana B) Rayalaseema and Telangana C) Coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema D) North Andhra and South Andhra Answer: C) Coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema
3. Which of these pairs is correct for 1953? A) Capital Hyderabad, High Court Kurnool B) Capital Kurnool, High Court Guntur C) Capital Guntur, High Court Kurnool D) Capital Vijayawada, High Court Hyderabad Answer: B) Capital Kurnool, High Court Guntur
4. Who announced the formation of Andhra State in Parliament on 19 December 1952? A) Rajendra Prasad B) C. Rajagopalachari C) Jawaharlal Nehru D) Vallabhbhai Patel Answer: C) Jawaharlal Nehru
5. Who was the last Chief Minister of Andhra State? A) Tanguturi Prakasam B) Bezawada Gopala Reddy C) Neelam Sanjiva Reddy D) Burgula Ramakrishna Rao Answer: B) Bezawada Gopala Reddy
6. The States Reorganisation Commission submitted its report on: A) 7 February 1953 B) 1 October 1953 C) 30 September 1955 D) 31 August 1956 Answer: C) 30 September 1955
7. The Gentlemen's Agreement was signed on: A) 16 November 1937 B) 20 February 1956 C) 1 November 1956 D) 21 September 1973 Answer: B) 20 February 1956
8. How many districts did Andhra State have when it was formed? A) 9 B) 11 C) 13 D) 20 Answer: B) 11
9. Which Article was inserted by the 32nd Constitutional Amendment to give effect to the Six-Point Formula? A) Article 370 B) Article 371A C) Article 371D D) Article 356 Answer: C) Article 371D
10. Telangana was formed as which State of the Union on 2 June 2014? A) 27th B) 28th C) 29th D) 30th Answer: C) 29th
FAQ
Is Andhra State the same as Andhra Pradesh? No. Andhra State existed from 1 October 1953 to 31 October 1956, with Kurnool as its capital. Andhra Pradesh was formed on 1 November 1956 by merging it with the Telugu-speaking districts of Hyderabad State.
Why was Kurnool chosen as the capital in 1953? Because of the Sri Bagh Pact principle that the main institutions should be spread across regions, and because Andhra State had to begin quickly after separating from Madras without its own ready capital. The High Court went to Guntur.
Did the SRC recommend the merger of Telangana and Andhra? Not immediately. It suggested that the Telangana area form a separate state for the time being, with unification with Andhra possible after the general elections of about 1961 if the legislature of that state voted for it by a two-thirds majority. The merger came after the political agreement of 20 February 1956.
Is the Gentlemen's Agreement a law? No. It was a political understanding between leaders. Some of its ideas, such as a regional committee, were later given legal shape through other measures. For employment and education, the later constitutional device is Article 371D.
How should I treat disputed numbers, such as 1969 deaths? Say that estimates differ, and give a figure only when the question names its source. Movement sources cite 369 deaths in 1969, while other accounts say more than 300 or give lower numbers for individual incidents. Examiners rarely rely on a disputed number.
Where can I practise this topic? You can attempt topic-wise questions on Andhra Pradesh history on pareeksha.in, which has 10 Lakh+ MCQs, 100+ Exams, 5,000+ Full-Length Mocks across state and national exams. Pair that with your own notes from official sources.
Sources and verification
This article was checked in October 2026 against the following pages, each of which was opened and read. Official texts were used first; Wikipedia pages were used only as a cross-check and are marked as such. Some parliamentary and government pages (Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha e-library, Nehru Archive, Ministry of Home Affairs report PDF, India Code) could not be opened from our tools, so points that depend only on them are worded with care.
- Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2014 (Gazette of India Extraordinary, 1 March 2014), PDF on prsindia.org: assent date, sections 3, 4, 5 and 10.
- Constitution (Thirty-second Amendment) Act, 1973 text on constitution.org; Article 371E text on constitutionofindia.net.
- High Court of Andhra Pradesh annual report page on aphc.gov.in: Guntur 1954, Hyderabad 1956, common High Court from 2 June 2014.
- PRS India blog, "Telangana: recommendations of a previous commission" (SRC on Telangana).
- The News Minute timeline of events leading to the formation of Telangana.
- Pages of an Indian communities reference site (indiancommunities.org) on the Dar Commission, the JVP Committee and the SRC.
- Andhra University history note (geocities.ws mirror of the university's history) and the Supreme Court Observer profile page on Justice Wanchoo.
- Wikipedia (cross-check only): Gentlemen's Agreement of 1956; Potti Sreeramulu; 1969 Telangana Agitation; Pre-2004 Telangana protests; 1952 Mulkhi Agitation; Visalandhra movement; History of the Telangana movement; Andhra State; Andhra State Act, 1953; Andhra movement; Sribagh Pact; Rayalaseema; Chilukuri Narayana Rao; Telangana Praja Samithi; Srikrishna Committee; Jai Andhra movement; Six-Point Formula of 1973; Tanguturi Prakasam; Neelam Sanjiva Reddy; Andhra Pradesh (1956 to 2014); States Reorganisation Commission; States Reorganisation Act, 1956; Mahagujarat movement (for the Dhar Commission dates); Madras Manade; Northern Circars; Ceded Districts; Orissa Province; Andhra Mahasabha; B. N. Sarma; Konda Venkatappayya; Bapatla; East Godavari district; Hyderabad State; Andhra University; Andhra Pradesh High Court.
Points that remain hedged because only secondary sources could be reached: the exact day of the Bapatla Mahasabha (26 and 27 May), the date of the Wanchoo report, the Andhra Assembly resolution date (25 November 1955), the Hyderabad Assembly figures (removed), the eight-point plan date (11 or 12 April 1969), the Supreme Court date for the Mulki judgment, the date of the 1975 Presidential Order, the exact date of G.O. 610, the venue of the Gentlemen's Agreement, the origin of the name Rayalaseema, and the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha dates in February 2014. Please check these against your syllabus before quoting them as exact.
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