A momentous day in waiting for Golconda

HYDERABAD: Telangana government is going to create history by holding the new State's (first) Independence Day ceremonial parade at the historic Golconda fort.

The historic fort has been a witness to the vicissitudes that befell this part of Deccan over the last 10 centuries. Fortified during the heydays of Kakatiya dynasty that ruled the Telugu-speaking kingdoms, with Warangal as its capital, between 1083 and 1323 AD, Golconda subsequently became part of Bahmani kingdom and later served as the seat of power of Qutub Shahi dynasty that ruled the Sultanate for 169 years between 1518 and 1687.

When Golconda was bursting at the seams with faster economic activity and population growth, the fifth Qutub Shahi ruler Sultan Mohammed Quli Qutub Shah founded Hyderabad as a satellite town to ease the congestion at the fort city.

The seventh Qutub Shahi ruler, Abdullah Qutub Shah, extended the Golconda fort by constructing the Naya Qila in 1656. After the fall of Qutub Shahis, Asaf Jahi rulers (1720 to 1948 AD) developed Hyderabad and made it their seat of government, thereby eclipsing the prominence of Golconda.

However, Golconda retains its pre-eminent position as the massive medieval fort which is part of the region's cultural, social, political and economic heritage.

The world famous diamonds, including Koh-i-Noor, Darya-e-Noor and Noor-ul-Ain, were traded in the bazaars of Golconda kingdom whose boundaries included the diamond mines at Kollur in present-day Guntur and Paritala in present-day Krishna district.

Golconda symbolised Ganga-Jamuni tahzeeb (the composite culture) that later became the hallmark of Hyderabad. The Qutub Shahi Sultans not only patronized Telugu but also entrusted key positions in the kingdom to Telugus. The rich tradition was continued by Asaf Jahis.

After the Police Action in September 1948, the erstwhile Nizam's Dominions became part of the Indian Union. Hyderabad State (comprising present-day Telangana, Marathwada and Hyderabad-Karnatak regions) existed as a separate State between 1948-1956 when the Telugu-speaking area (Telangana) was merged with the then Andhra State to form Andhra Pradesh and the Marathi-and Kannada-speaking areas were tagged on to the then Bombay State and Mysore State respectively.

Thus began further decline of Golconda, which soon turned into a dilapidated township bereft of progress and development though the Fort complex was taken over by the Government of India to be made into a prime tourist attraction.

Now, by deciding to hold the Independence Day parade of the newly-formed Telangana State at this fort complex, Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao wants to give the message that Telangana culture, history and heritage would be revived and promoted in a big way.

Golconda and its twin city, Hyderabad, have been an epitome of miniature India and home to people of different regions, religions, races, languages and cultures. And, this glorious tradition needs to be reinforced for the future generations.