London:
India's youngest state may not have been born yet, but the news of Telangana being carved out sparked off celebration not just in India but also overseas.
Just last week, about a hundred NRIs originally from Telangana now living in Britain, gathered outside the Indian High Commission in London to demand statehood. And just hours after the news came in that the government will table the bill in Parliament, they were back on the streets in London.
And this time, not to raise their voice, but to shake a leg in London's East Ham suburb.
For many this is a very emotive issue.
Mr Kamalkar, an advocate, said, "It has been 56 years of struggle. There has been a lot of struggle for the people of Telangana. Young and innocent people have committed for the state of Telangana. It is big news for them and NRIs from all over the globe."
"We have been ruled for many years by people from Rayalaseema, we now have to take our state back," said another woman who works in a city council.
Maybe as a sign that the past was now really history, young children of NRIs from Telangana were there too.
Ms Carol said, "Telangana is very important for me because it has been 60 years since we have been fighting for this and we would like to thank those people who fought for us and we are celebrating this in the UK and would like to thank those people who fought for us."
As the sun began to set, the jovial dancing and cheering began.
But, will and should NRIs do more than just cheering from a distance? Who better than a politician to advise them?
"Even for the future, we invite them to invest in Telangana, and start their industries there or whatever," said Mr V Prakash, advisor of the Telangana Rashtra Samithi or TRS. "Our Telangana government will give them all facilities to start industries or whatever else they may have interest in. But definitely we require funds from them. A lot of capital must flow into the state to rebuild it," he added.
Just last week, about a hundred NRIs originally from Telangana now living in Britain, gathered outside the Indian High Commission in London to demand statehood. And just hours after the news came in that the government will table the bill in Parliament, they were back on the streets in London.
And this time, not to raise their voice, but to shake a leg in London's East Ham suburb.
For many this is a very emotive issue.
Mr Kamalkar, an advocate, said, "It has been 56 years of struggle. There has been a lot of struggle for the people of Telangana. Young and innocent people have committed for the state of Telangana. It is big news for them and NRIs from all over the globe."
"We have been ruled for many years by people from Rayalaseema, we now have to take our state back," said another woman who works in a city council.
Maybe as a sign that the past was now really history, young children of NRIs from Telangana were there too.
Ms Carol said, "Telangana is very important for me because it has been 60 years since we have been fighting for this and we would like to thank those people who fought for us and we are celebrating this in the UK and would like to thank those people who fought for us."
As the sun began to set, the jovial dancing and cheering began.
But, will and should NRIs do more than just cheering from a distance? Who better than a politician to advise them?
"Even for the future, we invite them to invest in Telangana, and start their industries there or whatever," said Mr V Prakash, advisor of the Telangana Rashtra Samithi or TRS. "Our Telangana government will give them all facilities to start industries or whatever else they may have interest in. But definitely we require funds from them. A lot of capital must flow into the state to rebuild it," he added.
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