City Telugus prefer united Andhra

The pre-dominant sentiment among Telugus, in Bangalore cutting across class lines seems to be for united Andhra Pradesh (AP) and small rallies are being planned by a section of the community this Sunday to express their opinion.

However, there is a difference of opinion region-wise with Telugus from Telengana region supporting the new state.

Telugu Association Bangalore President Srikanth Yarlagadda told Deccan Herald that a majority of Telugus in Bangalore are from Rayalseema region and seek united AP.
“Sixty per cent of Telugus in Bangalore are from Rayalseemsa. They come from mainly Ananthapur, Chittoor and Kadri. A good number of Rayalseema Telugus are Reddys, while the rest, are lower class.

The Reddys, who are into real estate in Bangalore, as well as, lower class, who are construction labourers, favour united AP. But Reddys from Telengana prefer Telengana.”
Coastal and Andhra region Telugus, predominantly Kammas, and small sprinkling of Brahmins, favour united AP, says Yarlagadda.

The coastal and Andhra Telugus come from places like Vishakapatnam, Vijayawada, Guntur and Krishna district.

Most people from this region and Telengana, employed in IT companies, favour united AP. Middle-class Telugus from Seemandhra, who run provision stores and vegetable shops, favour united AP. “Class-wise, Telugus favour unity,  but region-wise there would naturally be difference of opinion,” says Yarlagadda.

Telugus, who form around 20 per cent of Bangalore’s population, and around 18-20 per cent of Karnataka’s population, have been coming to Bangalore from 1970’s.

The peak migration happened in mid nineties in the middle of IT boom and continued well after 2002 when large number of Telugus interested in real estate made Bangalore their home.

Telugus also migrated to Bellary, Raichur, Sindhanur, Chikkballapur, Kolar and Bangalore Rural. They are the third largest ethnic group in Bangalore after Kannadigas and Tamils.
The former is around 30-33 per cent, while the latter forms around 25 per cent.
The Telugus are also in favour of Hyderabad continuing as capital of AP, but if the split is inevitable, they believe Hyderabad has to be capital for 10 years atleast by which time a new capital ought to be established.