Established in 1591, the city of Hyderabad is the capital of Telangana. The city is situated on the banks of the river Musi and is home to 10 million people. The city’s central location between the Deccan plateau and the Western Ghats and industrialization throughout the 20th century has attracted manufacturing, research, educational and financial institutions.
History:
The region comprising modern Hyderabad and its surroundings was ruled by the Chalukya dynasty from 624 CE to 1075 CE. The city of Hyderabad was established by Muhammad Quli Qutb Shah of the Qutb Sahi dynasty. In 1724 Asaf Jahi established autonomy over the region and called it Hyderabad Deccan. Asaf and subsequent rulers took the title Nizam. After India gained Independence Nizam VII declared his intention to remain independent rather than join the Indian Union. In 1948 the Indian Army took control over the Hyderabad state after an invasion code named ‘Operation Polo.’
People:
The residents of Hyderabad are predominantly Telugu and Urdu speaking Deccani people with minority communities of Bengalis, Sindhis, Kannadigas, Gujaratis, Marathis, and Tamilians. Hindus form the majority of the population (64%) and Muslims form a very large minority (30%).
Culture:
Hyderabad emerged as the foremost center for culture in India after the decline of the Mughal Empire. Under the patronage of the Nizam, there was a mingling of North and South Indian languages and cultures. This has led to the coexistence of Hindu and Muslim traditions for which the city is known for. The Ramoji Film city located here is the world’s largest film studio. The region is well known for its Golconda and Hyderabadi paintings which are branches of Deccan painting.
Economy:
Hyderabad is an important economic hub with the automobile, textile, pharmaceutical, and service industries. By the 1960s most of the premier public sector enterprises like BHEL, NMDC, and HAL were established here. Since the 1990’s the economic pattern of the state diversified with the growth of IT, biotech, and financial companies. Hyderabad also attracts a lot of tourists and was listed as the third best city to visit in 2013 by Lonely Planet. Hyderabad is known as ‘the genome valley of India’ because of its biotech and pharmaceutical industries. It is also known as Cyberabad after it became a global center for information technology.
Mental health:
- A study conducted in 2015 to understand the attitude of the doctors of Hyderabad revealed that there is a significant stigma towards mental illness.
- Among the Indian states, Telangana has the 3rd highest incidence of Depression and Anxiety disorders.
- A study conducted in 2020 found out that 33% of youngsters between the age group of 18-20 were depressed or stressed.
- Hyderabad has only about 200 psychiatrists to meet the mental health needs of its huge population.
- Over 90 million Indians, or 7.5 percent of the country’s population of 1.3 billion, suffer from some form of mental disorder, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
- Mental health professionals ranging from counselors to institutions are working to raise awareness and provide mental health care for the people of the city.
TalkItOver offers professional counseling services in the city of Hyderabad in other major Indian cities.
