Continuing its mammoth work of recording the history and culture of Andhra Pradesh - it will be more apt to call it the history and culture of Telugu speaking people - the Andhra Pradesh History Congress is all set to release its seventh volume at Potti Sriramulu Telugu University here on April 2.
It was in 1998, the AP History Congress resolved to compile and publish the comprehensive history and culture of Andhra Pradesh in nine volumes. “The need for this series was felt because no connected, authenticated, chronological arranged narrative from an interdisciplinary perspective, incorporating the latest data, is available today,” says V. Ramakrishna, General Editor of the series and former Professor of History at University of Hyderabad.
This is the first time such a comprehensive recording of history and culture of a State has ever been taken up in the country, the Founder Member of AP History Congress says.
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Overall the series has eight volumes covering comprehensively all aspects of human life - historical, political, social, economic and cultural aspects. The series was first conceptualised in the annual session of APHC at University of Hyderabad in 1998 when C. Rangarajan was the Chancellor. Soon after the Chancellor constituted a committee to take the work forward which started about 16 years ago to cover the State from the pre-historic period 5000 BC till 1956. The eighth volume to be released soon will record the contemporary history from 1956 to 1990 when a new era of economic reforms began. The History Congress will also publish the ninth volume, documenting the sources of reference, published and unpublished for all the eight volumes so that it will be of use for future and further research, Prof. Ramakrishna says. The seventh volume titled ‘Modern Andhra and Hyderabad AD 1858-1956’ published in association with Potti Sreeramulu Telugu University, is an exhaustive volume because of the period it encompasses from 1858 after the Great revolt of 1857 when India came under the direct rule of British Crown till the formation of Andhra Pradesh in1956.
Edited by B. Kesava Narayana and published by Emesco, the volume presents a fascinating account of political history, administration and economy; society, culture and art; revolts, medicine and language and literature in a highly readable and engaging fashion.
The series is a collector’s piece and a testimony to the passion, commitment and dedication of the editorial board and scholars and experts in various fields who contributed in documenting the history for the posterity.
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