Bengaluru, Sep 17: Fulfilling a long standing demand of the people of Hyderabad Karnataka region, Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa on Tuesday announced that it has been renamed as 'Kalyana Karnataka' and a separate secretariat would be established for its development.

Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa on Tuesday announced that the Hyderabad-Karnataka region has been renamed as 'Kalyana Karnataka' and a separate secretariat would be established for its development.

"It has been a long standing demand to rename Hyderabad-Karnataka as Kalyana Karnataka. With God's grace at the time when I'm the Chief Minister of the state, I'm declaring Hyderabad-Karnataka as Kalyana Karnataka.

There is a festive atmosphere in the six districts of the region," Yediyurappa told reporters at Kalaburagi.

The Chief Minister said a separate secretariat would be set up for the development of Kalyana Karnataka, through which funds would be released for developmental work

All other formalities relating to the renaming would follow in consultation with the centre, he said.

Assuring more funds for the all round development of the Kalyana Karnataka region, Yediyurappa said there may be financial issues this time due to floods in several parts of the state, but more funds would be allocated for development in the next budget.

The renaming announcement was made by the Chief Minister ahead of hosting of the national flag in Kalaburagi on the occasion of commemoration of "Hyderabad-Karnataka Liberation Day" on Tuesday.

The region was under the Nizams of Hyderabad even after independence as the last Nizam, Mir Osman Ali Khan Bahadur, refused to annex his kingdom to the Indian Union.

On September 17, 1948 he merged with the Union of India after Police Action under the leadership of India's first Home Minister Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, which forced the Nizam and his army to surrender.

The region, comprising Bidar, Ballari, Kalaburagi, Koppal, Raichur and Yadgir, enjoys special status under the Constitution (Article 371J) owing to its backwardness.

The name Kalyana RPT Kalyana comes from the Kingdom of Kalyana, which was the epicenter of Sharana movement and Vachana Sahitaya preached and followed by several social reformers, including Basvanna.

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Hyderabad (PTI): Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, will attend the GOAT India Tour event featuring football legend Lionel Messi at the RGI Cricket Stadium here on Saturday evening, Telangana Congress sources said.

A friendly match will be played between the two teams -- Singareni RR9 and Aparna-Messi All Stars. These two teams will be playing a 15-20 minute friendly match and five minutes before the game, Chief Minister Revanth Reddy, a football enthusiast and Messi will join and will dribble the ball together.

Rahul Gandhi will land here on a special flight at 4.30 PM and will proceed to Taj Falaknuma Palace Hotel where Messi will be staying.

After watching the game, Gandhi will leave for the national capital by 10.30 PM.

Elaborate security arrangements are being made for the event at the RGI Cricket stadium.

Rachakonda Police Commissioner Sudheer Babu said security would be provided with 3,000 personnel.