Facts : 1 Kannada Kannadiga Karnataka During the period of British rule, state of Karnataka as it stands today did not exist
Facts : 2 Areas that today comprise Karnataka were under as many as 20 different administrative units with the princely state of Mysore, Nizam s Hyderabad, the Bombay Presidency, the Madras Presidency and the territory of Kodagu being the most important ones
Facts : 3 In effect, nearly two-thirds of what is now Karnataka fell outside the rule of the Wodeyar kings of Mysore
Facts : 4 What this meant for the Kannadigas in these regions was that they were reduced to linguistic minorities wherever they were
Facts : 5 Kannadigas in the Hubli-Karnataka region for example, came under the rule of the Bombay presidency where Marathi was the official language
Facts : 6 Those in the Hyderabad-Karnataka region came under the Nizam s rule where Urdu ruled
Facts : 7 It was in this backdrop that the movement that first started as a protest against linguistic oppression, soon morphed into one that began demanding a separate state be created consolidating all Kannada speaking regions
Facts : 8 This was essentially a movement that was spearheaded by the poets, journalists and writers and was called the Ekikarana or Unification movement
Facts : 9 The joy of independence soon gave way to disappointment as the new government started dragging its feet on Karnataka Ekikarana movement
Facts : 10 Kannada speaking areas now got grouped under five administrative units of the Bombay and Madras provinces, Kodagu, and the princely states of Mysore and Hyderabad
Facts : 11 The Akhila Karnataka Ekikarana Parishat met in Kasargod and reiterated the demand for a separate state for Kannadigas
Facts : 12 The ratification in parliament of the recommendations of the Fazal Ali Committee brought joy to the Kannadiga population that now was merged under the state of Mysore
Facts : 13 On 1 November 1973, under Devaraj Urs as chief minister, Mysore state was renamed as Karnataka since it was felt that Karnataka was more inclusive of all the other regions of Karnataka than the name Mysore
Facts : 14 Some of the active Kannada pro organisations include Karnataka Vidyavardhaka Sangha Karnataka Ekikarana Samithi Karnataka Rakshana Vedike Kannada Chalavali Vatal Paksha
