HyderābādHyderabadcity, capital of Andhra Pradesh state, in southern south-central India. It is Andhra Pradesh’s largest and most populous city and is the major urban centre for all of south-central interior India.

Hyderabad is located on the

Deccan Plateau and Mūsi River.

Hyderābād Musi River in the heart of the Deccan plateau. The city site is relatively level to the gently rolling terrain, at an elevation of about 1,600 feet (500 metres). The climate is warm to hot and monsoonal (i.e., marked by wet and dry periods), with moderate annual precipitation. Most rain falls during the wet monsoon months of June to October. Pop. (2001) city, 3,637,483; urban agglom., 5,742,036.


Hyderabad was founded by the Quṭb Shāhi sultans of Golconda, under whom the kingdom of Golconda attained a position of importance second only to that of the Mughal Empire in the north. The old fortress town of Golconda had proved inadequate as the kingdom’s capital, and so about 1591 Muḥammad Qulī Quṭb Shāhi, the fifth of the Quṭb Shāhis, built a new city called


Hyderabad on the east bank of the


Musi River, a few miles from old Golconda. The


Charminar, a grand architectural composition in Indo-Saracenic style with open arches and


four minarets, is regarded as the supreme achievement of the Quṭb Shāhī period. It formed the centrepiece around which the city was planned. The Mecca Mosque, which was built later, can accommodate 10,000 people.

Hyderābād was

The mosque was the site of a bombing attack in 2007 that killed several Muslims and injured many others. The incident aggravated Muslim-Hindu tensions in the city, which has experienced periodic outbreaks of violence over the years.

Hyderabad was known for its beauty and affluence, but this glory lasted only as long as the Quṭb Shāhīs, for the Mughals conquered


Hyderabad in 1685. The Mughal occupation

resulted in

was accompanied by plunder and destruction and was followed by the intervention of European powers in Indian affairs. In 1724 Āṣaf Jāh


Nizam al-


Mulk, the Mughal viceroy in the Deccan, declared independence. This Deccan kingdom, with


Hyderabad as its capital, came to be known as


Hyderabad. The Āṣaf Jāhīs, during the 19th century, started to rebuild, expanding to the north of the old city across the


Musi. Farther north,


Secunderabad grew as a British cantonment, connected to


Hyderabad by a


bund (embankment) 1 mile (1.6 km) long on the Husain


Sagar Lake. The bund now serves as a promenade and is the pride of the city. Many new structures, reflecting a beautiful blend of Hindu and Muslim styles,


have been added along it.

Under the


nizams the Hindu and Muslim populations lived in amity, although immediately after Indian independence in 1947 a fanatical Muslim faction, the Raẕākārs, fomented tensions in the state and in the city. The Indian government intervened, and eventually the state of


Hyderabad was acceded to India. In 1956 the state was split up; its Telugu-speaking areas were combined with the erstwhile Andhra state to form the state of Andhra Pradesh with


Hyderabad as the capital.

The contemporary city

Hyderabad has become a centre of trade and commerce. Cigarettes and textiles are manufactured, and




activities have been expanded. The city


has good transport facilities. There are rail and air services to Delhi,






Chennai, and Bangalore (Bengaluru), as well as to historical

places such as Ajantā and Ellora

sites including the Ajanta and Ellora caves, both of which were designated UNESCO World Heritage sites in 1983. Taxis, auto-


rickshaws, cycle


rickshaws, private vehicles, and suburban bus and rail services provide local transport.



Hyderabad was the location of two colleges of the University of Madras. In 1918, however, the


nizam established Osmania University, and it is now one of the best universities in India. The University of


Hyderabad was established in 1974

; an

. An agricultural university and a number of advanced research and training institutes are also located there, as are several nongovernmental institutions,

such as

notably the American Studies Research Centre and the German Institute of Oriental Research.

The city

abounds in

has many public and private cultural organizations, such as state-sponsored dramatic, literary, and fine arts academies. The public auditorium, Ravindra Bharati, provides a venue for dance and music festivals, and the Salar Jung museum has a unique collection of rare pieces, including jade, jewelry, paintings, and furniture.

The public gardens provide the main recreational facilities. Many parks and the large parade grounds in


Secunderabad offer


space for play and relaxation. The zoological gardens and the university’s botanical gardens are popular picnic spots.


Hyderabad is reputed for its football (soccer) and cricket. There is also a racecourse.

Pop. (1981) city, 2,093,488; metropolitan area, 2,545,836; (1991) city, 3,043,896; metropolitan area, 3,344,437.