It's finally time for Telangana in pink-hued Hyderabad

HYDERABAD: From the skies to the sidewalks, all are draped in a pretty shade of pink this morning. Cheers of jubilation drift through the air, thick with pride for realizing a long cherished dream. There is a sense of satisfaction too as the days of struggle are, at last, over and finally there is hope of a more fulfilling tomorrow.
Telangana, India's 29th state, has now been born.And its 3.2 crore-strong population is in no mood to hold back tears of ecstasy or shrieks of happiness as they plunge into celebrations, painting the town pink, literally!
In fact, the big fat birthday party kicked off weeks ago and hit a crescendo on the eve of D-Day with pink buntings decorating every nook and cranny of the T districts, the capital city of Hyderabad in particular. Life-size cutouts of the first chief minister of Telangana, K Chandrasekhar Rao, were erected at many prominent junctions, along with hoardings assuring people of the new state, of better times and opportunities ahead.
"It is a great moment in the life of Telanganaites. It is what our forefathers, and later our brothers and sisters, fought for relentlessly. That it is eventually become a reality is overwhelming," said a visibly moved Sekhar Rao, an old-timer from Hyderabad.
To make June 2 a day to remember, for eternity, for those like Rao, workers of Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) have arranged for massive fireworks, exclusively ordered and shipped from Mumbai. The grand 'light and sound' show will be played out for an hour at 120 junctions across the twin cities all through the day. Programmes, showcasing the rich culture of the new state, will also be organized on 100 different stages in the city, even as partymen distribute sweets to passersby at various important junctions across Hyderabad.
In the districts of Telangana too, the excitement is likely to reverberate through the day with mammoth gatherings and loud merrymaking on the streets. At the martyrs pylon at Warangal, where celebrations began on Sunday night, festivities will continue all through Monday while locals of Mahbubnagar take out a colourful Bathukamma procession to mark the historic occasion. "Of course, we are excited as it gives us a ray of hope. The new state will herald irrigation facilities, provide water to our fields, education to our kids and employment to our youth," said a beaming villager, Sailu Raju of Keshampet in Mahbubnagar.
In their homes, people organized parties and in keeping with the theme of the day, decided to drape themselves in pink. "It is of course only symbolic, but it is our way of being a party of the joyous moment. Why should we hide our excitement anyway," said 25-year-old S Sreelatha of Padmarao Nagar in the city.
For the older lot, however, it is more of a sentimental day that they hope to spend in peace, reminiscing the bygone era when the T dream seemed distant and almost impossible to achieve. "We have come close to it so many times but then lost the battle at the last minute. For people like me, the reality is yet to sink in. We will definitely take out time to celebrate the birth, but without much fanfare," said a senior government official, Srinivas Goud. Whatever the form of celebration, every Telanganite is sure to go to bed with a smile tonight.