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Mir Osman Ali Khan

His Exalted Highness (H.E.H) Nawab Mir Osman Ali Khan, Asaf Jah VII was the last Nizam of Hyderabad. After formation of India, he was made Rajpramukh (Governor) of Andhra Pradesh based on Public demand. He was also the richest man on earth[1] with the Golconda mines making Hyderabad the main supplier of diamonds in the world until that time.

Mir Osman Ali Khan, Asaf Jah VII
The 7th Nizam of Hyderabad (Nizam Sarkar)
Usman Ali Khan
Nizam: 29 August 1911– 17 September 1948
Titular Nizam: 17 September 1948 – 24 February 1967
18 September 1911
Born(1886-04-06)6 April 1886
Died24 February 1967 (age 80)
King Kothi Palace, Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh, India
(now in Telangana, India)
Burial
Judi Mosque, King Kothi Palace, Hyderabad,
Urduنواب میر عثمان علی خان‎
HouseAsaf Jahi Dynasty
FatherMahbub Ali Khan, Asaf Jah VI
MotherAzmatunnisa Begum

Contributions to society

Nearly all the major public buildings and institutions in Hyderabad city, such as Osmania General Hospital, Hyderabad High Court, Jubilee Hall, Nizamia Observatory, Nizamia Hospital, Moazzam Jahi Market, Kachiguda Railway Station, Asafiya Library now known as the State Central Library, Hyderabad, Town Hall now known as the Assembly Hall, Hyderabad Museum now known as the State Museum and many other monuments were built during his rule.[2][3][4]

Reforms in education and agriculture

During his reign, he introduced many educational reforms. About a whopping 11% of the Nizam's budget was spent on education and primary education made compulsory and free to the poor.[5]

He also made large donations to many institutions in India and abroad with special emphasis given to educational institutions. He made donation Rs 10 Lakh for the Banaras Hindu University[6] and Rs. 5 Lakh for the Aligarh Muslim University during 1950's[5]

 
HEH The Nizam with his Royal subjects (Maharaja Kishen Prasad) to his right

Osmania University

He also founded the popular Osmania University in 1918 through a royal (Order) "firman" .[7] Today it is one of the biggest universities in India. Schools, colleges and a Department for Translation were set up. Primary education was made compulsory and free for the poor.[8]

Notable Donations

 
Osman Ali Khan(right) with Jawaharlal Nehru and Maulana Abul kalam Azad(behind)

Donation for compilation of the (Hindu) holy Mahabharata

In the year 1932, The Bhandarkar oriental research institute in Pune, needed money for the compilation and publication of the Hindu epic-Mahabharata and a guest house. A formal request was made to the seventh Nizam, Mir Osman Ali Khan who in no time released a farman of Rs.1000 per year for a period of 11 years. Whereas, Rs. 50,000 was offered for the guest which is known as "Nizam guest house".[5][9]

Donation to Hindu temples

The Nizam donated Rs. 82,825 to the Yadagirigutta temple at Bhongir, Rs. 29,999 to the Sita Ramachandraswamy temple, Bhadrachalam[10] and Rs. 8,000 to the Tirupati Balaji Temple.[11]

He also donated Rs. 50,000 towards the reconstruction of Sitarambagh temple located in the old city of Hyderabad,[10] and bestowed a grant of 100,000 Hyderabadi rupees towards the reconstruction of Thousand Pillar Temple.[12]

After hearing about the Golden Temple of Amritsar through Maharaja Ranjit Singh,[13][14] he started providing it with yearly grants.[15][16]

Donation to Indian Army in Indo-China War

The 7th nizam donated 5000 kgs of Gold to Indian Govt during Indo-China war in 1965.[17][18]

Final years and death

The Nizam continued to stay at the King Kothi Palace until his death. He used to issue firmans on inconsequential matters in his newspaper, the Nizam Gazette.

He died on Friday, 24 February 1967. In his will, he asked to buried in Masjid-e Judi, a mosque where his mother was buried, that faced King Kothi Palace.[19][20] The government declared state mourning on 25 February 1967, the day when he was buried. State government offices remained closed as a mark of respect while the National Flag of India was flown at half-mast on all the government buildings throughout the state.[21] The Nizam Museum documents state :

"The streets and pavements of the city were littered with the pieces of broken glass bangles as an incalculable number of women broke their bangles in mourning, which Telangana women usually do as per Indian customs on the death of a close relative."[22]

"The Nizam's funeral procession was the biggest non-religious, non-political meeting of people in the history of India till that date."

Millions of people of all religions from different parts of the state entered Hyderabad in trains, buses and bullocks for a last glimpse of their king in a coffin in the King Kothi Palace Camp in Hyderabad.[23] The crowd was so uncontrollable that barricades were installed alongside the road to enable people to move in a queue.[24] D. Bhaskara Rao, chief curator, of the Nizam's Museum stated that an estimated one million (1 million) people were part of the procession.[25]

Mir Osman Ali Khan Media

Other websites

References

  1. ↑ "TIME Magazine Cover: The Nizam of Hyderabad - Feb. 22, 1937".
  2. ↑ Lasania, Yunus Y. (2017-04-26). 100 years of Osmania University, the hub of Telangana agitation. https://www.livemint.com/Politics/45tpr4Hlxyc5g51QtwjuKJ/100-years-of-Osmania-University-the-hub-of-Telangana-agitat.html. 
  3. ↑ "Once the pride of the Nizam, Hyderabad's iconic Osmania hospital now lies in shambles". The News Minute. 2017-01-24. https://www.thenewsminute.com/article/once-pride-nizam-hyderabads-iconic-osmania-hospital-now-lies-shambles-56184. 
  4. ↑ "Kacheguda station scripts 100 years of history". The Hans India.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 "Nizam Hyderabad Mir Osman Ali Khan was a perfect secular ruler".
  6. ↑ A ‘miser' who donated generously. https://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-andhrapradesh/A-lsquomiser-who-donated-generously/article15988076.ece. 
  7. ↑ ORIGIN AND HISTORY. http://www.osmania.ac.in/aboutus-originandhistory.php. 
  8. ↑ "Welcome to Osmania University". Osmania.ac.in. 26 April 1917. Archived from the original on 12 August 2015.
  9. ↑ "Reminiscing the seventh Nizam's enormous contribution to education".
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 A 'miser' who donated generously. 20 September 2010. https://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-andhrapradesh/A-lsquomiser-who-donated-generously/article15988076.ece. Retrieved 12 August 2018. 
  11. ↑ "Nizam gave funding for temples, and Hindu educational institutions". 28 May 2013. Archived from the original on 8 July 2018. Retrieved 9 July 2018.
  12. ↑ "Attempt to portray Nizam as 'intolerant oppressor' decried". Gulf News. 16 September 2014. Archived from the original on 30 July 2019. Retrieved 16 July 2020.
  13. ↑ "Maharaja Ranjit Singh's contributions to Harimandir Sahib". Archived from the original on 17 April 2015. Retrieved 1 March 2019.
  14. ↑ "A Brief History of The Nizams of Hyderabad". Archived from the original on 2 April 2019. Retrieved 16 July 2020.
  15. ↑ Jaganath, Dr Santosh. The History of Nizam's Railways System. Lulu.com. ISBN 9781312496477. Archived from the original on 15 September 2020. Retrieved 27 July 2020.
  16. ↑ Morgan, Diane (2007). From Satan's Crown to the Holy Grail: Emeralds in Myth, Magic, and History. Greenwood Publishing Group. ISBN 9780275991234. Archived from the original on 15 September 2020. Retrieved 27 July 2020.
  17. ↑ "Why did Nizam give 5000 kg of gold to India?".
  18. ↑ "NIZAM OF HYDERABAD DONATED 5 TON GOLD TO INDIAN GOVERNMENT".
  19. ↑ "Floarl Tribute to Nizam VII – The Siasat Daily". siasat.com. 25 February 2018. Archived from the original on 22 April 2018.
  20. ↑ Heritage enthusiasts pay rich tributes to seventh Nizam. 7 April 2018. http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Hyderabad/heritage-enthusiasts-pay-rich-tributes-to-seventh-nizam/article23460365.ece. Retrieved 14 June 2018. 
  21. ↑ "In pictures: 50 years ago a sea of people turned up for Death of Hyderabads Last Nizam". thenewsminute.com. 24 February 2017. Archived from the original on 18 December 2017. Retrieved 23 March 2019.
  22. ↑ "The Times Group". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 27 March 2019. Retrieved 2019-03-23.
  23. ↑ "On his 50th death anniversary, the last Nizam of Hyderabad". Hindustan Times. 24 February 2017. Archived from the original on 19 October 2018. Retrieved 16 July 2020.
  24. ↑ Nizam's opulence has no takers. The Hans India. http://www.thehansindia.com/posts/index/Hyderabad-Tab/2017-02-25/Nizams-opulance-has-no-takers/283066. Retrieved 16 July 2020. 
  25. ↑ Syed Akbar (25 February 2017). "Mir Osman Ali Khan: Modern Hyderabad architect and statehood icon, Nizam VII fades into history". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 2 September 2018. Retrieved 16 July 2020.
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