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Chhattisgarh छत्तीसगढ़
—  State  —
Official seal of Chhattisgarh Seal
Location of Chhattisgarh in India
Political Map of Chhattisgarh
Coordinates (Raipur): 21°16′N 81°36′E / 21.27°N 81.60°E / 21.27; 81.60Coordinates: 21°16′N 81°36′E / 21.27°N 81.60°E / 21.27; 81.60
Country	India
Established	01 November 2000
Capital	Raipur
Largest city	Raipur
Districts	27 (9 dist. new)
Government
• Governor	Shekhar Dutt
• Chief Minister	Raman Singh (BJP)
• Legislature	Unicameral (90 seats)
• Parliamentary constituency	11 (year 2010)
• High Court	Chhattisgarh High Court
Area
• Total	135,194 km2 (52,199 sq mi)
Area rank	10th
Population (2011)
• Total	25,540,196
• Rank	16th
• Density	190/km2 (490/sq mi)
Time zone	IST (UTC+05:30)
ISO 3166 code	IN-CT
HDI	0.516 (medium)
HDI rank	23rd (2005)
Literacy	64.7% (23rd)
Official languages	Hindi, Chhattisgarhi
Website	chhattisgarh.nic.in

Chhattisgarh /ˈtʃætɨsɡər/^{[citation needed]} (Chhattisgarhi/Hindi: छत्तीसगढ़, pronounced [tʃʰət̪ˈt̪iːsɡəɽʱ] ( listen)) is a state in Central India. The state was formed on November 1, 2000 by partitioning 16 Chhattisgarhi-speaking southeastern districts of Madhya Pradesh.

Raipur is the capital of the state of Chhattisgarh, which is the 10th-largest state in India, with an area of 135,190 km² (52,200 sq mi). By population, it ranks as the 16th-largest state of the nation. It is an important electrical power and steel-producing state of India.^[1] Chhattisgarh produces 15% of the steel made in the country.^[2]

Chhattisgarh borders the states of Madhya Pradesh on the northwest, Maharashtra on the west, Andhra Pradesh on the south, Orissa on the east, Jharkhand on the northeast, and Uttar Pradesh on the north.

Etymology[link]

There are a wide array of opinions on the origin of the word Chhattisgarh. The name is not a very old one and has come into popular usage in the last few centuries. In ancient times, the region was called Dakshin Kosala (South Kosala). The name Chhattisgarh was popularized during the Maratha period and was first used in an official document in 1795.^[3]

In a popular and widely believed opinion, Chhattisgarh takes its name from the 36 pillars of Chhatishgarhin Devi temple (chhattis means "36", and garh means "pillar"). The old state had 36 districts, which were: Ratanpur, Vijaypur, Kharound, Maro, Kautgarh, Nawagarh, Sondhi, Aukhar, Padarbhatta, Semriya, Champa, Lafa, Chhuri, Kenda, Matin, Aparora, Pendra, Kurkuti-kandri, Raipur, Patan, Simaga, Singarpur, Lavan, Omera, Durg, Saradha, Sirasa, Menhadi, Khallari, Sirpur, Figeswar, Rajim, Singhangarh, Suvarmar, Tenganagarh, and Akaltara.^[4] However, experts do not agree with this explanation, as 36 forts cannot be archaeologically identified in the region.^[3]

British chronicler J.B. Beglar provides a different explanation of the origins of the name. According to Beglar, "the real name is 'Chhattisghar' ("chhattis" means "36," and ghar means "houses") and not Chhattisgarh." According to him, there is "a traditional saying that ages ago, about the time of Jarasandha (age of Mahabharata), 36 families of chanmars (leather workers) emigrated southward from Jarasandha's kingdom and established themselves in this region, which after them is called Chhattisgarh."^[5]

Another view, more popular with experts and historians, is that Chhattisgarh is the corrupted form of Chedisgarh which means Raj or "Empire of the Chedis" (Kalchuri Dynasty).^[3]

According to Dr. Shrikant Khilari, the name Chhattisgarh comes from the time of Guru Ghasidas. Guru Ghasidas, a saint, named Chhasttisgarh and the name was officially applied by the Marathas in 1795.

One more view is that the state acquired the name Chhattisghar because it is home for 36 tribal clans: Chhattis, which is Hindi for "36," and ghar, which is Hindi for "home."

Geography[link]

The northern and southern parts of the state are hilly, while the central part is fertile plain. Deciduous forests of the Eastern Highlands Forests cover roughly 44% of the state.

The state animal is the van bhainsa, or wild water buffalo. The state bird is the pahari myna, or hill myna. The state tree is the Sal, or Sarai.

The north of the state lies on the edge of the great Indo-Gangetic plain. The Rihand River, a tributary of the Ganges, drains this area. The eastern end of the Satpura Range and the western edge of the Chota Nagpur Plateau form an east-west belt of hills that divide the Mahanadi River basin from the Indo-Gangetic plain.

The central part of the state lies in the fertile upper basin of the Mahanadi and its tributaries, with extensive rice cultivation. The upper Mahanadi basin is separated from the upper Narmada basin to the west by the Maikal Hills (part of the Satpuras), and from the plains of Orissa to the east by ranges of hills. The southern part of the state lies on the Deccan plateau, in the watershed of the Godavari River, and its tributary the Indravati River.

The Mahanadi is the chief river of the state. The other main rivers are Hasdo (a tributary of Mahanadi), Rihand, Indravati, Jonk, Arpa, and Shivnath. It is situated in the east of Madhya Pradesh.

Climate[link]

The climate of Chhattisgarh is mainly tropical. It is hot and humid because of its proximity to the Tropic of Cancer and is completely dependent on the monsoons for rains.

Summer in Chhattisgarh is from April to June and temperatures can reach 40°C (100°F). The monsoon season is from late June to October and is a welcome respite from the heat. Chhattisgarh receives an average of 1,292 millimetres (50.9 in) of rain. Winter is from November to January, and is a good time to visit. Winters are pleasant with low temperatures and lesser humidity.^[6]

Temperature[link]

The temperature varies between 30 and 47 °C (86 and 117 °F) in summer and between 5 and 25 °C (41 and 77 °F) during winter. However, extremes in temperature can be obsevered with scales falling to less than 0°C to 49°C.^{[citation needed]}

Transport[link]

Road, rail and air connectivity from and to Chhattisgarh can be seen from the official website of the Chhattisgarh government.

Roads[link]

Chhattisgarh has an excellent road network. All district headquarters, tehsils and development blocks are connected with good all-weather roads.

Road network in and around Chhattisgarh can be seen from the map of the area.

National highways: The 11 national highways passing through Chhattisgarh together constitute 2,184 km of roads in the state.^[7][8]

The state highways and major district roads account for another 8,031 km.

In 2008-09, 2,811 km of roads and 68 bridges were constructed. As of 2008-09, the total road length in the state was 45,988 km.

The National Highway 6 (Mumbai to Kolkata) passes through the state. The state also hosts National Highway 43, which starts from Raipur and goes up to Vishakhapatnam. National Highway 16 from Hyderabad ends at Bhopalpatnam in Dantewada district. National Highway 78 From Katni (MP) ends at Gumla (Jharkhand) pass through Koria, Surajpur, Sarguja, Jashpur District. The state has 11 National Highways (2,225 kilometres).

Rail network[link]

The rail network in Chhattisgarh is centered around Bilaspur, which is zonal headquarters of South East Central Railway of Indian Railways. The other main railway junction is Raipur, followed by Durg Junction, which is also a starting point of many long distance trains. These three junctions are well-connected to the major cities of India.

The details of various trains crossing Raipur, the capital city of Chhattisgarh, their frequency and their timings are available at Indian Railways website.

Air[link]

The air infrastructure is minor. The sole commercially operating airport is in Raipur. Of late, Raipur has shown an upsurge in passenger traffic; it has links to top cities of the country, i.e. Delhi (five flights per day), Mumbai (three flights), Kolkata (three), Bhopal (one), and Indore (one). It is also connected to Jaipur, Nagpur, Bhubaneshwar, Ahmedabad, Gwalior, Chandigarh, Hyderabad and Bangalore.

Airports

Other airstrips

• Nandini Airport, Bhilai
• Baikunth Airstrip, Baikunth
• Kondatarai Airstrip, Raigarh
• JSPL’s Airstrip, Raigarh
• Darima Airstrip, Ambikapur
• Korba Airstrip, Korba
• Agdih Airstrip, Jashpur
• Dondi Airstrip, Dondi, Durg

Some new airstrips have been proposed for more connectivity:

History[link]

Ancient and medieval history[link]

In ancient times, this region was known as Dakshin-Kausal. This also finds mention in Ramayana and Mahabharata. Between the sixth and twelfth centuries, Sarabhpurias, Panduavanshi, Somvanshi, Kalchuri, and Nagvanshi rulers dominated this region. Kalchuris ruled in Chhattisgarh from 980 to 1741 AD.

Modern history[link]

The area constituting the new state merged into Madhya Pradesh on November 1, 1956, under the States Re-organization Act, and remained a part of that state for exactly 44 years. Prior to its becoming a part of the new state of Madhya Pradesh, the region was part of old Madhya Pradesh State, with its capital at Nagpur. Prior to that, the region was part of the Central Provinces and Berar province (CP and Berar) under the British rule. Some areas constituting the Chhattisgarh state were princely states under the British rule, but later on were merged into Madhya Pradesh.^[9]

Chhattisgarh was under Maratha rule (Bhonsales of Nagpur) from 1741 to 1845 AD. It came under British rule from 1845 to 1947. Raipur gained prominence over the of capital Ratanpur with the advent of the British in 1845. In 1905, the Sambalpur district was transferred to Orissa and the estates of Sarguja were transferred from Bengal to Chhattisgarh.

Separation of Chhattisgarh[link]

The present state of Chhattisgarh was carved out of Madhya Pradesh on November 1, 2000.

The demand for a separate state was first raised in the 1920s. Similar demands kept cropping up at regular intervals; however, a well-organized movement was never launched. Several all-party platforms were formed, and they usually resolved around petitions, public meetings, seminars, rallies and bandhs.^[10]

A demand for separate Chhattisgarh was raised in 1924 by the Raipur Congress unit, and also discussed in the Annual Session of the Indian Congress at Tripuri. A discussion also took place of forming a Regional Congress organization for Chhattisgarh. When the State Reorganisation Commission was set up in 1954, the demand for a separate Chhattisgarh was put forward, but was not accepted. In 1955, a demand for a separate state was raised in the Nagpur assembly of the then state of Madhya Bharat.^[10]

The 1990s saw more activity for a demand for the new state, such as the formation of a state-wide political forum, especially the Chhattisgarh Rajya Nirman Manch. Chandulal Chadrakar led this forum, several successful region-wide Bandhs and rallies were organized under the banner of the forum, all of which were supported by major political parties, including the Indian National Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party.^[10]

The new National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government sent the redrafted Separate Chhattisgarh Bill for the approval of the Madhya Pradesh Assembly, where it was once again unanimously approved, and then it was tabled in the Lok Sabha. This bill for a separate Chhattisgarh was passed in the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha, paving the way for the creation of a separate state of Chhattisgarh. The President of India gave his consent to the Madhya Pradesh Reorganisation Act 2000 on August 25, 2000. The Government of India subsequently set November 1, 2000, as the day the state of Madhya Pradesh would be divided into Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh.^[10]

Government and administration[link]

The State Legislative assembly is composed of 90 Members of the Legislative Assembly. There are 11 members to the Lok Sabha from Chhattisgarh. The Rajya Sabha has five members from the state.

Districts[link]

Chattisgarh state consists 27 districts:^{[11][12][13][14][15]}

Bastar Division:

• Bijapur
• Sukma
• Dantewada (Dakshin Bastar)
• Bastar (Jagdalpur)
• Kondagaon
• Narayanpur
• Kanker (Uttar Bastar)

Durg Division:

• Kawardha (Kawardha)
• Rajnandgaon
• Balod
• Durg
• Bemetara

Raipur Division:

• Dhamtari
• Gariyaband
• Raipur
• Baloda Bazar
• Mahasamund

Bilaspur Division:

• Bilaspur
• Mungeli
• Korba
• Janjgir
• Raigarh

Surguja Division:

• Korea
• Surajpur
• Surguja (Ambikapur)
• Balrampur
• Jashpur

Municipal corporations[link]

• Ambikapur
• Bhilai
• Bhatapara
• Bilaspur
• Chirmiri
• Durg
• Jagdalpur
• Janjgir
• Korba
• Raigarh
• Raipur
• Rajnandgaon

[edit] Human Development Indicators (HDIs)^[16]

HDI Value

Chhattisgarh with an HDI value of 0.358 has the dubious distinction of being an Indian state with the lowest HDI Value. The national average HDI Value is 0.467 according to 2011 Indian NHDR report.

Standard of living

Chhattisgarh has one of the lowest standard of living in India as per the Income Index (0.127) along side the states like Assam, Bihar, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Orissa, and Uttar Pradesh. These states (Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Orissa, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, and Uttarakhand) have incomes below the national average, with Bihar having the lowest income per capita.

These poorer states, despite low absolute incomes, have witnessed high Net State Domestic Product (NSDP) growth rates (especially Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Orissa, and Uttarakhand which had growth rates above 10 per cent per annum) during the Tenth Five Year Plan period (2002–7).

Education Index

Chhattisgarh has an Education Index of 0.526 according to 2011 NHDR which is higher than that of states like Bihar, Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan who are below the 0.5 mark. Though, it is lower than the national average of 0.563.

With respect to literacy, the state fared just below the national average. The recent estimates from Census (2011) also depict a similar picture with the literacy rate of 71 per cent (81.4% Males & 60.5% Females), which is close to the all India literacy rate of 74 per cent.

According to NSS (2007–8), the literacy rate for STs and SCs was better than the corresponding national average, and this is a positive sign.

Among the marginalized groups, STs are at the bottom of the rankings, further emphasizing the lack of social development in the state. Bastar and Dantewada in south Chhattisgarh are the most illiterate districts and the drop out ratio is the highest among all the districts. The reason for this is the extreme poverty in rural areas.

Health Index

Health Index of Chhattisgarh is less than 0.49, one of the lowest in the country. The Health Index is defined in terms of life expectancy at birth since a higher life expectancy at birth reflects better health outcomes for an individual.

Despite different health related schemes and programmes, the health indicators such as percentage of women with BMI<18.5, Under Five Mortality Rate, and underweight children are poor. This may be due to the difficulty in accessing the remote areas in the state. The prevalence of female malnutrition in Chhattisgarh is higher than the national average—half of the ST females are malnourished. The performance of SCs is a little better than the corresponding national and state average. The Under Five Mortality Rate among STs is significantly higher than the national average. The percentage of under-weight children in Chhattisgarh is also higher than the national average, further underlining the appalling health condition of the state’s population.

Net State Domestic Product (NSDP)

Chhattisgarh is one of the emerging states with relatively high growth rates of NSDP (8.2% vs 7.1% All India over 2002-2008) and per capita NSDP(6.2% vs 5.4% All India over 2002-2008). The growth rates of the said parameters are above the national averages, and thus it appears that Chhattisgarh is catching up with other states in this respect. However, Chhattisgarh still has very low levels of per capita income as compared to the other states.

Urbanisation

The demographic profile shows that about 80 per cent of the total population lived in rural areas.

Sex Ratio

The sex ratio in the state is one of the best in India with 991 females per 1,000 males, as is the child sex-ratio with 964 females per 1,000 males (Census 2011).

Fertility Rate

Chhattisgarh has a fairly high fertility rate (3.1) as compared to All India (2.6) and the replacement rate (2.1). Chhattisgarh has rural fertility rate of 3.2 and urban fertility rate of 2.1.

ST Population

With the exception of the hilly states of the north-east, Chhattisgarh has one of highest shares of Scheduled Tribe (ST) population within a state, accounting for about 10 per cent of the STs in India. Scheduled Castes and STs together constitute more than 50 per cent of the state’s population. The tribals of Chhattisgarh are an important part of the population and mainly inhabit the dense forests of Bastar and other districts of south Chhattisgarh.

Poverty

The incidence of poverty in Chhattisgarh is very high but is better than Orissa and Bihar. The estimated poverty ratio in 2004–5 based on uniform reference period consumption was around 50 per cent, which is approximately double the all India level. The incidence of poverty in the rural and urban areas is almost the same.

More than half of the rural STs and urban SCs are poor. In general, the proportion of poor SC and ST households in the state is higher than the state average and their community’s respective national averages (except for rural SC households). Given that more than 50 per cent of the state’s population comprises STs and SCs, the high incidence of income poverty among them is a matter of serious concern in the state.

This indicates that the good economic performance in recent years has not percolated to this socially deprived group, which is reflected in their poor performance in human development indicators.

Access to improved drinking water sources

In terms of access to improved drinking water sources, at the aggregate level, Chhattisgarh fared better than the national average, and the SCs of the state performed better than the corresponding national average. Scheduled Tribes are marginally below the state average, but still better than the STs at the all India level.

The proportion of households with access to improved sources of drinking water in 2008–9 was 91 per cent. This proportion was over 90 per cent even in states like Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, and Uttar Pradesh. This was largely because these states had over 70 per cent of their households accessing tube wells/ handpumps as sources of drinking water.

Sanitation

Sanitation facilities in the state are abysmally low with only about 27 per cent having toilet facilities, which is far below the all-India average of 44%.^[17][18] The STs are the most deprived section in this regard with only 18 per cent of the ST households having toilet facilities, which is lower than the all India average for STs. The SCs also have a lower proportion of households with toilet facilities as compared to the all India average.

States with low sanitation coverage in 2001 that improved coverage by four to 10 percentage points are Chhattisgarh, Orissa, Bihar, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh. Himachal Pradesh, Daman and Diu, Haryana, Sikkim, Punjab, Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Goa and Uttarakhand registered increased coverage by more than 20 percentage points.^[17]

Tele-density

Across states, it has been found that teledensity was below 10 per cent in 2010 for Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand, reflecting a lack of access to telephones in these relatively poorer states. On the other hand, for states like Delhi and Himachal Pradesh and metropolitan cities like Kolkata, Mumbai, and Chennai, teledensity was over 100 per cent in 2010 implying that individuals have more than one telephone connection.

Road Density

The road length per 100 square kilometres was less than the national average of 81 kilometres per 100 square kilometres in Chhattisgarh. The rural areas of Chhattisgarh failed to meet their targets of constructing new roads under PMGSY.

Demographics[link]

Chhattisgarh is primarily a rural state with only 20% of population residing in urban areas. According to the report from the government of India,^[20] at least 34% are Scheduled Tribes, 12% are Scheduled Castes and over 50% belong to official list of Other Backward Castes. Plain area is numerically dominated by castes such as Teli, Satnami and Kurmi; while forest area is mainly occupied by tribes such as Gond, Halba and Kamar/Bujia and Oraon.

Religion[link]

There were 20.8 million people in Chhattisgarh as per the census 2001 of which 94.7% were Hindu, 2% Muslim and 1.9% Christian.^[21]

Language[link]

Official language of the state is Hindi and used by non-rural population of the state. Chhattisgarhi, a dialect of Hindi language (or a language in its own right), is spoken and understood by the majority of people in Chhattisgarh. Telugu is also spoken in the state.

Chhattisgarhi was known as "Khaltahi" to surrounding hill-people and as "Laria" to Sambalpuri and Oriya speakers. Kosali and Oriya are also spoken by a lot of people.

Adivasi woman and child, Chhattisgarh.

Status of women[link]

Chhattisgarh has a high female-male sex ratio (991)^[22] ranking at 5th position among other states of India. Although this ratio is small compared to other states, it is unique in India because of the size of Chhattisharh — the 10th largest state in India.

The gender ratio (number females per 1000 males) has been steadily declining over 20th century in Chhattisgarh. But it is conspicuous that Chhattisgarh always had a better female-to-male ratio compared with national average.

Probably, such social composition also results in some customs and cultural practices that seem unique to Chhattisgarh: The regional variants are common in India's diverse cultural pattern.

Rural women, although poor, are independent, better organized, socially outspoken.^[23] According to another local custom, women can choose to terminate a marriage relationship through a custom called chudi pahanana, if she desires. Most of the old temples and shrines here are related to 'women power' (e.g., Shabari, Mahamaya, Danteshwari) and the existence of these temples gives insight into historical and current social fabric of this state. However, a mention of these progressive local customs in no way suggests that the ideology of female subservience does not exist in Chhattisgarh. On the contrary, the male authority and dominance is seen quite clearly in the social and cultural life.

Detailed information on aspects of women's status in Chhattisgarh can be found in 'A situational analysis of women and girls in Chhattisgarh' prepared in 2004 by the National Commission of Women, a statutory body belonging to government of India.

Malus Usuo of Tonhi (witchcraft)[link]

In order to bring about social reforms and with a view to discourage undesirable social practices, Chhattisgarh government has enacted the Chhattisgarh Tonhi atyachar [Niwaran] Act, 2005 against witchery.^[24]

Much has be done on the hand of law enforcement and judicial authorities to protect women in this regard, bringing such persecution to an end.^[25]

Some sections of tribal populace of Chhattisgarh state believe in witchcraft.^[25] Women are believed to have access to supernatural forces and are accused of being witches (tonhi) often to settle personal scores. They are barbarically persecuted, particularly older women, widows, women with deformities or with abnormal facial features.

As of 2010, they are still hounded out of villages on the basis of flimsy accusations by male village sorcerers paid to do so by villagers with personal agendas, such as property and goods acquisition.^[25] According to National Geographic Channel’s investigations, those accused are fortunate if they are only verbally bullied and shunned or exiled from their village. Humiliations are commonplace, such as being forced to eat human excreta and, in recent years, 2,500 women accused of witchcraft were murdered by stoning, hanging and beheading by neighbours.

Culture[link]

The state hosts religious sects including Satnami Panth, Kabirpanth, Ramnami Samaj, and others. Champaran (Chhattisgarh) is a small town with religious significance as the birth place of the Saint Vallabhacharya, increasingly important as a pilgrimage site for the Gujarati community.

The Oriya culture is prominent in the eastern parts of Chhattisgarh bordering Orissa.

Crafts[link]

Chattisgarh is known for "Kosa silk" and "lost wax art". Besides saris and salwar suits, the fabric is used to create lehengas, stoles, shawls and menswear including jackets, shirts, achkans and sherwanis. International sculptor Sushil Sakhuja's Dhokra Nandi is famous and available at government's Shabari handicrafts emporium, Raipur.

Dance[link]

Panthi, Rawat Nacha, Karma, Pandwani and Soowa are indigenous dance styles of Chhattisgarh.

Panthi[link]

Panthi, the folk dance of the Satnami community, has religious overtones. Panthi is performed on Maghi Purnima, the anniversary of the birth of Guru Ghasidas. The dancers dance around a jaitkhamb set up for the occasion, to songs eulogizing their spiritual head. The songs reflect a view of Nirvana, conveying the spirit of their guru's renunciation and the teachings of saint poets like Kabir, Ramdas and Dadu. Dancers with bent torsos and swinging arms dance, carried away by their devotion. As the rhythm quickens, they perform acrobatics and form human pyramids.^[26]

Pandwani[link]

Pandavani is a folk ballad form performed predominantly in Chhattisgarh. It depicts the story of the Pandavas, the leading characters in the epic Mahabharata. The artists in the Pandavani narration consist of a lead artist and some supporting singers and musicians. There are two styles of narration in Pandavani, Vedamati and Kapalik. In the Vedamati style the lead artist narrates in a simple manner by sitting on the floor throughout the performance. The Kaplik style is livelier, where the narrator actually enacts the scenes and characters.^[27]

Rawat Nacha[link]

Raut Nacha, the folk dance of cowherds, is a traditional dance] of Yaduvanshis (clan of Yadu) as symbol of worship to Krishna at the time of Dev Uthani Ekadashi (day of awakening of the gods after a brief rest) which is the 11th day after Diwali according to the Hindu calendar. The dance closely resembles Krishna's dance with the gopis (milkmaids).^[28][29]

Soowa Nacha[link]

Soowa or Suwa tribal dance in Chhattisgarh is also known as Parrot Dance. It is a symbolic form of dancing related to worship. Dancers keep a parrot in a bamboo- pot and form a circle around it. Then performers sing and dance, moving around it with clapping. This is one of the main dance form of tribal women of Chhattisgarh.^[30]

In Bilaspur city, the Rawat Nach Mahotsav folk dance festival is organized annually since 1978. Tens of hundreds of Rawat dancers from remote areas participate.^[31]

Karma[link]

Tribal groups like Gonds, the Baigas and the Oraons in Chattisgarh have Karma dance as part of their culture. Both men and women arrange themselves in two rows and follow the rhythmic steps, directed by the singer group. The Karma tribal dance marks the end of the rainy season and the advent of spring season.^[32][33]

Music[link]

Theatre[link]

Ramgarh is First Open Theatre of the World Situated at Raigarh. Theater is known as Gammat in Chhattisgarh. Pandavani is one of the lyrical forms of this theater. Several acclaimed plays of Habib Tanvir, such as Charandas Chor, are variations of Chhattisgarhi theater. Play Faad do played by Dhriti pati sarkar are also notable and heavily use drama .

Traditional food[link]

The State of Chhattisgarh is known as the rice bowl of Central India and has a rich tradition of food culture.

Most of the traditional and tribe foods are made of rice and rice flour, curd (number of vegetable kadis) and a variety of green leaves like lal bhaji, chech bhaji, kohda, and bohar bhaji. Badi and Bijori are optional food categories; Gulgula, pidiya, dhoodh fara, balooshahi, khurmi fall in sweet categories.

The tribal and village population enjoys delicacy brew made of small, creamy white fruit of a local tree called Mahuwa.

Economy[link]

Chhattisgarh's gross state domestic product for 2010 is estimated at Rs 60,079 Crore in current prices. The economy of Chhattisgarh has grown rapidly in recent years with a growth rate of 11.49 per cent in GDP for 2009–2010.^[34] Chhattisgarh’s success factors in achieving high growth rate are growth in agriculture and industrial production.

Agriculture[link]

Agriculture is counted as the chief economic occupation of the state. According to a government estimate, net sown area of the state is 4.828 million hectares, and the gross sown area is 5.788 million hectares.^[35] Horticulture and animal husbandry also engage a major share of the total population of the state.^[36] About 80% of the population of the state is rural and the main livelihood of the villagers is agriculture and agriculture-based small industry.

The majority of the farmers are still practicing the traditional methods of cultivation, resulting in low growth rates and productivity. The farmers have to be made aware for adoption of modern technologies suitable to their holdings. Providing adequate knowledge to the farmers is essential for better implementation of the agricultural development plans and to improve the productivity.^[37]

Considering this and a very limited irrigated area, the productivity of not only rice but also other crops is low, hence the farmers are unable to obtain economic benefits from agriculture and it has remained as subsistence agriculture till now.

Agricultural products[link]

The main crops are rice, maize, kodo-kutki and other small millets, and pulses (tuar and kulthi); oilseeds, such as groundnuts (peanuts), soybeans and sunflowers, are also grown. In the mid-1990s, most of Chhattisgarh was still a monocrop belt. Only one-fourth to one-fifth of the sown area was double-cropped. When a very substantial portion of the population is dependent on agriculture, a situation where nearly 80% of a state's area is covered only by one crop, immediate attention to turn them into double crop areas is needed. Also, very few cash crops are grown in Chhattisgarh, so there is a need to diversify the agriculture produce towards oilseeds and other cash crops. Chhattisgarh is also called the "rice bowl of central India".^[35] vc

Irrigation[link]

In Chhattisgarh, rice, the main crop, is grown on about 77% of the net sown area. Only about 20% of the area is under irrigation; the rest depends on rain. Of the three agroclimatic zones, about 73% of the Chhattisgarh plains, 97% of the Bastar plateau and 95%of the northern hills are rainfed. The irrigated area available for double cropping is only 87,000 ha in Chhattisgarh plains and 2300 ha in Bastar plateau and northern hills. Due to this, the productivity of rice and other crops is low, hence the farmers are unable to obtain economic benefits from agriculture and it has remained as subsistence agriculture till now, though agriculture is the main occupation of more than 80% of the population.^[37]

In Chhattisgarh region about 22% of net cropped area was under irrigation as compared to 36.5% in Madhya Pradesh in 1998-99, where as the average national irrigation was about 40%. The irrigation is characterized by a high order of variability ranging from 1.6% in Bastar to 75.0% in Dhamtari. Based on an average growth trend in irrigated area, about 0.43% additional area is brought under irrigation every year as compared to 1.89% in Madhya Pradesh and 1.0% in the country as a whole. Thus, irrigation has been growing at a very low rate in Chhattisgarh and the pace of irrigation is so slow, it would take about 122 years to reach the 75% level of net irrigated area in Chhattisgarh at the present rate of growth.^[37]

Chhattisgarh has a limited irrigation system, with dams and canals on some rivers. Average rainfall in the state is around 1400 mm and the entire state falls under the rice agroclimatic zone. Large variation in the yearly rainfall directly affects the main crop, rice. Irrigation is the prime need of the state for its overall development and therefore the state government has given top priority to development of irrigation potential.^[35]

A total of fur major, 33 medium and 2199 minor irrigation projects have been completed, and five major, 9 medium and 312 minor projects are under construction, as of 31 March 2006.

Industrial sector[link]

Power sector[link]

Chhattisgarh is one of the few states of India where the power sector is effectively developed. Based on the current production of surplus electric power, the position of the State is comfortable and profitable. The Chhattisgarh State Electricity Board (CSEB) is in a strong position to meet the electricity requirement of the new state and is in good financial health. Chhattisgarh provides electricity to several other states because of surplus production, and its power hubs are Korba and Bilaspur.

In Chhattisgarh, NTPC has an installed thermal capacity of 2100 MW at Sipat, Bilaspur, while CSEB's units have a thermal capacity of 1240 MW and hydel capacity of 130 MW. Apart from NTPC and CSEB, there are a number of private generation units of large and small capacity. The state government has pursued a liberal policy with regard to captive generation which has resulted in a number of private players coming up.^[38]

As per a study made by the Power Finance Corporation Ltd. New Delhi, the state has potential of 61000 MW of additional thermal power in terms of availability of coal for more than 100 years and more than 2500 MW hydral capacity. To tap this vast potential, substantial additions to the existing generation capacity are already under way.^[38]

Steel sector[link]

The steel industry is one of the biggest heavy industries of Chhattisgarh. Bhilai Steel Plant, Bhilai operated by SAIL, with a capacity of 5.4 million tonnes per year, is regarded as a significant growth indicator of the state. More than 100 steel rolling mills, 90 sponge iron plants and ferro-alloy units are in Chhattisgarh. Along with Bhilai, today Raipur, Bilaspur, Korba and Raigarh have become the steel hub of Chhattisgarh. Today, Raipur has become the center of the steel sector, the biggest market for steel in India.^[39]

Aluminium sector[link]

The aluminium industry of Chhattisgarh consists of Bharat Aluminum Company Limited, which has a capacity of around one million tonnes each year.^[39]

Natural resources[link]

Forest[link]

Forests occupy 41.33% of the area (as per the latest report by the Indian Forest Service), and the rich forest resources include wood, tendu leaves, honey and lac.

Mineral deposits[link]

Chhattisgarh is also rich in minerals. It produces 20% of the country's cement. It ranks first in coal production and 2nd in reserves, third in iron ore production, and first in tin production. Limestone, dolomite, and bauxite are abundant. It is the only tin-ore producing state in the country. Other minerals include Corandum, garnet, quartz, marble, alexandrite and diamonds.

Information and technologies[link]

In recent years, Chhattisgarh is also getting exposure in information technologty (IT) projects and consultancy. Its government is also promoting IT, and has set up a body to take care of the IT solutions. The body, known as CHIPS, is providing large IT projects, such as Choice, Swan, etc.

Major companies[link]

Major companies with a presence in the state include:

• Metal: Bhilai Steel Plant, Jindal Steel and Power, BALCO
• Oil: Indian Oil
• Engineering: Simplex Casting Ltd
• Real estate: Chouhan Housing Pvt Ltd
• Mining: NMDC, SECL
• Power : NTPC

[edit] Exports^[40]

Chhattisgarh’s total exports were US$ 353.3 million in 2009-10. Nearly 75 per cent of exports comes from Bhilai and the remaining from Urla, Bhanpuri and Sirgitti. The major exports products include steel, handicrafts, handlooms, blended yarn, food and agri-products, iron, aluminium, cement, minerals and engineering products. CSIDC (Chhattisgarh State Industrial Development Corporation Limited) is the nodal agency of the Government of Chhattisgarh for export promotion in the state.

Issues with development and insurgency[link]

It is one of the Red Corridor states.

Chhattisgarh state is rich in unused timber and mineral resources. There are disagreements between indigenous peoples and the national government over the use of these resources.

Also, an ongoing insurgency between Maoists and the central Government of India has produced much bloodshed. The controversy surrounding the arrest of Dr Binayak Sen is related to the insurgency. Maoist insurgency has been main source of instability.

Maoist rebels set conditions to free official April 2012

The rebels abducted Alex Paul Menon after killing his two guards in Sukma district on Saturday afternoon. 21st April 2012

Mr Menon was holding a meeting with local tribal people when the incident happened. Maoist rebels have a strong presence in Chhattisgarh and neighbouring Orissa. The rebels have said their demands of releasing some of the their top cadres from prison and withdrawing security forces from the restive Bastar region of Chhattisgarh will have to be met by Wednesday in exchange for Mr Menon.

In a pre-recorded statement issued to the BBC, Vijay, identified as secretary of the South Bastar divisional committee of the CPI (Maoist), alleged that excesses were being committed against tribal people by security forces in the name of counter insurgency operations.

Mr Menon, an officer of the Indian Administrative Service, is the senior-most official - district magistrate - of Sukma district, which is located in the Bastar region.

Appeal Authorities said Mr Menon had gone to Manjhipara village to attend a meeting of local tribal villagers when Maoist insurgents surrounded the area and opened fire.

District official, SP Vaidya, who was present at the spot, told the BBC by telephone that even as Mr Menon was interacting with the villagers, the insurgents first targeted his bodyguard.

"Then they asked who the district magistrate was. Mr Menon came forward and told them that he was the person they were looking for. Later, they forced him to accompany them into the deep woods," Mr Vaidya said.

Mr Menon's wife Asha Menon has appealed to the rebels to release her husband on "humanitarian grounds".

She told the BBC that Mr Menon was suffering from asthma and needed medical care.

Saturday's incident came barely 24 hours after another district magistrate and a local legislator came under attack by rebels who triggered off a powerful landmine blast in nearby Bijapur.

While district magistrate Rajat Kumar and politician Mahesh Ghaghra escaped unhurt, a vehicle behind them was ripped apart by the blast.

Two leaders of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the state were killed in the incident.

In neighbouring Orissa state, legislator Jhina Hikaka, who was seized on 23 March by another group of Maoists, remains in custody.

Earlier this month Italian hostage Paolo Bosusco was freed by rebels in Orissa after nearly a month in captivity.

Mr Bosusco, 54, was abducted on 14 March, along with fellow Italian Claudio Colangelo, 61, while trekking in a tribal area of Orissa state. Mr Colangelo was released on 25 March.

Tourism[link]

Chhattisgarh, situated in the heart of India, is endowed with a rich cultural heritage and attractive natural diversity. The state is full of ancient monuments, rare wildlife, exquisitely carved temples, Buddhist sites, palaces, water falls, caves, rock paintings and hill plateaus. Most of these sites are untouched and unexplored, and offer a unique and alternate experience to tourists, compared to traditional destinations which have become overcrowded. For tourists who are tired of the crowds at major destinations will like the Bastar district, with its unique cultural and ecological identity. The green state of Chhattisgarh has 41.33% of its area under forests, and is one of the richest bio-diversity areas in the country.

Panoramic view of Chitrakot Falls, Jagdalpur

Waterfalls[link]

Beautiful waterfalls in Chhattisgarh are Akuri Nala, Amrit Dhara waterfall, Gavar Ghat waterfall, Ramdaha waterfall in Koriya district, Tiger point waterfall at Mainpat in Sarguja district and Chitrakot waterfall, Tirathgarh waterfall in Bastar district.

Hot spring[link]

Known as Taat Pani(taat=तात=hot, pani= पानी=water) The Taat Pani hot spring (taat=तात=hot, pani=पानी=water) flows in Sarguja district. This hot spring flows continuously through the year. It is reputed to have medicinal properties.

Caves[link]

Gadiya mountain in Kanker district, Kutumsar cave and Kailash Gufa in Bastar district, Ramgarh and Sita Bengra in Sarguja district and Singhanpur cave in Raigarh district with pre-historic paintings are very famous. 6546+

National parks and wildlife sanctuary[link]

Achanakmar Wildlife Sanctuary in Bilaspur district, Gamarda Reserve forest at Sarangarh in Raigarh district, Indravati National Park and Kanger valley national park in Bastar district and Barnawapara Wildlife Sanctuary in Mahasamund district are good places for eco-tourism.

Archaeological sites[link]

Archaeological sites worth seeing are Barsoor in Dantewada district, Malhar and Ratanpur in Bilaspur district, Sirpur in Mahasamund district and Surguja in Surguja district. A small picnic spot with waterfall on the extremity of Satpura ranga along with a stone inscription of circa 1st century CE is found at Damau dhara in Janjgir-Champa district.

Temples[link]

Famous and ancient temples in Chhattisgarh are Bhoramdeo temple near Kawardha in Kabirdham district, Rajivlochan temple at Rajim and Champaran in Raipur district, Chandrahasini Devi temple at Chandrapur, Vishnu temple at Janjgir, Damudhara (Rishab Tirth) and Sivarinarayana Laxminarayana temple in Janjgir-Champa district, Bambleshwari Temple at Dongrigarh in Rajnandgaon district, Danteshwari Temple in Dantewada district, Deorani-Jethani temple at Tala gram and Mahamaya temple at Ratanpur in Bilaspur district, Laxman temple at Sirpur in Mahasamund district, Uwasaggaharam Parshwa Teerth at Nagpura in Durg district, Pali with Lord Shiva temple and Kharod with Lakshmaneswar temple.

Giraudhpuri is a religious place for the Satnamis. They are the follower of Satnam Panth.

Sirpur is proposed world heritage site and Malhar are of historical significance, as they were visited by Xuanzang, the Chinese historian.

Dams[link]

Hasdev Bango Dam ( 105 KM from Bilaspur), Khudiya dam, Lormi and Khutaghat dam, Ratanpur. Gangrel Dam Dhamtari

Education[link]

According to the census of 2011, Chhattisgarh's literacy, the most basic indicator of education was at 71.04 percent. Female literacy is at 60.59 percent.

Absolute literates and literacy rate[link]

Data from Census of India,2011.^[41]

% Chatinaya || 0.85 || 99.59

Universities[link]

Bastar Vishwavidyalaya, is one of the new Univerities erected at the same time as Sarguja university. Bastar university is bifurcated from Pt. Ravishankar Shukla University, Raipur. Kindly add the details in your reference.

Premier institutes in Chattisgarh[link]

There are four premier Professional Institutes in the state of Chattisgarh

Indian Institute of Management Raipur (IIM RP)[link]

The Indian Institute of Management Raipur,(Hindi: भारतीय प्रबंध संस्थान, रायपुर ) is a Premium Business School in the state of Chhattisgarh. It is the tenth Indian Institute of Management in the country.^[42] The first batch of Post Graduate Programme of the institute was inaugurated by Dr Raman Singh, Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh on October 11, 2010.

National Institute of Technology[link]

National Institute of Technology, Raipur is an important technical university located in Raipur, Chhattisgarh. Originally founded in 1956 as Govt. College of Mining & Metallurgy, institute is one of the oldest of its kind in India. Currently it is one of the 20 National Institutes of Technology, which have been accorded Institute of National Importance status by the NIT Act of the Indian Government.

The institute offers 2 undergraduate (B.Tech. and B.Arch.) and 2 post graduate programmes M.Tech. and M.C.A. in 11 engineering disciplines and architecture.

All India Institute of Medical Science[link]

Capital Raipur is all set to get a new All India Institute of Medical Sciences in next two years. It will be a huge leap in availability of top notch Medical education and remarkable milestone in the availability of health services in Chhattisgarh.^[43]

Hidayatullah National Law University[link]

It is one of the esteemed national law schools established in India. [1] It was established as a centre for legal excellence by the Government of Chhattisgarh under the Hidayatullah National University of Law, Chattisgarh, Act (Act No.10 of 2003. HNLU being one of the most prestigious centres for legal education in India offers innumerable opportunities for the students to interact with academicians, lawyers, Judges, firms, banking and other related institutions. The University offers B.A. L.L.B. (Hons.). L.L.M., and Ph. D. degrees. It is a residential University and is sixth in the series of National Law Schools in India.

Other universities[link]

Pandit Ravishankar Shukla University[link]

Pandit Ravishankar Shukla University(RSU) is Chhattisgarh's largest and one of the oldest institution of higher education, founded in 1964. There are 5000 students enrolled for variety of courses offered by the departments who are steered under the guidance of more than 100 faculty members. Jurisdiction of RSU covers entire central and southern part of Chhattisgarh. There are 180 educational institutions affiliated to the University. The University plays a major role in the educational, cultural and economic life of the region.^[44]

Pandit Sundarlal Sharma (Open) University Chhattisgarh, Bilaspur[link]

Pandit Sundarlal Sharma (Open) University (PSSOU) Chhattisgarh, Bilaspur, was established by the Chhattisgarh legislature, and was granted the assent of the state's governor on 20 January 2005. Dr. T.D. Sharma joined this university as the first Vice-Chancellor on 2 March 2005, while Dr. Sharad Kumar Vajpai took office as Registrar on 15 March 2005.^[45]

Sarguja University[link]

Sarguja Vishwavidyalaya is established by and incorporated by Chhattisgarh Vishwavidyalaya Adhiniyam No. 18 of 2008. The territorial jurisdiction of the University is the entire Sarguja division comprising revenue districts of Korea, Sarguja and Jaspur. It started functioning from September 2, 2008. Formerly a university campus was started with the permission of State Higher Education Department by the Guru Ghasidas University Bilaspur with 02 diploma courses i.e. Diploma in Pharmacy (30 Students) and Post Graduate Diploma in Computer Application (30 Students) in the year 2005 with a hope that it may be upgraded as university by the Government as soon as necessary infrastructures are developed, this resulted true in 2008 the state government allotted 220 acres of land nearby Ambikapur Ramanujganj Road just 10 kilometers away from Ambikapur town. Sarguja is a fast growing industrial area already having a large number of small industrial units coming up in the region. The jurisdiction is the nerve centre of the Trade specially in coal mines sector forestry, natural recourse including medicinal trees and so on. The region in its vicinity has a very rich historical and cultural heritage. The first effort of Open Theatre was made in near-by place i.e. Ramgarh. Relics and old temples with statues and building built-up by various dynasties are found in surrounding areas. The whole division is full of natural beauty, flora and fauna, tribal and folk culture. Situated in tribally enriched, socially, economically challenged area of Chhattisgarh State. At present the university is partially residential and fully one, having its jurisdiction spread over within Sarguja revenue division. At present the university is having 42 affiliated colleges offering various courses in the areas of arts, science, commerce, education, law, management, social life science and so on. Ambikapur town is a Municipal Corporation and is well connected with all parts of the country by road and rail also. Recently town is connected with Durg, Raipur, Bilaspur and Anuppur of SECR. /Rly Station is 4 kilometers away from town. Frequent local transport is available for reaching the university. The nearest railway zone and main railway is Bilaspur in SECR. 235 kilometers away. Raipur the capital city of Chhattishgarh 350 kilometers away is the nearest Airport well connected with Delhi, Nagpur, Kolkata etc.^[46]

Guru Ghasidas Central University[link]

Formally known as Guru Ghasidas Vishwavidyalaya, is a Central University located in Bilaspur, established under Central Universities Act 2009, No. 25 of 2009. Formerly called Guru Ghasidas University(GGU), established by an Act of the State Legislative Assembly, was formally inaugurated on June 16, 1983. It covers almost the entire spectrum of the higher education requirements of the local people. It has several University Teaching Department (UTDs) on its campuses and about 125 colleges affiliated to it.^[47]

Chhattisgarh Swami Vivekanand Technical University[link]

Chhattisgarh Swami Vivekanand Technical University (CSVTU) is a public university located in the city of Bhilai, the STEEL CITY. The university was established on 21 January 2005. The University incorporates the purpose of ensuring systematic, efficient and qualitative education in engineering and technological subjects including Architecture and Pharmacy at Research, Postgraduate, Degree and Diploma level.

Dr. C .V. Raman University[link]

Notes[link]

References[link]

• Books on Chhattisgarh
  • ड़ा.संजय अलंग-छत्तीसगढ़ की जनजातियाँ Tribes और जातियाँ Castes (मानसी पब्लीकेशन,दिल्ली 6, ISBN 978-81-89559-32-8)
  • ड़ा.संजय अलंग-छत्तीसगढ़ की पूर्व रियासतें और जमीन्दारियाँ (वैभव प्रकाशन,रायपुर 1, ISBN 81-89244-96-5) http://www.scribd.com/doc/72030961/Dr-Sanjay-Alung-CG-Ki-Riyaste-Jamindariya-Hindi
  • Deshbandhu Publication Division, "सन्दर्भ छत्तीसगढ़"
  • Deshbandhu Publication Division, "छत्तीसगढ़ के तीर्थ और पर्यटन स्थल"
  • Deshbandhu Publication Division, "Chhattisgarh: Beautiful & Bountiful (Study in Biodiversity of Chhattisgarh)"
  • Ramesh Dewangan & Sunil Tuteja, "Chhattisgarh Samagra"
  • C.K. Chandrakar, "Chhattisgarhi Shabadkosh" ....
  • C.K. Chandrakar, "Manak Chhattisgarhi Vyakaran"
  • C.K. Chandrakar, "Chhattisgarhi Muhawara Kosh"
  • Lawrence Babb, "The Divine Hierarchy: Popular Hinduism in Central India"
  • Saurabh Dube, "Untouchable Pasts: Religion, Identity and Power among a Central Indian Community, 1780–1950" (on the Satnamis)
  • Ramdas Lamb, "Rapt in the Name: Ramnamis, Ramnam and Untouchable Religion in Central India"
  • Chad Bauman, "Identifying the Satnam: Hindu Satnamis, Indian Christians, and Dalit Religion in Colonial Chhattisgarh, India (1868–1947) (Ph. D. dissertation, Princeton Theological Seminary, 2005)
• Books by Indologist Prof H. L. Shukla:
  • "List of books by Prof H. L. Shukla"
  • "Chhattisgarh Rediscoverd" on oral history of the state, and
  • "History of the People of Bastar"
• Folktales of Chhattisgarh
• "Tribal History of Central India" by R.K. Sharma and S.K. Tiwari, Other link

http://www.36garhbandhan.com

External links[link]

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	Madhya Pradesh	Uttar Pradesh	Jharkhand
	Maharashtra		Orissa
		Chhattisgarh    East
	Andhra Pradesh

v t e States and territories of India States Andhra Pradesh Arunachal Pradesh Assam Bihar Chhattisgarh Delhi Goa Gujarat Haryana Himachal Pradesh Jammu and Kashmir Jharkhand Karnataka Kerala Madhya Pradesh Maharashtra Manipur Meghalaya Mizoram Nagaland Orissa Punjab Rajasthan Sikkim Tamil Nadu Tripura Uttar Pradesh Uttarakhand West Bengal Union Territories Andaman and Nicobar Islands Chandigarh Dadra and Nagar Haveli National Capital Territory of Delhi Daman and Diu Lakshadweep Pondicherry

Rahul Gandhi
Member of Lok Sabha from Amethi
Incumbent
Assumed office 2004
General Secretary of the Indian National Congress
Incumbent
Assumed office 2007
Chairperson of IYC and NSUI
Incumbent
Assumed office 2007
Personal details
Born	(1970-06-19) 19 June 1970 (age 42) New Delhi, India
Nationality	Indian
Political party	Indian National Congress
Relations	Rajiv Gandhi (father) Sonia Gandhi (mother) Priyanka Vadra (sister)
Residence	New Delhi, India
Alma mater	Rollins College Trinity College, Cambridge
Profession	Member of Parliament
As of 5 June, 2011

Rahul Gandhi ([ˈraːɦʊl ˈɡaːnd̪ʱiː]; born 19 June 1970) is an Indian politician and member of the Parliament of India, representing the Amethi constituency.^[1] Gandhi is the general-secretary of the Indian National Congress.^[2] He is the grandson of Feroze Gandhi and Indira (née Nehru) Gandhi, and fourth-generation scion of the Nehru-Gandhi family.

Early life and career[link]

Rahul Gandhi was born in Delhi on 19 June 1970 ^[3] as the first of the two children of Rajiv Gandhi, who later became the Prime Minister of India and Sonia Gandhi, who later became President of Indian National Congress, and as the grandson of the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. He is also the great-grandson of India's first Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru. Priyanka Vadra is his younger sister.^[4]

Rahul Gandhi attended St. Columba's School, Delhi^[5] before entering The Doon School in Dehradun (Uttarakhand), also his father's alma mater,^[6] from 1981–83. Meanwhile, his father had joined politics and became the Prime Minister on October 31, 1984 when Indira Gandhi was assassinated. Due to the security threats faced by Indira Gandhi's family from Sikh extremists, Rahul Gandhi and his sister, Priyanka were home-schooled since then.^[7] Rahul Gandhi joined St. Stephen's College, Delhi in 1989 for his undergraduate education but moved to Harvard University after he completed the first year examinations.^[8] In 1991, after Rajiv Gandhi was assassinated by LTTE^[9] during an election rally, he shifted to Rollins College due to security concerns and completed his B.A. in 1994.^[10] During this period, he assumed the pseudonym Raul Vinci and his identity was known only to the university officials and security agencies.^[8][11] He further went on to obtain a M.Phil from Trinity College, Cambridge University in 1995.^[12] After graduation, Rahul Gandhi worked at the Monitor Group, a management consulting firm, in London.^[13] In 2002 he was one of the directors of Mumbai-based technology outsourcing firm Backops Services Private Ltd.^[14]

Political career[link]

In March 2004, he announced his entry into politics by announcing that he would contest the May 2004 elections, standing for his father's former constituency of Amethi in Uttar Pradesh in the Lok Sabha, India's lower house of Parliament.^[15] The seat had been held by his mother until she transferred to the neighbouring seat of Rae Bareilly. The Congress had been doing poorly in Uttar Pradesh, holding only 10 of the 80 Lok Sabha seats in the state at the time.^[16] At the time, this move generated surprise among political commentators, who had regarded his sister Priyanka as being the more charismatic and likely to succeed. It generated speculation that the presence of a young member of India's most famous political family would reinvigorate the Congress party's political fortunes among India's youthful population^[17] In his first interview with foreign media, he portrayed himself as a uniter of the country and condemned "divisive" politics in India, saying that he would try to reduce caste and religious tensions.^[15]

He won with a landslide majority, retaining the family stronghold with a margin of over 100,000 as the Congress unexpectedly defeated the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party.^[18] Until 2006 he held no other office.^[19]

Gandhi and his sister, who is married to Robert Vadra, managed their mother's campaign for re-election to Rae Bareilly in 2006, which was won easily with a margin greater than 400,000 votes.^[20]

He was a prominent figure in the Congress campaign for the 2007 Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections; Congress, however, won only 22 seats with 8.53% of votes.^[21]

Rahul Gandhi was appointed a general secretary of the All India Congress Committee on 24 September 2007 in a reshuffle of the party secretariat.^[22] In the same reshuffle, he was also given charge of the Indian Youth Congress and the National Students Union of India.^[23]

In 2008, senior Congress leader Veerappa Moily mentioned “Rahul-as-PM” idea when the PM of India Manmohan Singh was still abroad.^[24]

Youth politics[link]

In his attempt to prove himself as a youth leader in November 2008 he held interviews at his 12, Tughlak Lane residence in New Delhi to handpick at least 40 people who will make up the think-tank of the Indian Youth Congress (IYC), an organisation that he has been keen to transform since he was appointed general secretary in September 2007.^[25]

Under Rahul Gandhi, IYC and NSUI has seen a dramatic increase in members from a two lakhs to twenty five lakhs.^[26]

In various reports it has been proved that Rahul Gandhi has failed in his promise to eliminate family, patronage, money from Youth Congress. It has been seen that an aspiring delegates need to pay a substantial sum as nomination fee. Hence, an aspiring office-bearer with deep pockets sponsors them thereby allowing money power to have a role in the elections.^[27][28][29]

2009 elections[link]

In the 2009 Lok Sabha elections, he retained his Amethi constituency by defeating his nearest rival by a margin of over 333,000 votes. In these elections congress is said to have revived itself in Uttar Pradesh by winning 21 out of the total 80 Lok Sabha seats and the majority of the credit for this turnaround is given to Rahul Gandhi.^[30] He spoke at 125 rallies across the country in six weeks.

Lokpal bill[link]

Rahul Gandhi opines that the Lokpal should be made a constitutional body and it should be made accountable to the Parliament, just like the Election Commission. He also feels that Lokpal alone cannot root out corruption. This statement came out on 25 August 2011, on the 10th day of Anna Hazare's fast. This statement was considered as a delaying tactic by the opposition and Team Anna's members. It was consequently slammed by prominent opposition leaders Sushma Swaraj and Arun Jaitley.^[31] The Parliamentary Standing Committee led by Abhishek Manu Singhvi tabled the Lok Bill report in the Rajya Sabha on 9 December 2011. Almost all points proposed by Team Anna were ignored while Rahul Gandhi's wish for Lokpal to be made into a constitutional body was implemented. Anna Hazare believes that Rahul Gandhi is responsible for the weak and ineffective bill proposed by the standing committee of parliament.^[32]

Land Acquisition Protests Arrest[link]

On 11 May 2011 Rahul Gandhi was arrested by the Uttar Pradesh police at Bhatta Parsaul village after he turned out in support of agitating farmers demanding more compensation for their land being acquired for a highway project.^[33] He was released after being held for about three hours and later returned to New Delhi. He was to be presented before a Sub-Divisional Magistrate on 12 May 2011.^[34]

2012 Assembly elections[link]

Rahul Gandhi campaigned extensively in the 2012 Assembly elections, especially in the highly politically crucial state of Uttar Pradesh (UP) in the hope that his popularity would help bring Congress back to power. However, the party did very poorly in the elections winning only 38 seats, a meagre increase of six seats from the 2007 elections^[35]. The Samajwadi Party and its new leader, Akhilesh Yadav swept the elections in UP, and Mr Yadav was sworn as the youngest Chief Minister of UP. The Congress party suffered humiliating defeats in other states (Goa and Punjab), and a close shave in Uttarahakhand. With only one win in the state of Manipur, the Indian press was quick to question the future of Mr Gandhi as the leader of the Congress party.^[36]

Political and legal issues[link]

Comparison of RSS and SIMI[link]

Rahul Gandhi has been critical of nationalist groups like the RSS and compared them to terrorist organizations like SIMI.^[37][38] According to a cable leaked by Wikileaks, in 2009, he allegedly shared concerns with the American ambassador to India Timothy Roemer that radicalized Hindu groups may pose a bigger threat to India than Islamic terror groups like Lashkar-e-Taiba.^[39][40] His comments on radical Hindu groups were criticized by the opposition party, as well as the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh.^[41]

Sukanya Devi[link]

It has been alleged that Rahul Gandhi had detained a girl and her parents since 2007 after the family accused the Gandhi scion of raping the girl. On 01st Mar 2011, the Lucknow Bench of Allahabad High Court issued a notice to Rahul Gandhi,^[42] however the allegations were found to be false. Allahabad high court not only dismissed the case after the girl in question appeared in the court, but slapped a 50 lakh penalty against the petitioner ordering a CBI inquiry against her and websites publishing the story.^[43]

13th Jul 2011 Terror Attack remarks[link]

On 14th Jul 2011, a day after the serial bombing in Mumbai, Rahul Gandhi gave a statement that "it was very difficult to stop every single terror attack". The remark resulted in a number of strong criticism from a number of Shiv Sena party members.^[44]

See also[link]

• Political Families of The World

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Rahul Gandhi

• Profile at BBC News
• Profile at Govt. of India website
• Rahul Gandhi collected news and commentary at The New York Times
• Rahul Gandhi collected news and commentary at The Times of India

Dr. Raman Singh
Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh
Incumbent
Assumed office 7 December 2003
Prime Minister	Manmohan Singh
Preceded by	Ajit Jogi
Constituency	Rajnandgaon
Union Minister of State Commerce and Industry
Incumbent
Assumed office 13 December 1999
Personal details
Born	(1952-10-15) 15 October 1952 (age 59) Kawardha, Chhattisgarh
Political party	Bharatiya Janata Party
Spouse(s)	Veena Singh
Children	Abhishek Singh, Asmita Singh
Residence	Civil Lines, Raipur [Cg.] 492001
As of January 2, 2011 Source: Government of Chhatisgarh

Raman Singh (born 15 October 1952) is an Indian politician who as of March 2012^[update] is the Chief Minister of Chhatisgarh and has been so since 7 December 2003. He is a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party.

Background[link]

Raman Singh was born on 15 October 1952. He comes from a farming family, his father being Vighnaharan Singh Thakur and his mother, Sudha Singh. He is a doctor of Ayurvedic Medicine and is married to Veena Singh.^[1]

Political career[link]

Singh joined the Bharatiya Jan Sangh as a youth member and progressed to become a councilor.^{[citation needed]}

He was elected to Madhya Pradesh Legislative Assembly in 1990 and 1998. In 1999 he was elected to the Lok Sabha from the Rajnandgaon constituency in Chhattisgarh. In the government of Atal Bihari Vajpayee government, Singh became the Union Minister of State for Commerce and Industry. He was later named as President of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the new state of Chhattisgarh, and led the party to a victory in the 2003 state Assembly elections. With the other main contender for the Chief Minister's post, Dilip Singh Judeo, caught in the midst of a scam, the BJP leadership named Raman Singh as Chattisgarh's second Chief Minister, and the first person to be elected to that post.^[1]

He has received praised for his organisational abilities, as reflected in his state's position with regard to implementation of a programme to improve the conditions of Scheduled Tribes and Scheduled Castes. The United Nations has also recognised the work done in Chhattisgarh under his leadership and the fiscal management of the state is another aspect for which he is known.^[1]

He banned naxalite organisations in Chattisgarh in 2005 under the "Salwa Judum" initiative, a move supported by the opposition party as well, led by Mahendra Karma. In the state of Chhatisgarh, he is known as 'Mr Clean', for the monumental reduction in corruption while implementing government scheme and plans during his tenure. This image helped him to regain the power in the state in the Assembly elections held in December 2008. Singh was sworn in for his second term on December 12, 2008.^[2]

References[link]

External links[link]

• The Hindu - Governor invites Raman Singh
• Dr Raman Singh official website
• Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Profile

v t e Current Chief Ministers of Indian states (list)     Andhra Pradesh: Nallari Kiran Kumar Reddy Arunachal Pradesh: Nabam Tuki Assam: Tarun Gogoi Bihar: Nitish Kumar Chhattisgarh: Raman Singh Goa: Manohar Parrikar Gujarat: Narendra Modi Haryana: Bhupinder Singh Hooda Himachal Pradesh: Prem Kumar Dhumal Jammu and Kashmir: Omar Abdullah Jharkhand: Arjun Munda Karnataka: D. V. Sadananda Gowda Kerala: Oommen Chandy Madhya Pradesh: Shivraj Singh Chauhan Maharashtra: Prithviraj Chavan Manipur: Okram Ibobi Singh Meghalaya: Mukul Sangma Mizoram: Pu Lalthanhawla Nagaland: Neiphiu Rio Orissa: Naveen Patnaik Punjab: Parkash Singh Badal Rajasthan: Ashok Gehlot Sikkim: Pawan Kumar Chamling Tamil Nadu: Jayalalithaa Tripura: Manik Sarkar Uttar Pradesh: Akhilesh Yadav Uttarakhand: Vijay Bahuguna West Bengal: Mamata Banerjee Delhi: Sheila Dikshit Pondicherry: N. Rangaswamy

This article is outdated. Please update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information. Please see the talk page for more information. (November 2010)

Tokio Hotel
Tokio Hotel, 2010. L-R: Georg Listing, Bill Kaulitz, Tom Kaulitz, and Gustav Schäfer
Background information
Origin	Magdeburg, Germany
Genres	Pop rock,[1][2] alternative rock,[3] emo,[4] glam rock,[5] power pop,[6][7][8][9]
Years active	2001–present
Labels	Universal Music Germany, Cherrytree, Interscope
Website	www.tokiohotel.com
Members
Bill Kaulitz Tom Kaulitz Georg Listing Gustav Schäfer

Tokio Hotel is a rock band from Germany, founded in 2001 by singer Bill Kaulitz, guitarist Tom Kaulitz, drummer Gustav Schäfer and bassist Georg Listing.^[10] The quartet have scored four number one singles and have released three number one albums in their native country, selling nearly 5 million CDs and DVDs there.^[11] After recording an unreleased demo-CD under the name "Devilish" and having their contract with Sony BMG Germany terminated, the band released their first German-language album, Schrei, as Tokio Hotel on Universal Music Germany in 2005. Schrei sold more than half a million copies worldwide^[12] and spawned four top five singles in both Germany and Austria. In 2007, the band released their second German album Zimmer 483 and their first English album Scream which have combined album sales of over one million copies worldwide and helped win the band their first MTV Europe Music Award for Best InterAct. The former, Zimmer 483, spawned three top five singles in Germany while the latter, Scream, spawned two singles that reached the top twenty in new territories such as France, Portugal, Spain and Italy. In September 2008, they won in the US their first MTV Video Music Award (VMA) for Best New Artist. In October 2008, they won four awards including Best International Artist and Song of the year at Los Premios MTV Latinoamérica (MTV Video Music Awards Latin America) held in Mexico. Tokio Hotel became the first German band ever to win an award at the MTV VMAs and also at the MTV Latin America Awards. They also picked up the Headliner award at the MTV Europe Music Awards 2008 held in Liverpool on November 6, 2008 and the Award for Best Group on November 5, 2009 at the MTV Europe Music Award (EMA) held in Berlin. They won an Award for Best World Stage Performance on November 7, 2010 at the MTV Europe Music Awards in Madrid. In July 2011, they became the first German band to win an MTV Video Music Awards Japan (VMAJ). And won MTV's 2012 Musical March Madness.

History[link]

[edit] Formation (2001 - 2004)

Tokio Hotel by vocalist Bill Kaulitz and guitarist Tom Kaulitz, who are identical twin brothers, drummer Gustav Schäfer and bass-guitarist Georg Listing. The four met in 2001 after a live show in a Magdeburg-Club, where Listing and Schäfer, who knew each other from music school, watched from the audience while Bill and Tom Kaulitz played on the stage.^[13][14] Under the name Devilish, the band soon began playing in talent shows and small concerts.^[15] After Bill Kaulitz's participation in a children's Star Search in 2003 at age thirteen (which he lost in the quarter-final), he was discovered by music producer Peter Hoffmann. Devilish changed their name to Tokio Hotel: "Tokio", the German spelling of the Japanese city Tokyo, due to a love of the city, and "Hotel" due to their constant touring and living in hotels.^[13] Soon after Sony BMG took them under contract, Hoffmann hired David Jost and Pat Benzner into the team of creators and authors, and had them give the teens instruction on songwriting and instrument playing; most of the songs of the first album were written by Hoffmann, Jost and Benzer (including the singles "Scream" and "Rescue me" which were completely written by them), only the single "Unendlichkeit" was written completely by Tokio Hotel themselves. Shortly before release of their first album, Sony terminated their contract. The band is now one of the biggest modern acts from Germany and the biggest in 20 years.

[edit] Schrei (2005 - 2006)

Bill Kaulitz performing in Hessisch-Lichtenau, Germany in 2006.

In 2005, Universal Music Group took Tokio Hotel under contract and developed a marketing plan. Their first single, "Durch den Monsun" ("Through the Monsoon"), quickly rose in the charts, appearing on the German official Media Control single chart at #15 on August 20, 2005 and eventually reaching #1 on August 26, 2005; it also reached #1 on the Austrian singles chart. Their second single, "Schrei" ("Scream"), climbed to the #5 position in the German charts. These two songs were written by singer Bill Kaulitz together with their group of producers Peter Hoffmann, David Jost, Pat Benzer and Dave Roth. Their debut album, Schrei, was released on September 19, 2005, and was certified triple gold by the BVMI in 2006 for selling over 300,000 copies in Germany.^[16] In 2006, a third and fourth single, "Rette mich" ("Rescue Me") and "Der letzte Tag" ("The Final Day"), were released; both reached #1 as well. "Der letzte Tag" contained a B-side called "Wir schließen uns ein", which was also accompanied by a music video.

[edit] Zimmer 483 (2007 - 2008)

The first single off their second album Zimmer 483 (Room 483), called "Übers Ende der Welt" (later re-released in English under the name "Ready, Set, Go!"), was released on January 26, 2007 and quickly reached #1 in Germany and Austria, and #2 in France. Zimmer 483 was released in Germany on February 23, 2007, along with a deluxe edition of the album containing a DVD. The album's second single, "Spring nicht" ("Don't Jump") was released on April 7. The tour accompanying the release of the album, The Zimmer 483 Tour, was scheduled to start in March 2007, but was delayed by two weeks because the band members wished to have a different stage design. A third single, "An deiner Seite (Ich bin da)" ("By Your Side"), was released on November 16. The single contains the B-side "1000 Meere" ("1000 Oceans"), for which a music video was also produced. On April 28, 2008 Tokio Hotel released their single "Heilig" but no music video for the single was released, because of the tight schedule they had.

[edit] Scream (2007 - 2008)

Tokio Hotel's first English language album, Scream, was released on June 4, 2007 throughout Europe. In Germany, the album was released as Room 483 in order to emphasize the continuity with their last German album Zimmer 483. Scream contains English versions of a selection of songs from their German-language albums Scream and Zimmer 483. "Monsoon", the English-language version of "Durch den Monsun", was the first single from the album. "Ready, Set, Go!" (the translation of "Übers Ende der Welt") was released as the album's second single and "Don't Jump" (the translation of "Spring nicht") as the third single. A video for "Scream", the English-language version of their 2005 hit "Schrei", was also recorded, and was released to the iTunes Store in early March 2008.

Tokio Hotel gave their first concert in the United Kingdom on June 19, 2007. "Ready, Set, Go!" was released in the UK as the band's first single on August 27, 2007. The song reached #77 in the UK Singles Chart.

Tokio Hotel won an MTV Europe Music Award for Best InterAct on November 1, 2007 and were also nominated for Best Band. They performed "Monsoon" at the event.

Tokio Hotel released their first US single, simply called "Tokio Hotel", in late 2007. The single contains the tracks "Scream" and "Ready, Set, Go!", and was available exclusively at Hot Topic stores. Their second US single, "Scream America", was released on December 11, 2007. The single contains the track "Scream" and a remix of "Ready, Set, Go!" by AFI's Jade Puget. In February 2008, the band toured North America for five dates starting in Canada and finishing up in New York.^[17] After appearing and performing live on MuchMusic, while touring in Canada, "Ready, Set, Go!" entered the MuchOnDemand Daily 10, a countdown of videos chosen by viewers. It remained there for over a week, then returned to the top of the MOD Daily 10 chart on April 8. "Scream" was released in Canada on March 25 and in the US on May 6. The "1000 Hotels" European Tour began on March 3, 2008 in Brussels and continued to locations including The Netherlands, Luxembourg, France, Spain, Portugal, Italy, and Scandinavia, and was scheduled to finish on April 9; during the concert in Marseille, France on March 14, Bill started to experience vocal problems.^[18] He let the audience sing more frequently than normal and instead of the original 21 songs that were on the set list, they only played 16 songs. Bill apologized, in German, for his bad singing and explained that he was sick. Two days later, the band canceled Lisbon, Portugal concert minutes before it was supposed to commence. The rest of the "1000 Hotels" Tour and a scheduled North American Tour were cancelled following an announcement in Bild by the band's manager that Bill Kaulitz had to undergo surgery to remove a cyst on his vocal cords.^[19][20]

Bill Kaulitz had been putting strain on his voice after playing 43 concerts in the 1000 Hotels tour without vacation.^[21] He had to undergo Larynx surgery on March 30 to remove a cyst that had formed on his vocal cords.^[22] The cyst was the result of a throat infection that went untreated.^[23] Following his surgery, Bill was unable to speak for twelve days, and had four weeks of vocal rehabilitation.^[24] If Bill had continued singing the rest of the tour, his voice would have eventually been permanently damaged.^[18][25] Tokio Hotel started performing again in May 2008^[26] and after that they embarked on a 2nd part of their 1000 Hotels European Tour adding many Open Air concerts and wrapping up the tour on July 13 in Werchter, Belgium.

[edit] North American Tours and Humanoid (2009 - 2010)

This section is outdated. Please update this section to reflect recent events or newly available information. Please see the talk page for more information. (November 2010)

Tokio Hotel embarked on a second tour of North America in August 2008, which included a performance at the Bamboozled festival in New Jersey. The band's music video for "Ready Set Go!" was nominated for Best Pop Video at the 2008 MTV Video Music Awards,^[27] where they also won the award for Best New Artist.^[28] They returned to North America again in October 2008 for a month long tour of concerts and record store signings. In December 2008, a behind-the scenes DVD called Tokio Hotel TV – Caught on Camera was released. It contains footage from Tokio Hotel TV and backstage feature stories of the previous year on disc one entitled "History – The very best of Tokio Hotel TV!". A deluxe edition contains a second disc entitled "Future – The road to the new Album!" which features footage of the band on promotion tours and preparing for their third studio album.^[29]

In between the North American tours, the band returned to their record studio in Hamburg to record their third studio album, Humanoid, which, according to their producer David Jost, is currently set for release on October 2 in Germany & October 6, 2009 in the U.S.^[30][31][32] This is despite earlier statements predicting a March/April 2009 release or a May/June 2009 release.^[33][34][35] The album was recorded in both German and English with both versions were released simultaneously worldwide.^[34][35]

On August 10, it was announced on MTV news that the first German single would be "Automatisch" and its English counterpart, "Automatic", would also be released as a first single in the United States. On August 20, MTV Buzzworthy released a video which previewed "Automatic" and Cherrytree Records announced that the English version of the song would be released in the US on September 22.^[36][37] Nevertheless, the video for the single was released on September 3.

On November 2, it was announced on Tom's Blog that the second English single would be "World Behind My Wall" and its German counterpart, "Lass uns laufen", would be the second German single.^[38] The music videos for both versions were released on December 14 and December 15.

On June 24, the live music video for their single, "Dark Side of the Sun" was released on the band website.

On July 20, 2010 they released their second live album Humanoid City Live from Milan, Italy On November 22, 2010, their new song "Hurricanes and Suns," premiered on the Greek radio station Mad Radio. It was included in the bonus track on all versions of "Tokio Hotel: Best Of," a compilation album of their most successful songs. As well as the single for the 'Best of' release. The album will also include "Mädchen aus dem All", the first song the band recorded in a studio.

On December 14, 2010 their 'Best of' was released. December 2 was the World Premiere of the video for "Hurricanes and Suns" on their Official Website. On April 28, 2011 they received the "Fan Army FTW" award at the MTV O Music Awards, the networks first online award show. A clip of Bill and Tom thanking their fans was played after the winner was announced.

Tokio Hotel performed their first concert in Asia (excluding their concert in Israel) at the Audi Showcase in Singapore, followed shortly by the TM Connects With Tokio Hotel event in Malaysia, promoting the sales of their album Humanoid. They concluded the series of mini-concerts with Taiwan. They returned to Malaysia a couple of months later to perform at MTV World Stage Live in Malaysia 2010. They performed in Tokyo on December 15, 2010, after their South American Tour concluded in Distrito Federal, Mexico on December 2, 2010. In February, 2011 Tokio Hotel travelled to Japan to complete a second promo tour. A number of TV appearances and media interviews took place between February 8 and February 11.

On June 24, 2011 Tokio Hotel performed in Japan at “The Next Premium Night Tokio Hotel in Tokyo". The event was presented by Audi A1 and 150 fans were chosen to win tickets to attend the show. The event was the band's first acoustic performance in Japan. On June 25, 2011 the band performed live at the MTV Video Music Aid Japan in Tokyo. The show, which was formerly called the Video Music Awards Japan, was used as a music benefit to raise money for the Japanese Red Cross in order to help those who were affected by the recent earthquake.

Modeling and commercials[link]

This section is outdated. Please update this section to reflect recent events or newly available information. Please see the talk page for more information. (January 2010)

On January 19, 2010, lead singer Bill Kaulitz teamed up with twins Dean and Dan Caten of DSquared to walk the runway at a fashion event in Milan.^[39] Kaulitz made two appearances, as he opened and closed DSquared's Menswear Autumn/Winter 2010 show to Tokio Hotel song "Screamin".^[40]

Car maker Audi hired the two frontmen to star in their new advertising campaign to attract the younger generation. They were featured in an episode of Tokio Hotel TV (on Tokio Hotel's website) and also in a commercial.^[41]

On August 4, 2010, Tom Kaulitz got his own Reebok shoe commercial.^[42] Reebok signed the 20-year-old Tokio Hotel guitarist and sneaker addict to model shoes for the company. "At home, I created a little room like a little storage room," he said of his sneakers. He also said that he gets 10 new pairs a week.^[42]

Best Of Tokio Hotel (2010)[link]

At 13th December in Germany and 14th December internationally Tokio Hotel released their first compilation album named "Best Of". It comes in two languages: english and german. It contains the most popular songs from all the previous albums and two new songs: "Hurricanes and Suns" (was recorded for Humanoid but not included in it) and "Mädchen aus dem All" (was recorded for Schrei but not included in it).There is a deluxe edition too which comes with both german and english versions of album and a bonus DVD with all Tokio Hotel's music videos and "making of" scenes.

[edit] New album and duet with Far East Movement (2011 - present)

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After finishing "Welcome To Humanoid City Tour" Bill and Tom with their manager David Jost moved to Los Angeles and still are living there. They said they are working on the new album, which will be released in the late 2012. Paparazzies caught Bill, Tom and Gustav in a shop in Los Angeles. MTV said the new album will be named "Dark Anthem".^[43]. Bill and Tom released an app named "BTK Twins" for iOS (16 January 2012),^[44] and Android(19 December 2011),^[45] for keeping in touch with their fans. Here Bill and Tom post their photos, videos and text messages, and fans can leave messages for posts. Bill and Tom answer to these comments very often. The app costs 2.99$, and if a user wants to leave comments besides watching only he must pay 0.99$ a month. Tokio Hotel launched a service named "VIP Call".^[46] Fans may pay 4.99 Euros for a month or 3.49 Euros for 3 months and Tokio Hotel call them and leave audio messages. Fans can even ask them questions and Tokio Hotel will answer to them. On 18 May 2012 Far East Movement released an album named "Dirty Bass". In it there is a song named "If I Die Tomorrow" which is a duet with Bill. Far East Movement accepted there will be a music video released for "If I Die Tomorrow" soon. Bill Kaulitz will take part in shootings too.

Band members[link]

• Bill Kaulitz - lead vocals
• Tom Kaulitz - guitar, piano, backing vocals
• Georg Listing - bass, keyboards, synthesizers, backing vocals
• Gustav Schäfer - drums, percussion, backing vocals

Discography[link]

Studio albums

• Schrei (2005)
• Zimmer 483 (2007)
• Scream (2007)
• Humanoid (2009)
• Best Of (2010)

Awards[link]

Since the release of the "Durch den Monsun" single in 2005, Tokio Hotel have gone on to win 104 awards in various categories and countries.

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012