document_title: Telecommunications in India

question_text: when was the first telephone service launched in india

text: Telecommunications in India

text: History[edit]

text: The beginning[edit]

text: Telecommunications in India began with the introduction of the telegraph. The Indian postal and telecom sectors are one of the worlds oldest. In 1850, the first experimental electric telegraph line was started between Calcutta and Diamond Harbour. In 1851, it was opened for the use of the British East India Company. The Posts and Telegraphs department occupied a small corner of the Public Works Department,[14] at that time.

text: The construction of 4,000 miles (6,400 km) of telegraph lines was started in November 1853. These connected Kolkata (then Calcutta) and Peshawar in the north; Agra, Mumbai (then Bombay) through Sindwa Ghats, and Chennai (then Madras) in the south; Ootacamund and Bangalore. William O'Shaughnessy, who pioneered the telegraph and telephone in India, belonged to the Public Works Department, and worked towards the development of telecom throughout this period. A separate department was opened in 1854 when telegraph facilities were opened to the public.

text: In 1880, two telephone companies namely The Oriental Telephone Company Ltd. and The Anglo-Indian Telephone Company Ltd. approached the Government of India to establish telephone exchange in India. The permission was refused on the grounds that the establishment of telephones was a Government monopoly and that the Government itself would undertake the work. In 1881, the Government later reversed its earlier decision and a licence was granted to the Oriental Telephone Company Limited of England for opening telephone exchanges at Calcutta, Bombay, Madras and Ahmedabad and the first formal telephone service was established in the country.[15] On 28 January 1882, Major E. Baring, Member of the Governor General of India's Council declared open the Telephone Exchanges in Calcutta, Bombay and Madras. The exchange in Calcutta named the "Central Exchange" had a total of 93 subscribers in its early stage. Later that year, Bombay also witnessed the opening of a telephone exchange.[16]

text: Further developments and milestones[edit]

text:
Pre-1902 – Cable telegraph
1902 – First wireless telegraph station established between Sagar Island and Sandhead.
1907 – First Central Battery of telephones introduced in Kanpur.
1913–1914 – First Automatic Exchange installed in Shimla.
1927 – Radio-telegraph system between the UK and India, with Imperial Wireless Chain beam stations at Khadki and Daund. Inaugurated by Lord Irwin on 23 July by exchanging greetings with King George V.
1933 – Radiotelephone system inaugurated between the UK and India.
1953 – 12 channel carrier system introduced.
1960 – First subscriber trunk dialling route commissioned between Lucknow and Kanpur.[citation needed]
1975 – First PCM system commissioned between Mumbai City and Andheri telephone exchanges.
1976 – First digital microwave junction.
1979 – First optical fibre system for local junction commissioned at Pune.
1980 – First satellite earth station for domestic communications established at Sikandarabad, U.P..
1983 – First analogue Stored Programme Control exchange for trunk lines commissioned at Mumbai.
1984 – C-DOT established for indigenous development and production of digital exchanges.
1995 – First mobile telephone service started on non-commercial basis on 15 August 1995 in Delhi.
1995 – Internet Introduced in India starting with Laxmi Nagar, Delhi 15 August 1995[17]

text: Development of Broadcasting: Radio broadcasting was initiated in 1927 but became state responsibility only in 1930. In 1937 it was given the name All India Radio and since 1957 it has been called Akashvani.[18] Limited duration of television programming began in 1959, and complete broadcasting followed in 1965. The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting owned and maintained the audio-visual apparatus—including the television channel Doordarshan—in the country prior to the economic reforms of 1991. In 1997, an autonomous body was established in the name of Prasar Bharti to take care of the public service broadcasting under the Prasar Bharti Act. All India Radio and Doordarshan, which earlier were working as media units under the Ministry of I&B became constituents of the body.[12]

text: Pre-liberalisation statistics: While all the major cities and towns in the country were linked with telephones during the British period, the total number of telephones in 1948 numbered only around 80,000. Post independence, growth remained slow because the telephone was seen more as a status symbol rather than being an instrument of utility. The number of telephones grew leisurely to 980,000 in 1971, 2.15 million in 1981 and 5.07 million in 1991, the year economic reforms were initiated in the country.

text: Liberalisation and privatisation[edit]

text: Liberalisation of Indian telecommunication in industry started in 1981 when Prime Minister Indira Gandhi signed contracts with Alcatel CIT of France to merge with the state owned Telecom Company (ITI), in an effort to set up 5,000,000 lines per year. But soon the policy was let down because of political opposition.[19] Attempts to liberalise the telecommunication industry were continued by the following government under the prime-minister-ship of Rajiv Gandhi. He invited Sam Pitroda, a US-based Non-resident Indian NRI and a former Rockwell International executive to set up a Centre for Development of Telematics(C-DOT) which manufactured electronic telephone exchanges in India for the first time.[20] Sam Pitroda had a significant role as a consultant and adviser in the development of telecommunication in India.[21]

text: In 1985, the Department of Telecom(DoT) was separated from Indian Post & Telecommunication Department. DoT was responsible for telecom services in entire country until 1986 when Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited (MTNL) and Videsh Sanchar Nigam Limited (VSNL) were carved out of DoT to run the telecom services of metro cities(Delhi and Mumbai) and international long distance operations respectively.[20]

text: The demand for telephones was ever increasing and in the 1990s Indian government was under increasing pressure to open up the telecom sector for private investment as a part of Liberalisation-Privatisation-Globalisation policies that the government had to accept to overcome the severe fiscal crisis and resultant balance of payments issue in 1991. Consequently, private investment in the sector of Value Added Services (VAS) was allowed and cellular telecom sector were opened up for competition from private investments. It was during this period that the Narsimha Rao-led government introduced the National Telecommunications policy (NTP) in 1994 which brought changes in the following areas: ownership, service and regulation of telecommunications infrastructure. The policy introduced the concept of telecommunication for all and its vision was to expand the telecommunication facilities to all the villages in India.[22] Liberalisation in the basic telecom sector was also envisaged in this policy.[23] They were also successful in establishing joint ventures between state owned telecom companies and international players. Foreign firms were eligible to 49% of the total stake. The multi-nationals were just involved in technology transfer, and not policy making.[19]

text: During this period, the World Bank and ITU had advised the Indian Government to liberalise long distance services to release the monopoly of the state owned DoT and VSNL and to enable competition in the long distance carrier business which would help reduce tariff's and better the economy of the country. The Rao run government instead liberalised the local services, taking the opposite political parties into confidence and assuring foreign involvement in the long distance business after 5 years. The country was divided into 20 telecommunication circles for basic telephony and 18 circles for mobile services. These circles were divided into category A, B and C depending on the value of the revenue in each circle. The government threw open the bids to one private company per circle along with government owned DoT per circle. For cellular service two service providers were allowed per circle and a 15 years licence was given to each provider. During all these improvements, the government did face oppositions from ITI, DoT, MTNL, VSNL and other labour unions, but they managed to keep away from all the hurdles.[19]

text: In 1997, the government set up TRAI (Telecom Regulatory Authority of India) which reduced the interference of Government in deciding tariffs and policy making. The political powers changed in 1999 and the new government under the leadership of Atal Bihari Vajpayee was more pro-reforms and introduced better liberalisation policies. In 2000, the Vajpayee government constituted the Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT) through an amendment of the TRAI Act, 1997.[24][25] The primary objective of TDSAT's establishment was to release TRAI from adjudicatory and dispute settlement functions in order to strengthen the regulatory framework. Any dispute involving parties like licensor, licensee, service provider and consumers are resolved by TDSAT. Moreover, any direction, order or decision of TRAI can be challenged by appealing in TDSAT.[26] The government corporatised the operations wing of DoT on 1 October 2000 and named it as Department of Telecommunication Services (DTS) which was later named as Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL). The proposal of raising the stake of foreign investors from 49% to 74% was rejected by the opposite political parties and leftist thinkers. Domestic business groups wanted the government to privatise VSNL. Finally in April 2002, the government decided to cut its stake of 53% to 26% in VSNL and to throw it open for sale to private enterprises. TATA finally took 25% stake in VSNL.[19]

text: This was a gateway to many foreign investors to get entry into the Indian Telecom Markets. After March 2000, the government became more liberal in making policies and issuing licences to private operators. The government further reduced licence fees for [cellular service providers and increased the allowable stake to 74% for foreign companies. Because of all these factors, the service fees finally reduced and the call costs were cut greatly enabling every common middle-class family in India to afford a cell phone. Nearly 32 million handsets were sold in India. The data reveals the real potential for growth of the Indian mobile market.[27] Many private operators, such as Reliance Communications, Jio, Tata Indicom, Vodafone, Loop Mobile, Airtel, Idea etc., successfully entered the high potential Indian telecom market.

text: In March 2008 the total GSM and CDMA mobile subscriber base in the country was 375 million, which represented a nearly 50% growth when compared with previous year.[28] As the unbranded Chinese cell phones which do not have International Mobile Equipment Identity (IMEI) numbers pose a serious security risk to the country, Mobile network operators therefore suspended the usage of around 30 million mobile phones (about 8% of all mobiles in the country) by 30 April. Phones without valid IMEI cannot be connected to cellular operators.[29] 5–6 years the average monthly subscribers additions were around 0.05 to 0.1 million only and the total mobile subscribers base in December 2002 stood at 10.5 millions. However, after a number of proactive initiatives taken by regulators and licensors, the total number of mobile subscribers has increased rapidly to over 929 million subscribers as of May 2012.

text: India has opted for the use of both the GSM (global system for mobile communications) and CDMA (code-division multiple access) technologies in the mobile sector. In addition to landline and mobile phones, some of the companies also provide the WLL service. The mobile tariffs in India have also become the lowest in the world. A new mobile connection can be activated with a monthly commitment of US$0.15 only.

text: Consolidation[edit]

text: Post starting of the commercial operation of Reliance Jio in September 2016, the telecom market saw a huge change in terms of falling tariff rates and reduction of data charges, which changed the economics for some of the telecom players. On 12 October 2017, Bharti Airtel announced that it would acquire the consumer mobile businesses of Tata Teleservices Ltd (TTSL) and Tata Teleservices Maharastra Ltd (TTML) in a debt-free cash-free deal. The deal will essentially be free for Airtel which will only incur TTSL's unpaid spectrum payment liability. TTSL will continue to operate its enterprise, fixed line and broadband businesses and its stake in tower company Viom Networks.[30][31][32]

text: Reliance Communications had to shut down its 2G and 3G services including all voice services and only offer 4G data services from December 29, 2017, as a result of debt and a failed merger with Aircel.[33][34] Surprisingly, the shut down was shortly after completion of acquisition of MTS India on 31 October 2017[35][36]

text: Aircel shut down its operations in unprofitable circles including, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh (West) from 30 January 2018.[37] Aircel along with its units - Aircel Cellular and Dishnet Wireless - on 1 March 2018, filed for bankruptcy in the National Companies Law Tribunal (NCLT) in Mumbai due to huge competition and high levels of debt.

text: Telenor India is planned to be acquired by Airtel almost without any cost, subject to regulatory approval.

text: Vodafone and Idea Cellular signed a deal in March 2017 that the company will merge in an all stock deal, creating a single entity which will be India's largest telecommunication company. The merger will create the largest telecom company in India by subscribers and by revenue. Under the terms of the deal, the Vodafone will hold a 45.1% stake in the combined entity, the Aditya Birla Group will hold 26% and the remaining shares will be held by the public. Both networks will continue to carry their own independent brands post merger. The merger is expected to be completed by March 2019.[38]

text: Telephony[edit]

text:
Airtel: 295.07 million (25.5%)
  Vodafone: 217.06 million (18.8%)
  Idea: 202.06 million (17.5%)
  Jio: 177.13 million (15.3%)
  BSNL: 109.11 million (9.4%)
  Aircel* (Estimated): 78.92 million (6.8%)
  Telenor: 39.29 million (3.4%)
  Tata Docomo: 33.24 million (2.9%)
  MTNL: 3.56 million (0.3%)

text:
BSNL: 12.27 million (53.5%)
  Airtel: 3.92 million (17.1%)
  MTNL: 3.35 million (14.6%)
  Tata Docomo: 1.86 million (8.1%)
  Reliance: 1.09 million (4.8%)
  Others: 0.44 million (1.9%)

text: The telephony segment is dominated by private-sector and two state-run businesses. Most companies were formed by a recent revolution and restructuring launched within a decade, directed by Ministry of Communications and IT, Department of Telecommunications and Minister of Finance. Since then, most companies gained 2G, 3G and 4G licences and engaged fixed-line, mobile and internet business in India. On landlines, intra-circle calls are considered local calls while inter-circle are considered long distance calls. Foreign Direct Investment policy which increased the foreign ownership cap from 49% to 100%. The Government is working to integrate the whole country in one telecom circle. For long distance calls, the area code prefixed with a zero is dialled first which is then followed by the number (i.e., to call Delhi, 011 would be dialled first followed by the phone number). For international calls, "00" must be dialled first followed by the country code, area code and local phone number. The country code for India is 91. Several international fibre-optic links include those to Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong, Russia, and Germany. Some major telecom operators in India include Airtel, Vodafone, Idea, Reliance Jio, BSNL, MTNL, Telenor and TATA DoCoMo.

text: Landline[edit]

text: Before the New Telecom Policy was announced in 1999, only the Government-owned BSNL and MTNL were allowed to provide land-line phone services through copper wire in India with MTNL operating in Delhi and Mumbai and BSNL servicing all other areas of the country. Due to the rapid growth of the cellular phone industry in India, landlines are facing stiff competition from cellular operators, with number of wireline subscribers fell from 37.90 million in December 2008 to 23 million in December 2017. This has forced land-line service providers to become more efficient and improve their quality of service. As of December 2017, India has over 23 million wireline customers.[41]

text: Mobile telephony[edit]

text: In August 1995, then Chief Minister of West Bengal, Jyoti Basu made the first mobile phone call in India to then Union Telecom Minister Sukhram.[42] Sixteen years later 4G services were launched in Kolkata in 2012.[43]

text: With a subscriber base of more than 1,151.94 million (as of January 2018)[44], the mobile telecommunications system in India is the second largest in the world and it was thrown open to private players in the 1990s. GSM was comfortably maintaining its position as the dominant mobile technology with 80% of the mobile subscriber market, but CDMA seemed to have stabilised its market share at 20% for the time being.

text: The country is divided into multiple zones, called circles (roughly along state boundaries). Government and several private players run local and long distance telephone services. Competition, especially after entry of Reliance Jio, has caused prices to drop across India, which are already one of the cheapest in the world.[45] The rates are supposed to go down further with new measures to be taken by the Information Ministry.[46]

text: In September 2004, the number of mobile phone connections crossed the number of fixed-line connections and presently dwarfs the wireline segment substantially. The mobile subscriber base has grown from 5 million subscribers in 2001 to over 1,151.94 million subscribers as of January 2018. India primarily follows the GSM mobile system, in the 900 MHz band. Recent operators also operate in the 1800 MHz band. The dominant players are Airtel, Jio, Vodafone, Idea Cellular and BSNL/MTNL. There are many smaller players, with operations in only a few states. International roaming agreements exist between most operators and many foreign carriers. The government allowed Mobile number portability (MNP) which enables mobile telephone users to retain their mobile telephone numbers when changing from one mobile network operator to another.[47]

text: Frequency bands[edit]

text: As of 2016, India has deployed telecom operations in a total of 8 radio frequency bands.[48]

text: Subscriber base by circle[edit]

text: India is divided into 22 telecom circles:

text:
Telecom circle
Landline subscriber base in million (December 2017)[40]
Wireless subscriber base in million (December 2017)[40]
Teledensity (September 2014)[49]

Andhra Pradesh & Telangana
1.52
84.31
81.06

Assam
0.14
22.60
50.41

Bihar & Jharkhand
0.27
84.28
47.66

Delhi
3.22
55.54
232.22

Gujarat & Daman & Diu
1.29
70.59
93.34

Haryana
0.30
25.46
80.31

Himachal Pradesh
0.12
10.57
109.55

Jammu and Kashmir
0.11
13.12
69.98

Karnataka
2.25
67.20
94.20

Kerala & Lakshadweep
1.99
41.01
95.96

Kolkata
0.81
29.06
73.0

Madhya Pradesh & Chhattisgarh
0.97
73.10
57.04

Maharashtra & Goa (including Mumbai )
1.76
94.38
92.20 *

Mumbai*
3.02
38.32
Not available *

North East ^**
0.11
12.81
72.00

Orissa
0.27
34.02
63.41

Punjab
0.88
36.06
103.49

Rajasthan
0.61
67.80
76.18

Tamil Nadu(including Chennai since 2005)[50]
2.37
87.02
114.71

Uttar Pradesh(East)
0.48
100.77
58.09(Combined)*

Uttar Pradesh(West) & Uttarakhand
0.35
62.32
58.09(Combined)*

West Bengal(including Kolkata)***
0.28
58.00
73.40 *

text: ^* Population statistics are available state-wise only. ^** North east circle includes Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, & Tripura ^*** West Bengal circle includes Andaman-Nicobar and Sikkim

text: Internet[edit]

text: The history of the Internet in India started with launch of services by VSNL on 15 August 1995.[51] They were able to add about 10,000 Internet users within 6 months.[52] However, for the next 10 years the Internet experience in the country remained less attractive with narrow-band connections having speeds less than 56 kbit/s (dial-up). In 2004, the government formulated its broadband policy which defined broadband as "an always-on Internet connection with download speed of 256 kbit/s or above."[53] From 2005 onward the growth of the broadband sector in the country accelerated, but remained below the growth estimates of the government and related agencies due to resource issues in last-mile access which were predominantly wired-line technologies. This bottleneck was removed in 2010 when the government auctioned 3G spectrum followed by an equally high-profile auction of 4G spectrum that set the scene for a competitive and invigorated wireless broadband market. Now Internet access in India is provided by both public and private companies using a variety of technologies and media including dial-up (PSTN), xDSL, coaxial cable, Ethernet, FTTH, ISDN, HSDPA (3G), 4G, WiFi, WiMAX, etc. at a wide range of speeds and costs.

text: According to the Internet And Mobile Association of India (IAMAI), the Internet user base in the country stood at 190 million at the end of June, 2013, which rose to 378.10 million in January 2018.[54][41] Cumulative Annual Growth rate (CAGR) of broadband during the five-year period between 2005 and 2010 was about 117 per cent.[53]

text: There were 204 Internet Service Providers (ISPs) offering broadband services in India as of 31 December 2017.[55] As of January 2018, the top five ISPs in terms subscriber base were Reliance Jio (168.39 million), Bharti Airtel (75.01 million), Vodafone (54.83 million), Idea Cellular (37.33 million) and BSNL (21.81 million).[44] In 2009, about 37 per cent of the users access the Internet from cyber cafes, 30 per cent from an office, and 23 per cent from home.[53] However, the number of mobile Internet users increased rapidly from 2009 on and there were about 359.80 million mobile users at the end of January 2018, with a majority using 4G mobile networks.[41]

text: One of the major issues facing the Internet segment in India is the lower average bandwidth of broadband connections compared to that of developed countries. According to 2007 statistics, the average download speed in India hovered at about 40 KB per second (256 kbit/s), the minimum speed set by TRAI, whereas the international average was 5.6 Mbit/s during the same period. In order to attend this infrastructure issue the government declared 2007 as "the year of broadband".[56][57] To compete with international standards of defining broadband speed the Indian Government has taken the aggressive step of proposing a $13 billion national broadband network to connect all cities, towns and villages with a population of more than 500 in two phases targeted for completion by 2012 and 2013. The network was supposed to provide speeds up to 10 Mbit/s in 63 metropolitan areas and 4 Mbit/s in an additional 352 cities. In February 2018, the average broadband speed of fixed line connection in India was 20.72 mbps, which is less than the global average download speed of 42.71 mbps.[58] In terms of mobile internet speed, India performed quite poorly, with average speed of 9.01 mbps when compared with global average mobile broadband speed was 22.16 mbps.[58]

text: As of December 2017, according to Internet and Mobile Association of India, the Internet penetration rate in India is one of the lowest in the world and only accounts for 35% of the population compared to the global average internet penetration is over 54.4%.[59][60] Another issue is the digital divide where growth is biased in favour of urban areas; according to December 2017 statistics, internet penetration in urban India was 64.84%, whereas internet penetration in rural India is only 20.26%.[59] Regulators have tried to boost the growth of broadband in rural areas by promoting higher investment in rural infrastructure and establishing subsidised tariffs for rural subscribers under the Universal service obligation scheme of the Indian government.

text: As of May 2014, the Internet was delivered to India mainly by 9 different undersea fibres, including SEA-ME-WE 3, Bay of Bengal Gateway and Europe India Gateway, arriving at 5 different landing points.[61]

text: Net neutrality[edit]

text: In March 2015, the TRAI released a formal consultation paper on Regulatory Framework for Over-the-top (OTT) services, seeking comments from the public. The consultation paper was criticised for being one sided and having confusing statements. It was condemned by various politicians and internet users.[62][63][64] By 18 April 2015, over 800,000 emails had been sent to TRAI demanding net neutrality.[64][65][66]

text: The TRAI on 8 February 2016, notified the Prohibition of Discriminatory Tariffs for Data Services Regulations, 2016 which barred telecom service providers from charging differential rates for data services.[67]

text: The 2016 Regulation,[68] stipulates that:

text:
No service provider can offer or charge discriminatory tariffs for data services on the basis of content.
No service provider shall enter into any arrangement, agreement or contract, by whatever name called, with any person, natural or legal, that the effect of discriminatory tariffs for data services being offered or charged by the service provider for the purpose of evading the prohibition in this regulation.
Reduced tariff for accessing or providing emergency services, or at times of public emergency has been permitted.
Financial disincentives for contravention of the regulation have also been specified.
TRAI may review these regulations after a period of two years.

tag: ol

text: Television broadcasting[edit]

text: Television broadcasting began in India in 1959 by Doordarshan, a state run medium of communication, and had slow expansion for more than two decades.[69] The policy reforms of the government in the 1990s attracted private initiatives in this sector, and since then, satellite television has increasingly shaped popular culture and Indian society. However, still, only the government owned Doordarshan has the licence for terrestrial television broadcast. Private companies reach the public using satellite channels; both cable television as well as DTH has obtained a wide subscriber base in India. In 2012, India had about 148 million TV homes of which 126 million has access to cable and satellite services.[70]

text: Following the economic reforms in the 1990s, satellite television channels from around the world—BBC, CNN, CNBC, and other private television channels gained a foothold in the country.[12] There are no regulations to control the ownership of satellite dish antennas and also for operating cable television systems in India, which in turn has helped for an impressive growth in the viewership. The growth in the number of satellite channels was triggered by corporate business houses such as Star TV group and Zee TV. Initially restricted to music and entertainment channels, viewership grew, giving rise to several channels in regional languages, especially Hindi. The main news channels available were CNN and BBC World. In the late 1990s, many current affairs and news channels sprouted, becoming immensely popular because of the alternative viewpoint they offered compared to Doordarshan. Some of the notable ones are Aaj Tak (run by the India Today group) and STAR News, CNN-IBN, Times Now, initially run by the NDTV group and their lead anchor, Prannoy Roy (NDTV now has its own channels, NDTV 24x7, NDTV Profit and NDTV India). Over the years, Doordarshan services also have grown from a single national channel to six national and eleven regional channels. Nonetheless, it has lost the leadership in market, though it underwent many phases of modernisation in order to contain tough competition from private channels.[12]

text: Today, television is the most penetrative media in India with industry estimates indicating that there are over 554 million TV consumers, 462 million with satellite connections, compared to other forms of mass media such as radio or internet.[71] Government of India has used the popularity of TV and radio among rural people for the implementation of many social-programmes including that of mass-education. On 16 November 2006, the Government of India released the community radio policy which allowed agricultural centres, educational institutions and civil society organisations to apply for community based FM broadcasting licence. Community Radio is allowed 100 watts of Effective Radiated Power (ERP) with a maximum tower height of 30 metres. The licence is valid for five years and one organisation can only get one licence, which is non-transferable and to be used for community development purposes.

text: Radio[edit]

text: As of March 2016, there are 345 radio stations in India.[7]

text: Next-generation networks (NGN)[edit]

text: Historically, the role of telecommunication has evolved from that of plain information exchange to a multi-service field, with Value Added Services (VAS) integrated with various discrete networks like PSTN, PLMN, Internet Backbone etc. However, with decreasing ARPU and increasing demand for VAS has become a compelling reason for the service providers to think of the convergence of these parallel networks into a single core network with service layers separated from network layer.[72] Next-generation networking is such a convergence concept which according to ITU-T is:[73]

text: A next-generation network (NGN) is a packet-based network which can provide services including Telecommunication Services and able to make use of multiple broadband, quality of Service-enabled transport technologies and in which service-related functions are independent from underlying transport-related technologies. It offers unrestricted access by users to different service providers. It supports generalised mobility which will allow consistent and ubiquitous provision of services to users.

text: Access network: The user can connect to the IP-core of NGN in various ways, most of which use the standard Internet Protocol (IP). User terminals such as mobile phones, personal digital assistants (PDAs) and computers can register directly on NGN-core, even when they are roaming in another network or country. The only requirement is that they can use IP and Session Initiation Protocol (SIP). Fixed access (e.g., Digital Subscriber Line (DSL), cable modems, Ethernet), mobile access (e.g. W-CDMA, CDMA2000, GSM, GPRS) and wireless access (e.g.WLAN, WiMAX) are all supported. Other phone systems like plain old telephone service and non-compatible VoIP systems, are supported through gateways. With the deployment of the NGN, users may subscribe to many simultaneous access-providers providing telephony, internet or entertainment services. This may provide end-users with virtually unlimited options to choose between service providers for these services in NGN environment.[72]

text: The hyper-competition in telecom market, which was effectively caused by the introduction of Universal Access Service (UAS) licence in 2003 became much tougher after 3G and 4G competitive auction. About 670,000 route-kilometer (419,000-mile) of optical fibres has been laid in India by the major operators, including in the financially nonviable rural areas and the process continues.[citation needed] Keeping in mind the viability of providing services in rural areas, the government of India also took a proactive role to promote the NGN implementation in the country; an expert committee called NGN eCO was constituted in order to deliberate on the licensing, interconnection and Quality of Service (QoS) issues related to NGN and it submitted its report on 24 August 2007. Telecom operators found the NGN model advantageous, but huge investment requirements have prompted them to adopt a multi-phase migration and they have already started the migration process to NGN with the implementation of IP-based core-network.[72]

text: Regulatory environment[edit]

text: LIRNEasia's Telecommunications Regulatory Environment (TRE) index, which summarises stakeholders' perception on certain TRE dimensions, provides insight into how conducive the environment is for further development and progress. The most recent survey was conducted in July 2008 in eight Asian countries, including Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Maldives, Pakistan, Thailand, and the Philippines. The tool measured seven dimensions: i) market entry; ii) access to scarce resources; iii) interconnection; iv) tariff regulation; v) anti-competitive practices; and vi) universal services; vii) quality of service, for the fixed, mobile and broadband sectors.

text: The results for India, point out to the fact that the stakeholders perceive the TRE to be most conducive for the mobile sector followed by fixed and then broadband. Other than for Access to ScarceResources the fixed sector lags behind the mobile sector. The fixed and mobile sectors have the highest scores for Tariff Regulation. Market entry also scores well for the mobile sector as competition is well entrenched with most of the circles with 4–5 mobile service providers. The broadband sector has the lowest score in the aggregate. The low penetration of broadband of mere 3.87 against the policy objective of 9 million at the end of 2007 clearly indicates that the regulatory environment is not very conducive.[74]

text: In 2013 the home ministry stated that legislation must ensure that law enforcement agencies are empowered to intercept communications.[75]

text: Revenue and growth[edit]

text: This section needs to be updated. Please update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information. (June 2017)

text: The total revenue in the telecom service sector was ₹867.2 billion (US$12.9 billion) in 2005–06 as against ₹716.74 billion (US$10.7 billion) in 2004–2005, registering a growth of 21% with estimated revenue of FY'2011 of ₹8.35 billion (US$120 million). The total investment in the telecom services sector reached ₹2,006 billion (US$29.9 billion) in 2005–06, up from ₹1,788 billion (US$26.6 billion) in the previous fiscal.[76] Telecommunication is the lifeline of the rapidly growing Information Technology industry. Internet subscriber base has risen to more than a 121 million in 2011.[77] Out of this 11.47 million were broadband connections. More than a billion people use the Internet globally. Under the Bharat Nirman, the Government of India will ensure that 66,822 revenue villages in the country, which have not yet been provided with a Village Public Telephone (VPT), will be connected. However doubts have been raised about what it would mean for the poor in the country.[78]

text: It is difficult to ascertain fully the employment potential of the telecom sector but the enormity of the opportunities can be gauged from the fact that there were 3.7 million Public Call Offices in December 2005[79] up from 2.3 million in December 2004.

text: The Total Revenue of Indian Telecom Services company is likely to exceed ₹2,000 billion (US$30 billion) ( US$44 Bn approx) for FY 11–12 based on FY 10–11 nos and latest quarterly results. These are consolidated numbers including foreign operation of Bharti Airtel. The major contributions to this revenue are as follows:[80]

text:
Airtel ₹65,060 (US$970)
Reliance Communications ₹31,468 (US$470)
Idea ₹16,936 (US$250)
Tata Communications ₹11,931 (US$180)
MTNL ₹4,380 (US$65)
TTML ₹2,248 (US$34)
BSNL ₹32,045 (US$480)
Vodafone India ₹18,376 (US$270)
Tata Teleservices ₹9,200 (US$140)
Aircel ₹7,968 (US$120)
SSTL ₹600 (US$8.90)
Uninor ₹660 (US$9.80)
Loop ₹560 (US$8.30)
Stel ₹60 (89¢ US)
HFCL ₹204 (US$3.00)
Videocon Telecom ₹254 (US$3.80)
DB Etisalat/ Allianz ₹47 (70¢ US)
Grand Total ₹2,019 billion (US$30 billion)

text: International[edit]

text:
Nine satellite earth stations – 8 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) and 1 Inmarsat (Indian Ocean region).
Nine gateway exchanges operating from Mumbai, New Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai, Jalandhar, Kanpur, Gandhinagar, Hyderabad and Ernakulam.

text: Submarine cables[edit]

text:
LOCOM linking Chennai to Penang, Malaysia
India-UAE cable linking Mumbai to Al Fujayrah, UAE.
SEA-ME-WE 2 (South East Asia-Middle East-Western Europe 2)
SEA-ME-WE 3 (South East Asia-Middle East-Western Europe 3) – Landing sites at Cochin and Mumbai. Capacity of 960 Gbit/s.
SEA-ME-WE 4 (South East Asia-Middle East-Western Europe 4) – Landing sites at Mumbai and Chennai. Capacity of 1.28 Tbit/s.
Fibre-Optic Link Around the Globe (FLAG-FEA) with a landing site at Mumbai (2000). Initial design capacity 10 Gbit/s, upgraded in 2002 to 80 Gbit/s, upgraded to over 1 Tbit/s (2005).
TIISCS (Tata Indicom India-Singapore Cable System), also known as TIC (Tata Indicom Cable), Chennai to Singapore. Capacity of 5.12 Tbit/s.
i2i – Chennai to Singapore. Capacity of 8.4 Tbit/s.
SEACOM From Mumbai to the Mediterranean, via South Africa. It joins with SEA-ME-WE 4 off the west coast of Spain to carry traffic onward to London (2009). Capacity of 1.28 Tbit/s.
I-ME-WE (India-Middle East-Western Europe) with two landing sites at Mumbai (2009). Capacity of 3.84 Tbit/s.
EIG (Europe-India Gateway), landing at Mumbai (due Q2 2010).
MENA (Middle East North Africa).
TGN-Eurasia (Announced) Landing at Mumbai (due 2010?), Capacity of 1.28 Tbit/s
TGN-Gulf (Announced) Landing at Mumbai (due 2011?), Capacity Unknown.


document_title: Bhakti movement

question_text: who made the concept of bhakti popular in south india

root

text: Bhakti movement

text: Terminology[edit]

text: The Sanskrit word bhakti is derived from the root bhaj, which means "divide, share, partake, participate, to belong to".[13][14] The word also means "attachment, devotion to, fondness for, homage, faith or love, worship, piety to something as a spiritual, religious principle or means of salvation".[15][16]

tag: p

text: The meaning of the term Bhakti is analogous but different than Kama. Kama connotes emotional connection, sometimes with sensual devotion and erotic love. Bhakti, in contrast, is spiritual, a love and devotion to religious concepts or principles, that engages both emotion and intellection.[17] Karen Pechelis states that the word Bhakti should not be understood as uncritical emotion, but as committed engagement.[17] Bhakti movement in Hinduism refers to ideas and engagement that emerged in the medieval era on love and devotion to religious concepts built around one or more gods and goddesses. One who practices bhakti is called a bhakta.[18]

text: Textual roots[edit]

text: Ancient Indian texts, dated to be from the 1st millennium BCE, such as the Shvetashvatara Upanishad, the Katha Upanishad and the Bhagavad Gita mention Bhakti.[19]

text: Shvetashvatara Upanishad[edit]

text: The last of three epilogue verses of the Shvetashvatara Upanishad, 6.23, uses the word Bhakti as follows,

text:
यस्य देवे परा भक्तिः यथा देवे तथा गुरौ ।
तस्यैते कथिता ह्यर्थाः प्रकाशन्ते महात्मनः ॥ २३ ॥[20]

He who has highest Bhakti (love, devotion)[21] of Deva (God),
just like his Deva, so for his Guru (teacher),
To him who is high-minded,
these teachings will be illuminating.

text: This verse is notable for the use of the word Bhakti, and has been widely cited as among the earliest mentions of "the love of God".[21][24] Scholars[25][26] have debated whether this phrase is authentic or later insertion into the Upanishad, and whether the terms "Bhakti" and "God" meant the same in this ancient text as they do in the medieval and modern era Bhakti traditions found in India. Max Muller states that the word Bhakti appears only in one last verse of the epilogue, could have been a later insertion and may not be theistic as the word was later used in much later Sandilya Sutras.[27] Grierson as well as Carus note that the first epilogue verse 6.21 is also notable for its use of the word Deva Prasada (देवप्रसाद, grace or gift of God), but add that Deva in the epilogue of the Shvetashvatara Upanishad refers to "pantheistic Brahman" and the closing credit to sage Shvetashvatara in verse 6.21 can mean "gift or grace of his Soul".[21]

text: Doris Srinivasan[28] states that the Upanishad is a treatise on theism, but it creatively embeds a variety of divine images, an inclusive language that allows "three Vedic definitions for personal deity". The Upanishad includes verses wherein God can be identified with the Supreme (Brahman-Atman, Self, Soul) in Vedanta monistic theosophy, verses that support dualistic view of Samkhya doctrines, as well as the synthetic novelty of triple Brahman where a triune exists as the divine soul (Deva, theistic God), individual soul (self) and nature (Prakrti, matter).[28][29] Tsuchida writes that the Upanishad syncretically combines monistic ideas in Upanishad and self-development ideas in Yoga with personification of Shiva-Rudra deity.[30] Hiriyanna interprets the text to be introducing "personal theism" in the form of Shiva Bhakti, with a shift to monotheism but in henotheistic context where the individual is encouraged to discover his own definition and sense of God.[31]

text: Bhagavad Gita[edit]

text: The Bhagavad Gita, a post-Vedic scripture composed in 5th to 2nd century BCE,[32] introduces bhakti marga (the path of faith/devotion) as one of three ways to spiritual freedom and release, the other two being karma marga (the path of works) and jnana marga (the path of knowledge).[33][34] In verses 6.31 through 6.47 of the Bhagavad Gita, Krishna as an avatar of deity Vishnu, describes bhakti yoga and loving devotion, as one of the several paths to the highest spiritual attainments.[35][36]

text: Sutras[edit]

text: Shandilya and Narada are credited with two Bhakti texts, the Shandilya Bhakti Sutra and Narada Bhakti Sutra.[37][38][39]

text: History[edit]

text: The Bhakti movement originated in South India during the seventh century CE, spread northwards from Tamil Nadu through Karnataka and Maharashtra, and gained wide acceptance in fifteenth-century Bengal and northern India.[1]

text: The movement started with the Saiva Nayanars[41] and the Vaisnava Alvars. Their efforts ultimately helped spread bhakti poetry and ideas throughout India by the 12th–18th century CE.[41][42]

text: The Alvars, which literally means "those immersed in God", were Vaishnava poet-saints who sang praises of Vishnu as they travelled from one place to another.[43] They established temple sites such as Srirangam, and spread ideas about Vaishnavism. Their poems, compiled as Alwar Arulicheyalgal or Divya Prabhandham, developed into an influential scripture for the Vaishnavas. The Bhagavata Purana's references to the South Indian Alvar saints, along with its emphasis on bhakti, have led many scholars to give it South Indian origins, though some scholars question whether this evidence excludes the possibility that bhakti movement had parallel developments in other parts of India.[44][45]

text: Like the Alvars, the Saiva Nayanar poets were influential. The Tirumurai, a compilation of hymns on Shiva by sixty-three Nayanar poet-saints, developed into an influential scripture in Shaivism. The poets' itinerant lifestyle helped create temple and pilgrimage sites and spread spiritual ideas built around Shiva.[43] Early Tamil-Siva bhakti poets influenced Hindu texts that came to be revered all over India.[46]

text: Some scholars state that the Bhakti movement's rapid spread in India in the 2nd millennium, was in part a response to the arrival of Islam[47] and subsequent Islamic rule in India and Hindu-Muslim conflicts.[48][49][50] This view is contested by some scholars,[50] with Rekha Pande stating that singing ecstatic bhakti hymns in local language was a tradition in south India before Muhammad was born.[51] According to Pande, the psychological impact of Muslim conquest may have initially contributed to community-style bhakti by Hindus.[51] Yet other scholars state that Muslim invasions, their conquering of Hindu Bhakti temples in south India and seizure/melting of musical instruments such as cymbals from local people, was in part responsible for the later relocation or demise of singing Bhakti traditions in the 18th century.[52]

text: According to Wendy Doniger, the nature of Bhakti movement may have been affected by the "surrender to God" daily practices of Islam when it arrived in India.[48] In turn it influenced devotional practices in Islam such as Sufism,[53] and other religions in India from 15th century onwards, such as Sikhism, Christianity,[54] and Jainism.[55]

text: Klaus Witz, in contrast, traces the history and nature of Bhakti movement to the Upanishadic and the Vedanta foundations of Hinduism. He writes, that in virtually every Bhakti movement poet, "the Upanishadic teachings form an all-pervasive substratum, if not a basis. We have here a state of affairs that has no parallel in the West. Supreme Wisdom, which can be taken as basically non-theistic and as an independent wisdom tradition (not dependent on the Vedas), appears fused with highest level of bhakti and with highest level of God realization."[56]

text: Poets, writers and musicians[edit]

text:
An example of Hindu bhakti song

Devotional singing set to music (8 minutes 17 seconds)

Problems playing this file? See media help.

tag: table

text: The Bhakti movement witnessed a surge in Hindu literature in regional languages, particularly in the form of devotional poems and music.[12][57][58] This literature includes the writings of the Alvars and Nayanars, poems of Andal,[59] Basava,[60] Bhagat Pipa,[61] Allama Prabhu, Akka Mahadevi, Kabir, Nanak (founder of Sikhism),[60] Tulsidas, Gusainji, Ghananand,[59] Ramananda (founder of Ramanandi Sampradaya), Sripadaraja, Vyasatirtha, Purandara Dasa, Kanakadasa, Vijaya Dasa, Six goswamis of Vrindavan ,[62]Raskhan,[63] Ravidas,[60] Jayadeva Goswami,[59] Namdev,[60] Eknath, Tukaram, Mirabai,[40] Ramprasad Sen,[64] Sankardev,[65] Vallabha Acharya,[60] Narsinh Mehta,[66] Gangasati[67] and the teachings of saints like Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.[68]

text: The earliest writers from the 7th to 10th century CE known to have influenced the poet-saints driven movements include, Sambandar, Tirunavukkarasar, Sundarar, Nammalvar, Adi Shankara, Manikkavacakar and Nathamuni.[69] Several 11th and 12th century writers developed different philosophies within the Vedanta school of Hinduism, which were influential to the Bhakti tradition in medieval India. These include Ramanuja, Madhva, Vallabha and Nimbarka.[59][69] These writers championed a spectrum of philosophical positions ranging from theistic dualism, qualified nondualism and absolute monism.[7][8]

text: Philosophy: Nirguna and Saguna Brahman[edit]

text: The Bhakti movement of Hinduism saw two ways of imaging the nature of the divine (Brahman) – Nirguna and Saguna.[70] Nirguna Brahman was the concept of the Ultimate Reality as formless, without attributes or quality.[71] Saguna Brahman, in contrast, was envisioned and developed as with form, attributes and quality.[71] The two had parallels in the ancient pantheistic unmanifest and theistic manifest traditions, respectively, and traceable to Arjuna-Krishna dialogue in the Bhagavad Gita.[70][72] It is the same Brahman, but viewed from two perspectives, one from Nirguni knowledge-focus and other from Saguni love-focus, united as Krishna in the Gita.[72] Nirguna bhakta's poetry were Jnana-shrayi, or had roots in knowledge.[70] Saguna bhakta's poetry were Prema-shrayi, or with roots in love.[70] In Bhakti, the emphasis is reciprocal love and devotion, where the devotee loves God, and God loves the devotee.[72]

text: Jeaneane Fowler states that the concepts of Nirguna and Saguna Brahman, at the root of Bhakti movement theosophy, underwent more profound development with the ideas of Vedanta school of Hinduism, particularly those of Adi Shankara's Advaita Vedanta, Ramanuja's Vishishtadvaita Vedanta, and Madhvacharya's Dvaita Vedanta.[71] Two 12th-century influential treatises on bhakti were Sandilya Bhakti Sutra – a treatise resonating with Nirguna-bhakti, and Narada Bhakti Sutra – a treatise that leans towards Saguna-bhakti.[73]

text: Nirguna and Saguna Brahman concepts of the Bhakti movement has been a baffling one to scholars, particularly the Nirguni tradition because it offers, states David Lorenzen, "heart-felt devotion to a God without attributes, without even any definable personality".[74] Yet given the "mountains of Nirguni bhakti literature", adds Lorenzen, bhakti for Nirguna Brahman has been a part of the reality of the Hindu tradition along with the bhakti for Saguna Brahman.[74] These were two alternate ways of imagining God during the bhakti movement.[70]

text: Social impact[edit]

text: The Bhakti movement was a devotional transformation of medieval Hindu society, wherein Vedic rituals or alternatively ascetic monk-like lifestyle for moksha gave way to individualistic loving relationship with a personally defined god.[3] Salvation which was previously considered attainable only by men of Brahmin, Kshatriya and Vaishya castes, became available to everyone.[3] Most scholars state that Bhakti movement provided women and members of the Shudra and untouchable communities an inclusive path to spiritual salvation.[75] Some scholars disagree that the Bhakti movement was premised on such social inequalities.[76][77]

text: Poet-saints grew in popularity, and literature on devotional songs in regional languages became profuse.[3] These poet-saints championed a wide range of philosophical positions within their society, ranging from theistic dualism of Dvaita to absolute monism of Advaita Vedanta.[7] Kabir, a poet-saint for example, wrote in Upanishadic style, the state of knowing truth:[78]

text:
There's no creation or creator there,
no gross or fine, no wind or fire,
no sun, moon, earth or water,
no radiant form, no time there,
no word, no flesh, no faith,
no cause and effect, nor any thought of the Veda,
no Hari or Brahma, no Shiva or Shakti,
no pilgrimage and no rituals,
no mother, father or guru there...

text: The early 15th-century Bhakti poet-sant Pipa stated,[79]

text:
Within the body is the god, within the body the temple,
within the body all the Jangamas[80]
within the body the incense, the lamps and the food-offerings,
within the body the puja-leaves.

After searching so many lands,
I found the nine treasures within my body,
Now there will be no further going and coming,
I swear by Rama.

text: The impact of the Bhakti movement in India was similar to that of the Protestant Reformation of Christianity in Europe.[7] It evoked shared religiosity, direct emotional and intellection of the divine, and the pursuit of spiritual ideas without the overhead of institutional superstructures.[82] Practices emerged bringing new forms of spiritual leadership and social cohesion among the medieval Hindus, such as community singing, chanting together of deity names, festivals, pilgrimages, rituals relating to Saivism, Vaishnavism and Shaktism.[41][83] Many of these regional practices have survived into the modern era.[3]

text: Seva, daana and community kitchens[edit]

text: The Bhakti movement introduced new forms of voluntary social giving such as Seva (service, for example to a temple or guru school or community construction), Dāna (charity), and community kitchens with free shared food.[84] Of community kitchen concepts, the vegetarian Guru ka Langar introduced by Nanak became a well established institution over time, starting with northwest India, and expanding to everywhere Sikh communities are found.[85] Other saints such as Dadu Dayal championed similar social movement, a community that believed in Ahimsa (non-violence) towards all living beings, social equality, and vegetarian kitchen, as well as mutual social service concepts.[86] Bhakti temples and matha (Hindu monasteries) of India adopted social functions such as relief to victims after natural disaster, helping the poor and marginal farmers, providing community labor, feeding houses for the poor, free hostels for poor children and promoting folk culture.[87]

text: Sikhism, Shakti and the Bhakti movement[edit]

text: Some scholars call Sikhism a Bhakti sect of Indian traditions.[88][89] In Sikhism, "nirguni Bhakti" is emphasised – devotion to a divine without Gunas (qualities or form),[89][90][91] but it accepts both nirguni and saguni forms of the divine.[92]

text: The Guru Granth Sahib, the scripture of the Sikhs, contains the hymns of the Sikh gurus, thirteen Hindu bhagats, and two Muslim bhagats.[93] Some of the Bhagats whose hymns were included in the Guru Granth Sahib, were bhakti poets who taught their ideas before the birth of Guru Nanak – the first of Sikh Guru. The thirteen Hindu bhagats whose hymns were entered into the text, were poet saints of the Bhakti movement, and included Ramananda, Namdev, Pipa, Ravidas, Beni, Bhikhan, Dhanna, Jayadeva, Parmanand, Sadhana, Sain, Surdas, Trilochan, while the two Muslim bhagats were Kabir and Sufi saint Farid.[94][95][96] Most of the 5,894 hymns in the Sikh scripture came from the Sikh gurus, and rest from the Bhagats. The three highest contributions in the Sikh scripture of non-Sikh bhagats were from Bhagat Kabir (292 hymns), Bhagat Farid (134 hymns), and Bhagat Namdev (60 hymns).[97]

text: While Sikhism was influenced by Bhakti movement,[98][99][100] and incorporated hymns from the Bhakti poet saints, it was not simply an extension of the Bhakti movement.[101] Sikhism, for instance, disagreed with some of the views of Bhakti saints Kabir and Ravidas.[note 1][101]

text: Guru Nanak, the first Sikh Guru and the founder of Sikhism, was a Bhakti saint.[102] He taught, states Jon Mayled, that the most important form of worship is Bhakti.[103] Nam-simran – the realisation of God – is an important Bhakti practice in Sikhism.[104][105][106] Guru Arjan, in his Sukhmani Sahib, recommended the true religion is one of loving devotion to God.[107][108] The Sikh scripture Guru Granth Sahib includes suggestions for a Sikh to perform constant Bhakti.[103][109][note 2] The Bhakti themes in Sikhism also incorporate Shakti (power) ideas.[111]

text: Some Sikh sects outside the Punjab-region of India, such as those found in Maharashtra and Bihar, practice Aarti with lamps in a Gurdwara.[112][113] Arti and devotional prayer ceremonies are also found in Ravidassia religion, previously part of Sikhism.[114][115]

text: Buddhism, Jainism and Bhakti movement[edit]

text: Bhakti has been a prevalent practice in various Jaina sects, wherein learned Tirthankara (Jina) and human gurus are considered superior beings and venerated with offerings, songs and Āratī prayers.[116] John Cort suggests that the bhakti movement in later Hinduism and Jainism may share roots in vandan and pujan concepts of the Jaina tradition.[116]

text: Medieval-era bhakti traditions among non-theistic Indian traditions such as Buddhism and Jainism have been reported by scholars, wherein the devotion and prayer ceremonies were dedicated to an enlightened guru, primarily Buddha and Jina Mahavira respectively, as well as others.[117] Karel Werner notes that Bhatti (Bhakti in Pali) has been a significant practice in Theravada Buddhism, and states, "there can be no doubt that deep devotion or bhakti / bhatti does exist in Buddhism and that it had its beginnings in the earliest days".[118]

text: Christianity[edit]

text: Bhakti, according to William Dyrness, has been a "point of convergence" between Christian gospel tradition and the Hindu devotional tradition. It has helped Indian Christians devote themselves to God as distinct from his creation, and as a personal being to love, to expect grace from, through self-giving devotion.[119][better source needed] Songs were composed by poets such as A.J. Appasamy, Sadhu Sundar Singh and other early converts in the early twentieth century that were rich in lyrics and brought out the mysticism, legends and meaning of Christianity.[119] According to Kugler, some of the pioneers of bhakti in Christian sects in India include Murari David.[120]

text: Controversy and doubts in postmodern scholarship[edit]

text: Postmodern scholars question whether the 19th- and early 20th-century theories about Bhakti movement in India, its origin, nature and history is accurate. Pechilis in her book on Bhakti movement, for example, states[121]

text: Scholars writing on bhakti in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries were agreed that bhakti in India was preeminently a monotheistic reform movement. For these scholars, the inextricable connection between monotheism and reform has both theological and social significance in terms of the development of Indian culture. The orientalist images of bhakti were formulated in a context of discovery: a time of organised cultural contact, in which many agencies, including administrative, scholarly and missionary – sometimes embodied in a single person – sought knowledge of India. Through the Indo-European language connection, early orientalists believed that they were, in a sense, seeing their own ancestry in the antique texts and "antiquated" customs of Indian peoples. In this respect, certain scholars could identify with the monotheism of bhakti. Seen as a reform movement, bhakti presented a parallel to the orientalist agenda of intervention in the service of the empire.

text: Madeleine Biardeau states, as does Jeanine Miller, that Bhakti movement was neither a reform nor a sudden innovation, but the continuation and expression of ideas to be found in Vedas, Bhakti marga teachings of the Bhagavad Gita, the Katha Upanishad and the Shvetashvatara Upanishad.[19][122]

text: John Stratton Hawley describes recent scholarship which questions the old theory of Bhakti movement origin and "story of south-moves-north", then states that the movement had multiple origins, mentioning Brindavan in north India as another center.[123] Hawley describes the controversy and disagreements between Indian scholars, quotes Hegde's concern that "Bhakti movement was a reform" theory has been supported by "cherry-picking particular songs from a large corpus of Bhakti literature" and that if the entirety of the literature by any single author such as Basava is considered along with its historical context, there is neither reform nor a need for reform.[77]

text: Sheldon Pollock writes that the Bhakti movement was neither a rebellion against Brahmins and the upper castes nor a rebellion against the Sanskrit language, because many of the prominent thinkers and earliest champions of the Bhakti movement were Brahmins and from upper castes, and because much of the early and later Bhakti poetry and literature was in Sanskrit.[124] Further, states Pollock, evidence of Bhakti trends in ancient southeast Asian Hinduism in the 1st millennium CE, such as those in Cambodia and Indonesia where Vedic era is unknown, and where upper caste Tamil Hindu nobility and merchants introduced Bhakti ideas of Hinduism, suggest the roots and the nature of Bhakti movement to be primarily spiritual and political quest instead of rebellion of some form.[125][126]

text: John Guy states that the evidence of Hindu temples and Chinese inscriptions from 8th century CE about Tamil merchants, presents Bhakti motifs in Chinese trading towns, particularly the Kaiyuan Temple (Quanzhou).[127] These show Saivite, Vaishnavite and Hindu Brahmin monasteries revered Bhakti themes in China.[127]

text: Scholars increasingly are dropping, states Karen Pechilis, the old premises and the language of "radical otherness, monotheism and reform of orthodoxy" for Bhakti movement.[10] Many scholars are now characterising the emergence of Bhakti in medieval India as a revival, reworking and recontextualisation of the central themes of the Vedic traditions.[10]


document_title: Rabi crop

question_text: which rabi crop is grown during the winter season

text: Rabi crop

text: This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (February 2012) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)

text: Rabi crops or Rabi harvest are agricultural crops sown in winter and harvested in the spring in the South Asia.[1] The term is derived from the Arabic word for "spring", which is used in the Indian subcontinent, where it is the spring harvest (also known as the "winter crop").

text: The rabi crops are sown around mid-November, after the monsoon rains are over, and harvesting begins in April/May. The crops are grown either with rainwater that has percolated into the ground, or with irrigation. A good rain in winter spoils the rabi crops but is good for kharif crops.

text: The major rabi crop in India is wheat, followed by barley, mustard, sesame and peas. Peas are harvested early, as they are ready early: Indian markets are flooded with green peas from January to March, peaking in February.

text: Many crops are cultivated in both kharif and rabi seasons. The agriculture crops produced in India are seasonal in nature and highly dependent on these two monsoons.[2]

text: Common Rabi crops[edit]

text:
wheat (Triticum aestvium)
oat (Avena sativa)
barley

tag: ul

text:
alfalfa (Lucerne, Medicago sativa)
linseed
sesame
cumin (Cuminum cyminum, L)
coriander (Coriandrum sativum, L)
mustard (Brassica juncea L.)
fennel (Foeniculum vulgare)
fenugreek (Trigonella foenumgraecum, L)
isabgol (Plantago ovata)

text:
pea
chickpea (Gram, Cicer arientinum)
onion (Allium cepa, L.)
tomato (Solanum lycopersicum, L)
potato (Solanum tuberosum)


document_title: Escape to the Country

question_text: how many series of escape to the country are there

text: Escape to the Country

text: Broadcast[edit]

text: There are two versions of each episode produced - a shorter 45-minute version with only 3 houses shown and a longer 60-minute version. The short version usually airs on BBC One weekday afternoons (usually in the 15:00 slot) and the longer on BBC One weekdays at 10:00 or BBC Two evenings at 19:00. Escape to the Country is often credited as being the forerunner of other property/lifestyle shows such as A Place in the Sun. Repeat episodes are shown on Home. Another version of the series "Escape to the Continent", is based on exotic international locations, like Portugal and Malta.

text: Series 1 to 5[edit]

text: Produced by Boundless, part of Fremantle UK and shown to air from 2002, the basic premise of the show is that a person/family wishes to relocate from their current city home to a more peaceful and rural retreat. It is then the job of the show's presenter to find four houses for the family to view via laptop computer in their own homes. The family must then choose two out of the four houses to go and view for themselves. In addition, there is also the option of choosing the presenter's 'mystery house'.

text: Series 6 to 9[edit]

text: The format of the show changed in series 6 to accommodate viewer demand to see more houses and more local information[citation needed]. Contributors now view all four houses, of which the fourth is the mystery house. The mystery house usually has something unique about it that will either make the contributors fall in love with or hate it. Added to the show is a taster day in which the contributors sample local delights, gain historical knowledge and visit local attractions to get a feel for the area they are planning to move to. Series 6 aired in August 2007 on BBC One, while series 7 and 8 aired back-to-back in autumn 2008. Series 9 began on 23 February in a new slot of 15:45 on BBC Two.

text: Series 10 to 12[edit]

text: The format was modified yet again. The number of properties the couples viewed was reduced to three, with the third being the mystery house. Series 12 consisted of 75 shows and was broadcast from November 2011 on BBC Two with the addition of new title and credit sequences.

text: Series 13 to present[edit]

text: Series 13 premiered on 3 September 2012 on BBC One. In subsequent years, subsequent series were aired.

text: In September 2018, Series 19 was underway. BBC One was re-running episodes of Series 18 on a daily basis.[1][2]

text: Presenters[edit]

text: Presenters include:[3]

text:
Catherine Gee (2002–2007)[4]
Nick Page (2002)[5]. ( Page recently appeared in the latest series of the ITV1 talent competition "Britain's Got Talent" as a stand - up comedian )
Jules Hudson (2007–)
Alistair Appleton (2007–)
Denise Nurse (2008–)
Jonnie Irwin (2008–)
Nicki Chapman (2008–)
Melissa Porter (2008)
Aled Jones (2010–)
Nicki Shields (2013–)
Tim Vincent (2018-)
Anita Rani (2014–)
Sonali Shah (2014–)
Ginny Buckley (2016-)
Margherita Taylor (2017-)

text: International broadcasts[edit]

text: In Australia, Escape to the Country airs on Seven Network's free-to-air digital channel 7TWO Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights, and the Lifestyle Channel on Foxtel Subscription TV every week night.

text: In Canada, Escape to the Country is seen on Gusto TV Monday nights, 6:00 pm to 9:00 pm. "Escape to the Country" can also be seen on CBC weekdays at 1:00pm.

text: In Sweden, Escape to the Country airs on TV8, Monday to Thursday nights at 8:00pm (7:00pm local time).

text: In the Netherlands, Escape to the Country airs since April 2011 on SBS 6, Saturday nights at 5.00 pm (6.00 pm local time). Additionally, most viewers in the Netherlands can watch the show on the BBC channels that are distributed by cable operators. As a result of its availability in the Netherlands it features in the novel The Detour.[6]

text: In the United States, "Escape to the Country" is viewable on Netflix online streaming as of March 2017.

text: International Versions[edit]

text: In late 2017, Australian Publicly owned Television Network, the ABC, announced it was going to air a local version of the show, to be titled 'Escape from the City' and produced by Fremantle Media Australia. The official Facebook page says: "Follow everyday Australians as they leave the big smoke behind for a life in rural, coastal or regional Australia. With our team of experts, house-hunters will be taken on a tour of properties in their dream country location, and given the chance to sample a slice of life in their ideal town."

text: The Show is scheduled to air in 2018 on the ABC.

text: DVD releases[edit]

text: On 5 March 2014, two DVDs were released in Australia by Shock Entertainment. Titled Series 20 Parts 1 & 2, the two DVDs box sets had a total of 19 discs.[7][8]