The Uttar Pradesh cabinet has decided to celebrate UP Diwas on January 24 as it was on this day in 1950 when the United Provinces was rechristened as Uttar Pradesh.
“Identity of any state or country is very important and so is the birth of any state. Thus to celebrate the day of formation of the state, Uttar Pradesh Diwas will be celebrated with fervour on January 24. The day will bring pride among the citizens of UP,” said state cabinet minister Siddharth Nath Singh while briefing the media on Tuesday.
During the Maharashtra Day celebrations hosted at the Raj Bhawan on Monday, chief minister Yogi Adityanath had said that UP would also celebrate ‘UP Diwas’ on the lines of the Maharashtra Day.
People would know the history and culture of their state if the day was observed, the CM had said.
Demands for celebrating the ‘UP Diwas’ had been pending for long. During the previous regime, governor Ram Naik had proposed the idea to the then chief minister Akhilesh Yadav.
Naik had said the ‘UP Diwas’ was celebrated by north Indians in Maharashtra but not in Uttar Pradesh and thus the state should soon start celebrating the day.
History
UP was born on January 24, 1950. The then governor general of India passed the United Provinces (alteration of name) Order 1950 renaming the then United Provinces as Uttar Pradesh. It was published in the Uttar Pradesh Gazette (extraordinary) dated 24 January 1950.
According to books on UP and documents at the archives, the state was under Bengal Presidency till 1834. But then the need to form a fourth presidency was felt—the three being Bengal, Bombay and Madras. The fourth presidency was known as the Agra Presidency that was headed by a governor.
In January 1858, Lord Canning proceeded to Allahabad and formed the North Western Province excluding Delhi division. The seat of power was thus shifted from Agra to Allahabad. This was followed by the transfer of the high court from Agra to Allahabad in 1868.
In 1856, Awadh was placed under the chief commissioner. The districts were later merged with the North Western Province and began to be known as ‘North Western Provinces and Oudh’ in 1877. The entire province came to be known as the ‘United Provinces of Agra and Oudh’ in 1902.
First election for the legislative council was held in 1920 and the council was constituted in Lucknow in 1921. Since the governor, ministers and secretaries to governor had to be in Lucknow, the then governor Sir Harcourt Butler changed his headquarters from Allahabad to Lucknow. By 1935, the entire office was shifted to Lucknow.
Lucknow became the capital of the province, the name of which was further changed to United Provinces in April 1937. The name was again changed to Uttar Pradesh in January 1950 under the Constitution of India.
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