VIJAYAWADA: The coalition government is according due importance to the mother tongue and is committed to protecting and promoting Telugu, said Minister for Tourism, Culture and Cinematography Kandula Durgesh.
He announced that a key statement on the conduct of the Nandi Theatre Festivals would be made in the first week of September and assured that the prestigious festival would be organised on a grand scale within a year.
The minister was speaking at the Telugu Language Day celebrations organised by the Andhra Pradesh Department of Language and Culture at Dr BR Ambedkar Kala Vedika in Vijayawada on Saturday to mark the 163rd birth anniversary of Gidugu Venkata Ramamurthy Pantulu, the pioneer of the movement for spoken Telugu.
Durgesh presented the Telugu Language Awards-2026 to 19 individuals and an organisation for their contributions to the development and promotion of the language.
Each awardee received a cash prize of Rs 25,000, a memento and a certificate of appreciation. The minister also paid floral tributes to Gidugu Ramamurthy Pantulu after lighting the ceremonial lamp.
Praising Gidugu, Durgesh said he was a great reformer who brought Telugu from the confines of classical literature into the public domain.
The efforts of Kandukuri Veeresalingam, Gurajada Apparao and Gidugu had laid the foundation for the movement for spoken Telugu, he said. He recalled that Gidugu had developed a script for the Savara language and donated the remuneration he received from the British government towards the educational development of tribal communities.
Issuing the Government Order related to the Telugu Language Awards in Telugu itself was a reflection of the coalition government’s commitment to the mother tongue, he said.
The Tourism Minister said Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu and Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan were according priority to the mother tongue. He assured that the Culture Department would extend full support to the formation of spoken-Telugu associations in every district. While learning English and Hindi was necessary, people should not neglect their mother tongue.
He emphasised the need for primary education in Telugu and said the government would continue presenting Ugadi, Kandukuri and Telugu Language Awards every year.
Tourism and Culture Special Chief Secretary Shamsher Singh Rawat said Telugu, popularly known as the Italian of the East, deserved greater recognition. He said Gidugu’s ideals could be realised only by encouraging people to speak, read and write in Telugu. NTR District Collector Lakshmisha said working in Andhra Pradesh had strengthened his respect for the Telugu language.