Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao and his Cabinet colleagues paid rich tributes to people’s poet Kaloji Narayana Rao on his centenary birthday here on Tuesday. The Chief Minister, describing Kaloji as universal poet, said efforts would be made by the State to ensure translation of his works into Hindi and English. He laid foundation for a memorial ‘Kaloji cultural complex’ at Balasamudram in Hanamkonda on the occasion.
Addressing an official function organised by the district administration and Kaloji Foundation at the NIT auditorium, the Chief Minister recalled his association with the poet.
Conceding the requests of foundation president Nagilla Rama Sastry, Mr. Rao said a university would be named after the poet and a building would be given to the foundation to carry on its activities of perpetuating the life and works of Kaloji Narayana Rao.
“Kaloji never compromised. He was defiant and stood for common man. This government runs on the ideals of Kaloji Narayana Rao,” the Chief Minister said.
Listing out the priorities of his government, Mr. Rao said “My heart weeps learning that nearly four lakh people sleep on pavements in Hyderabad. My first priority is to ensure housing to the poor and land to Dalits and minorities in the State,” he said.
“The TRS party and the government does what it says and says what it could do. There was no place for lies or bluffing unlike other parties. The government has just formed and it just began its work.” He said he had been asking his MLAs and Ministers to be careful before speaking in public.
“Here is our Deputy Chief Minister Mr. Rajaiah. He says he would set up Health University wherever he goes. Can you do it? Guard your tongue before speaking,” he hit out at the deputy Chief Minister sitting next to him on the dais.
MPs K. Keshava Rao, Kadiam Srihari, Speaker S. Madhusudhana Chary, MLAs D. Vinay Bhaskar, B. Kishan Naik, Collector G. Kishan, principal secretary B. P. Acharya and several others were present.
‘Excellence wilfully suppressed in TS’ Special Correspondent adds: The excellence that was wilfully suppressed in Telangana for generations will be showcased, a road map will be drawn and milestones dreamt by people’s poet Kaloji Narayana Rao will be achieved, Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao said to thunderous applause.
Kaloji was excellent and so was poet Dasarathi, he said and went on to say that Telangana government would leave no stone unturned in its endeavour to give the Telangana slang, the language, culture and tradition its due and showcase them globally.
Addressing a packed gathering at Ravindra Bharathi here on Tuesday evening at the concluding function of the poet’s centenary celebrations, he had the audience in splits speaking in the distinctive Telangana slang, reminding people with regret that this was what people from Andhra termed ‘Urdu’.
Freely quoting from Kaloji’s writings, Mr. Rao wondered how a ‘road’ was Telugu, while ‘sadak’ became Urdu. “Let us strive together to establish the society that people like Kaloji fought for, a society sans slums, where people do not have to sleep on pavements like the lakhs in Hyderabad and in which everyone will have food, clothing and shelter,” he proclaimed.
