Minister for Tourism and Culture Kandula Durgesh and former Deputy Speaker and Avanigadda MLA Mandali Buddha Prasad on Monday urged parents to encourage their children to develop a passion for the Telugu language for its preservation. Mr. Durgesh along with Mr. Buddha Prasad unveiled the bronze statues of poets Chellapalla Venkata Sastry and Diwakarla Tirupathi Sastry, and freedom fighter Duvvuri Subbamma (1880-1964) at the ZP High School campus in Kadiyam, East Godavari district. Ms. Subbamma is recognised as the first woman freedom fighter to be imprisoned during the freedom struggle in Andhra Pradesh. Addressing the gathering of students and elders, Mr. Buddha Prasad said: “Students are free to learn any language. However, mother tongue should not be ignored on the pretext of employment opportunities.”In his address MLC Somu Veerraju appealed to the State government to include a lesson of Duvvuri Subbamma in high school textbooks. Rajamahendravaram Rural MLA Gorantla Butchaih Chowdary, Sri Potti Sriramulu Telugu University, Rajamahendravaram, In-Charge Vice-Chancellor D. Muniratnam Naidu and others were present.Published - December 15, 2025 09:26 pm IST