First anniversary of Bapatla district on April 4

VIJAYAWADA: The first anniversary of Bapatla district would be held on April 4 to bring awareness among the masses, mainly the new generation, about the significance of Bapatla for centuries in history.

The Forum for Better Bapatla is organising a programme showcasing the importance of Bapatla district, which has a special place among all the newly formed districts.

The birthplace of ‘Maa Telugu Talliki’, the official song of the government of Andhra Pradesh, was Bapatla. Former AP Assembly deputy Speaker and MLA Kona Raghupathi, Bapatla district SP Vakul Jindal, and other eminent persons are going to attend the programme.

Forum for Better Bapatla secretary P.C. Saibabu said that Telugu Thalli had its origins in Bapatla, as the word Telugu Thalli was coined by the legendary poet Rayaprolu Subba Rao, who hails from Bapatla. He explained that Subba Rao used that term for the first time in Telugu literature and further explained that Yerrapragada, who lived in the 14th century and was one of the trinity who translated Mahabharatam into Telugu, was the court poet of the Reddy dynasty of Addanki in Bapatla district.

Saibabu said that Bhattiprolu in Bapatla district was well known for its Buddha Stupa, built in the 3rd century BC. One of the earliest pieces of evidence of Brahmi script in South India came from Bhattiprolu. The script was written on an urn containing Buddha’s relics. The script has been named the Bhattiprolu script.

He said, “Bapatla district also occupies a prominent place from the point of view of the history of the Telugu language and literature, and the Addanki Inscription in the district is a testimony to a flourishing Telugu literature, much before the available literary texts, as the Addanki poetic inscription is the first poem ever to be written in Telugu.” He further mentioned that earlier it was believed that the beginnings of Telugu poetry could not go back to a period earlier than the eleventh century, but the Addanki inscription took it two centuries back, as the date of the inscription was 848 AD.

Saibabu stated that Bapatla also gave birth to the Linguistic States Policy, and the historical First Andhra Conference was held here on May 26, 1913. He recalled that the Telugu people’s urge for separate statehood was forcefully displayed at this conference, laying the foundations for an Andhra state and paving the way for the crystallisation of the Andhra movement.