(a) whether the Government of Andhra Pradesh has requested that Telugu be declared an additional official language of the Union along with English and Hindi;
(b) if so, the details thereof;
(c) the reaction of the Government thereto; and
(d) the other languages being considered for inclusion in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution for the purpose of declaring them as official languages of the Union?
MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF HOME AFFAIRS (SHRI MANIKRAO HODLYA GAVIT)
(a): Yes, Sir.
(b): A Statement is enclosed.
(c): According to article 343 of the Constitution, Hindi is the Official Language of the Union.
(d): There is no proposal to declare any other language as the Official Language of the Union.
STATEMENT REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PART (b) OF THE LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1821 DUE FOR ANSWER ON 20-7-2004
In letter dated 10-7-2003 of the then Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh to the then Prime Minister, it is stated that Telugu is one of the oldest and sweetest languages of India. This language is now spoken by an estimated 14.5 crores of people in the country, making it the second largest spoken language after Hindi. Therefore, Telugu should also be given the status of a National Official Language. Sri Krishna Devaraya, the popular Vijayanagara Emperor, hailed Telugu as the best of languages. The renowned Tamil poet Sri Subramanya Bharathi was deeply impressed by the rechness and sweetness of the language, so much so that he called it “Sundara Tenunguâ€. Englishmen such as C.P Brown and Bishop Caldwell fell in love with Telugu and rendered yeoman service for promotion and preservation of its precious qualities. The British Biologist Prof. J.B.S. Haldane felt that Telugu had all the requirements to become a National Language.
2. It was, therefore, requested in the above mentioned letter that action be caused to declare Telugu as a National Official Language alongwith Hindi and English.