Nirmala Sitharaman quotes Telugu poet Gurujada Apparao during Budget speech. Who was he?

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman quotes Telugu poet Gurujada Apparao in Union Budget 2025, emphasizing India's growth and potential.

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, presenting the Union Budget 2025 on Saturday (February 1, 2025), quoted Telugu poet Gurujada Apparao when speaking about the government’s plan for the next five years.

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She said India was the fastest growing among all major economies, adding that the government’s track record and structural reforms have attracted global attention. “Confidence in India’s capability and potential has only grown in this period,” she said.

Calling the next five years as an “unique opportunity” to realise ‘sabka vikas’ (development for all), she said, “The great Telugu poet and playwright Gurujada Apparao has said ‘A country is not just its soil, a country is its people’. In line with this, for us, Viksit Bharat encompasses zero poverty, 100% quality, good school education, access to high-quality affordable and comprehensive healthcare, 100% skilled labour with meaningful employment, 70% women in economic activities and farmers making our country the food basket of the world,” she said, speaking during the session.

Born to Gurajada Venkata Ramadasu and Kausalyamma at Rayavaram on November 30, 1861, Apparao is known for his plays in Telugu, notably, Kanyasulkam and Desamunu Preminchumanna.

He pursued higher education in Vijayanagaram and become a scholar in Telugu, Sanskrit and English. He also served as lecturer in the same Maharaja College he studied. While working on drama, short story and poetry, he also began researching the history of Telugu land and Kalinga (Orissa) with plans to write their history. He died in 1915