HYDERABAD: Vice-President M. Venkaiah Naidu was all praise for the Alai Balai programme, which, he said, was a unique cultural fest that cuts across caste, religion, language and regional barriers. It is the responsibility of everyone to protect the country’s rich heritage, he said.
He was speaking at the event at Jala Vihar in Necklace Road after it was inaugurated by Governor Dr Tamilisai Soundararajan here on Sunday. The event was organised by Bandaru Vijayalakshmi, daughter of Haryana Governor Bandaru Dattatreya.
Naidu said that Bathukamma and Bonalu are symbols of Telangana culture. He lauded the organisers for conducting the programme for the past 16 years. This year the programme commenced at Nizam College.
Dr Soundararajan said that Bathukamma and Dasara celebrations were conducted on a grand scale. She exhorted Vijayalakshmi to continue the spirit of Alai Balai into the future.
Jana Sena chief Pawan Kalyan said that the spirit of Alai Balai should be extended everywhere. Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi in a letter to Dattatreya praised the Alai Balai celebrations. He said that to further the spirit of ‘Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat’, Alai Balai presents a great platform to folk artists of diverse regions to showcase their skills.
Venkaiah Naidu felicitated Krishna Ella of Bharat Biotech, Reddy’s Laboratory MD Prasada Reddy, AIG Hospitals chairman Dr Nageshwar Reddy, Biological-E MD Mahima Datla, and MAA president Manchu Vishnu on the occasion.
Apart from Dattatraya, his Himachal Pradesh counterpart Rajendra Vishwanath, Union minister G. Kishan Reddy, state minister Mahmood Ali, Legislative Council protem Chairman G. Bhoopal Reddy, MLC K. Kavitha, BJP OBC president Dr K. Laxman and others were present.
