Hyderabad, April 16 : Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivaraj Singh Chauhan has lauded the contribution of Telugu people to the growth of Madhya Pradesh and said ‘Telugu is a very rich language and has a lot of significance.’ Speaking at the “Telugu Samagam”, organised by Telugu Sangamam in association with Balaji bhajana Mandali and Telugu Samkrutika Parishad at Bhopal on Saturday, Chauhan said, In MP, Telugu people are very much respected and they have become one with residents of the state. There is a significant contribution of Telugu People in the development of Madhya Pradesh, he said. Telugu people are achieving great things in the field of business, art and literature. Telugu Cinema is now a known phenomenon and they have given a new dimension to film making. After NTR, Prabhas is now known to everyone with his acting in Bahubali, Shivraj said. The MP Chief Minister said though we have diversified cultures, our spirit is one and we all belong to one great nation-India. I welcome everyone again and all the best to everyone”, Chauhan added. The Chief Patron of Telugu Sangamam and incharge of Madhya Pradesh BJP, P Muralidhar Rao said ” Telugu is second largest spoken language in the country after Hindi. In Chennai, 35 per cent to 40 per cent of the population speaks Telugu. Apart from this, our language can also be heard in states like Karnataka, Odisha and Maharashtra. Telugu language has great works of literature in both prose and poetry format. We are known for our poetry which is written in a very systematic format. Hence I advise all the Telugu people to learn Telugu. Not only reading , but one must also learn how to write in Telugu Language”, Rao said. The main purpose of this event is to bring all the Telugu people under one roof and also felicitate the people who have contributed to the improvement of art in Telugu language. Noted Telugu film Artist Ali, L V Gangadhara Sastry ( Founder, Bhagavad Gita Foundation) and Singer Padmasri Darshanam Mogilaiah were felicitated for their contribution to Telugu art and culture on the occasion. Speaking on the occasion, Ali said that, ” I am very much thankful toi Shivraj Singh Chauhan for presenting the award and would like to thank each one of you for blessing me and supporting me”, a release here said. VV CS1745