Cheralapally railway station to be named after Potti Sreeramulu, same for Telugu University

Hyderabad: Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy has stated that administrative complications may occur if universities and institutes in the Telugu-speaking States share the same name. To address this, universities and institutions in the State are being renamed after prominent people associated with Telangana.

Health Minister Damodar Raja Narasimha on Monday tabled the Potti Sreeramulu Telugu University (Amendment) Bill, 2025 during the ongoing Telangana Assembly Budget Sessions on behalf of CM Revanth Reddy.

The Legislative Assembly has approved the Potti Sreeramulu Telugu University name change bill, amid the charged discussions. The name has been changed to Suravaram Pratap Reddy Telugu University.

Addressing the House, the chief minister said that in the previous State Legislative sessions, it came to the notice of the House that the Telugu University should be renamed after Suravaram Prathap Reddy from the existing Potti Sreeramulu.

‘Name change not intended to offend anyone’

CM Revanth Reddy defended the decision, stating that everyone should remember Potti Sriramulu’s sacrifices and that his contributions are not being denigrated simply by altering the name.

“The name change of Potti Sreeramulu University is not intended to offend anyone. Potti Sriramulu University will continue in Andhra Pradesh. Many universities’ names have changed since Telangana’s inception. For convenience, we named some universities after Professor Jayashankar, Konda Lakshman Bapuji, PV Narasimha Rao and Kaloji Narayana Rao. In the same vein, we are naming the Potti Sreeramulu Telugu University after Suravaram Pratap Reddy who served the Telangana society a lot, fought against the Nijam and ran the Golkonda Patrika,” CM Revanth Reddy said.

The chief minister further said that the process of changing the names of institutions and universities has been going on for the last 10 years after the bifurcation of the State from Andhra Pradesh. He criticised the section of people trying to create misconceptions about name changes. For instance, NTR Health University was named after Kaloji. This is not to disrespect NTR and Acharya NG Ranga Agricultural University has been named after Professor Jayashankar.

Similarly, the Horticulture University, named after YS Rajasekhara Reddy, has been renamed after Konda Laxman Bapuji and Venkateswara Veterinary University has been renamed after PV Narasimha Rao. As part of it, Potti Sreeramulu Telugu University is now Suravaram Pratap Reddy, the chief minister said.

“It is completely incorrect that certain people in positions of authority assign caste to decisions made by the State government for the greater welfare. It was wicked to divide people according to caste and religion to obtain political advantage. The cricket stadium in Gujarat, which was named after Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, has been renamed after prime minister Narendra Modi. We will not make such mistakes,” CM Revanth Reddy said.

Cherlapally Railway Station will be renamed as Potti Sreeramulu terminal

The chief minister has announced that the newly renovated Cherlapally Railway Station will be renamed as Potti Sreeramulu terminal. A letter in this regard would be written to Union Ministers Bandi Sanjay Kumar and G Kishan Reddy urging them to get approval from the Centre to rename the Cherlapally Railway Terminal after Potti Sreeramulu.

He also said that Begumpet Nature Cure hospital would be renamed after former Andhra Pradesh chief minister K Rosaiah and a statue of him would also be installed to pay respects on his birth and death anniversaries every year.

BJP floor leader suggests renaming Osmania University

In response, BJP floor leader Alleti Maheshwar Reddy suggested renaming Osmania University in honor of Suravaram Pratapa Reddy. In addition, he asserted that in reaction to the Chief Minister's comments, the Center had only named a portion of the Sardar Patel Stadium after Prime Minister Narendra Modi, not the full stadium.

AIMIM MLA Ahmed Bin Balala also questioned Maheshwar Reddy's claim, pointing out that no institution in Telangana was named after the last Nizam, Mir Osman Ali Khan, despite his contributions to the state's growth and people's welfare.

Citing Pratapa Reddy's contributions to Telangana's literary and liberation movements, CPI MLA Kunamneni Sambasiva Reddy backed the name.