The minister expressed gratitude towards PM Modi and Chief Minister Chouhan
Welcoming the decision to rename Hoshngabad district as Narmadapuram, Madhya Pradesh medical education minister Vishwas Sarang on Friday demanded that the state capital Bhopal be rechristened as Bhojpal in honour of Raja Bhoj, an 11th century ruler.
Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan has said that the central government has given its approval to rename Hoshangabad district in the state as Narmadapuram.
Mr Sarang expressed gratitude towards Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chouhan over renaming Hoshangabad as Narmadapuram and Babai town located in the same district as Makhan Nagar (after noted Hindi poet and journalist Makhanlal Chaturvedi).
“I have been demanding for long to change the name of Bhopal to Bhojpal. I have also raised this demand in the state assembly and now I will write a letter to the chief minister on the issue,” Mr Sarang said in a statement.
Mr Sarang said the idea behind changing names of some towns and villages is to delink them from their colonial past.
The Narmada river is the lifeline of the state and to change the name of Hoshangabad situated on its banks to Narmadapuram is a welcome step, the BJP leader said.
“Though the Congress calls this (name change exercise) as saffron agenda, we don't mind it. It is a matter of happiness that Babai will be known as Makhan Nagar as it is an expression of gratitude towards patriots," he said.
In the statement, Mr Sarang also announced to rename Shivpuri town in Tikamgarh district as Kundeshwar Dham in honour of Baba Kundeshwar, a revered religious figure in the state, as demanded by local residents.
The demand to change names of various cities and places gained momentum after the Centre agreed to the state government's request to rename Habibganj railway station in Bhopal as Rani Kamalapati station after the famous Gond queen last year. The Prime Minister had inaugurated the renamed railway station, redeveloped with airport-like amenities, in November 2021.
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