3-Aug-2021: Renaming of Jhansi Railway Station
The Govt. Of Uttar Pradesh has sent a proposal for renaming “Jhansi Railway Station” as “Veerangana Laxmibai Railway Station” in District-Jhansi. As per laid down procedure, the comments/views of agencies concerned have been sought. Further action will be taken after the comments/views are received from all the agencies concerned.
3-Jun-2020: Cabinet approves renaming of Kolkata Port Trust as Syama Prasad Mookerjee Trust
The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi has given its approval to rename Kolkata Port as Syama Prasad Mookerjee Port.
The Board of Trustees of Kolkata Port Trust in its Meeting held on 25th February, 2020 has also passed a Resolution to re-name Kolkata Port as Syama Prasad Mookerjee Port, Kolkata considering his multifaceted genius as an eminent jurist, academician, thinker and leader of the masses.
On the occasion of the inaugural ceremony of Sesquicentenary Celebrations of Kolkata Port on 12th January, 2020, keeping in view the sentiments of the people of West Bengal, it was announced that Kolkata Port will be re-named after Dr. Syama Prasad Mookerjee, one of the most deserving sons of West Bengal and a front-runner in national integration, dreamer of Bengal's development, inspiration for industrialisation and ardent votary of one law for one nation.
Background: The Kolkata Port is the first Major Port as well as the only riverine port of the country. It came to be governed by a Trust on 17th October, 1870 on appointment of the Commissioners for Improvement of the Port of Calcutta as per Act V of 1870. It features at Serial Number 1 in The First Schedule, Part I—Major Ports of the Indian Ports Act, 1908 and is governed by the Major Port Trusts Act, 1963. Kolkata Port has traversed 150 years and in this journey it has been India's gateway to trade, commerce and economic development. It has also been a witness to India's struggle for independence, World Wars l & II and socio-cultural changes taking place in the country, especially in Eastern India.
Generally, the Major Ports in India are named after the city or the town in which they are situated. Some ports, however, in special cases or in due consideration of contribution made by eminent leaders have been re-named after great national leaders in the past. Nhava Sheva Port Trust was renamed as Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust by the Government in the year 1989. The Tuticorin Port Trust was renamed as V.O. Chidambaranar Port Trust in the year 2011 and the Ennore Port Limited has been re-named as Kamarajar Port Limited in the honour of Shri K Kamarajar, eminent freedom fighter and former Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu. Recently, in 2017 Kandla Port was re-named as Deendayal Port. Besides, many airports have also been named after the great national leaders in India.
24-Oct-2019: Chenani Nashari Tunnel renamed after Dr Syama Prasad Mookerjee
Union Minister for Road Transport & Highways and MSME Shri Nitin Gadkari and Shri Jitendra Singh, MoS (I/C) Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER), MoS PMO, Public Grievances & Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space announced renaming of Chenani Nashri Tunnel on NH 44 in Jammu & Kashmir as Dr Syama Prasad Mookerjee Tunnel. This 9 km tunnel is the longest such state of art tunnel in the country, connecting Udhampur to Ramban in Jammu. Constructed at a cost of Rs 2500 crore, it cuts down 31 km of travel distance and reduces the travel time between the two points by about two hours, in addition to substantial saving in fuel cost.
Speaking on the occasion Shri Gadkari said the renaming of the tunnel is a fitting tribute to Dr Syama Prasad Mookerjee, who sacrificed his life for the country and has been a source of inspiration for the nation. In the state of Jammu & Kashmir, Rs 6000 crore worth of road projects have been taken up during the last five years. These include Ring Roads around both Jammu and Srinagar, and construction of Zojila Tunnel among others. These projects will be major game changers for the people of the state, bringing employment and socio-economic development.
The Minister announced plans for construction of a new road alignment between Delhi and Katra in Jammu, which will reduce the travel time upto six hours. The new alignment will pass through the states of Haryana and Punjab. The government is working on a policy for enhancing employment generation in the state through medium and small scale industries like handloom, handicrafts, honey based industries etc.
20-Mar-2019: Kazakhstan renames capital 'Nursultan' after ex-president
Kazakhstan's parliament voted to rename the country's capital in honour of longtime ruler Nursultan Nazarbayev, a day after he resigned as president. Astana is now officially renamed Nursultan after a parliamentary vote.
Kazakhstan's new interim president Kassym-Jomart Tokayev proposed renaming the capital after he was sworn in following Nazarbayev's shock resignation.
In his first official act, Tokayev proposed that Astana - the gleaming new capital Nazarbayev erected in the country's vast steppes - be renamed "Nursultan", or "Sultan of Light".
Astana replaced Kazakhstan's largest city Almaty as the capital in 1997 and was transformed from a minor provincial town into a futuristic city.
Its name meant "capital" in Kazakh and there had long been speculation it could at some point be renamed after the leader who shaped it.
It was not the first name change for the city, now home to more than 800,000 people.
11-Jan-2019: Macedonia changes its name to Republic of North Macedonia
Parliamentarians of the Republic of Macedonia voted to change their country’s name to the “Republic of North Macedonia”. The move awaits approval from Greece’s Parliament. A longstanding dispute between the two countries led to the move, because a region of Greece bordering the Macedonian republic is also called Macedonia. The change of name, if cleared by Athens, would pave the way for the small republic to enter NATO and the European Union.
Macedonia broke away from the former Yugoslavia in 1991 and declared independence. It measures a little over 25,000 sq km, and has a population just over 2 million. Neighbouring Greece has objected to its name all through, suggesting it implied the Macedonian republic’s territorial aspirations over the northern region of Greece. For the Greeks, Macedonia is significant as the cradle of Alexander the Great’s empire. Insisting that the name apply only to the Greek region, the Greeks have been blocking the Macedonian republic’s entry to NATO and EU membership.
In June last year, the two countries reached an agreement. Macedonia said it would change its name, and Greece said it would drop its objection to the neighboring country’s entry into the EU and NATO if the changes are formally adopted. The name appears to have been chosen back then, with Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras having said that the neighbouring country would be Severna Makedonija or Republic of North Macedonia. On Friday, 81 of 120 Macedonian MPs voted in favour of the name change, securing the required 2/3rds majority. However, the Greek Parliament still needs to vote — and this will likely prove no easy task given how deeply divisive the issue remains there. Before the vote in the Macedonian capital Skopje, a rift seemed to be growing over the issue between Prime Minister Tsipras and his right-wing coalition partner, Panos Kammenos, who has threatened to leave the government.
NATO and European leaders have welcomed the move. NATO strongly supports the full implementation of the agreement, which is an important contribution to a stable and prosperous region. Political leaders and citizens alike have shown their determination to seize this unique and historic opportunity in solving one of the oldest disputes in the region.
1-Jan-2019: Centre approves renaming Allahabad to ‘Prayagraj’
The Union Home Ministry has approved Uttar Pradesh government proposal to rename Allahabad as Prayagraj.
The Home Ministry clears the name change proposals after the Ministry of Railways, the Department of Posts and the Survey of India confirm that no city, town or village has similar names.
A proposal to rename West Bengal as Bangla is pending as the Ministry of External Affairs is understood to have expressed its reservation over the new name, as it sounds similar to Bangladesh.
The Union Home Ministry considers the proposals of name change according to the existing guidelines in consultations with agencies concerned. It gives its approval to the change of name of any place after taking no-objections from the Ministry of Railways, Department of Posts and Survey of India. These organisations have to confirm that there is no such city, town or village in their records with a name similar to the proposed one.
For changing the name of a village or town or a city, an executive order is needed. The renaming of a State requires amendment of the Constitution with a simple majority in Parliament.
31-Dec-2018: PM Modi renames 3 Andaman & Nicobar islands as tribute to Netaji
Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced renaming of three islands of Andaman and Nicobar archipelago as a tribute to Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose.
The Ross Island was renamed as Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose Dweep, the Neil Island as Shaheed Dweep and the Havelock Island as Swaraj Dweep. The three islands are major tourist spots.
Donning the Azad Hind Fauj (Indian National Army) cap, he addressed a public meeting at Netaji Stadium on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of the hoisting of the Tricolour by Bose here.
On this day in 1943, Bose had suggested that Andaman and Nicobar Islands be renamed as Shahid and Swaraj Dweep respectively. During the World War II, the Japanese had captured the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, and Netaji came here as the Azad Hind Fauj led by him was an ally of the Japanese force.
The historical event of 30th December 1943 has been completed today after 75 years.
PM also released a commemorative stamp, its first-day cover and a Rs-75 coin on this special day. He also announced setting up of a deemed university named after Bose.
Modi also visited the Marina Park and hoisted a national flag on a 150-feet high mast, besides paying floral tribute at Netaji's statue.
14-Nov-2018: UP cabinet approves renaming of Faizabad as Ayodhya, Allahabad as Prayagraj
The state Cabinet cleared the proposal to rename Faizabad and Allahabad divisions as Ayodhya and Prayagraj respectively.
The decision was taken on the basis of a proposal submitted by the Faizabad district magistrate on November 10. The reason cited was that Ayodhya was the capital of the ‘Ikshvaku dynasty’, to which the Hindu god Ram belonged, and that it is popularly known as his birthplace.
The proposal further said that Ayodhya has been the capital of many estates and dynasties in different time periods. As the headquarters of Allahabad division falls in Prayagraj district, the name of the division should also be changed to ‘Prayagraj division’. The division consists of four districts i.e. Prayagraj, Kaushambi, Fatehpur and Pratapgarh.
Today the proposal to change the names of district Faizabad to division Ayodhya and division Faizabad to division Ayodhya has been cleared by the Cabinet. Ayodhya division will consists of four districts which were part of Faizabad division.
Another proposal to change the name of Allahabad division to Prayagraj division has been cleared. The districts which were part of Allahabad division will now be part of Prayagraj division.
1-Nov-2018: Cabinet approves renaming of Jharsuguda Airport, Odisha as “Veer Surendra Sai Airport, Jharsuguda”
The Union Cabinet has approved renaming of Jharsuguda Airport, Odisha as “Veer Surendra Sai Airport, Jharsuguda”
Benefits: Veer Surendra Sai is a well-known freedom fighter of Odisha. Renaming of the Jharsuguda airport in his name will fulfill long-pending demand of the Odisha Government, which reflects the sentiments of the local public of the respective area. It will also be a befitting tribute to the contribution of the revered personality associated with the State.
16-Oct-2018: UP cabinet decides to rename Allahabad as Prayagraj
Uttar Pradesh cabinet has decided to change the name of Allahabad city to Prayagraj. The move was announced by the state Health Minister Siddharth Nath Singh. Mr. Singh said, all departments including Railways, would be asked to change the name and the new name will be effective from today.
4-Jul-2018: Cabinet approves renaming of Agartala Airport, Tripura as Maharaja Bir Bikram Manikya Kishore Airport, Agartala
The Union Cabinet has given its approval to rename the Agartala Airport in Tripura as ‘Maharaja Bir Bikram Manikya Kishore Airport, Agartala. The decision comes in the wake of the long pending demand of people of Tripura as well as the Tripura Government for paying tribute to Maharaja Bir Bikram Manikya Kishore.
Background: Maharaja Bir Bikram Manikya Kishore, who ascended the throne of the erstwhile Tripura Princely State in 1923, was an enlightened and benevolent ruler. Agartala Airport was constructed in 1942 on the land donated by Maharaja Bir Bikram Manikya Kishore. As a visionary ruler, who had travelled extensively across the globe, he took several steps for the all-round development of Tripura. Due to his initiative, an aerodrome at Agartala was constructed that has evolved as the second busiest airport in the North East and provides crucial air connectivity to Tripura. Hence, it is apt to rename the Agartala Airport after his name, which will be a befitting tribute to Maharaja Bir Bikram Manikya Kishore.