The municipal body of Ghaziabad is considering to change the Uttar Pradesh district’s name following persistent demands from Hindu groups.
There are reports that the name of Ghaziabad will be changed to either ‘Gajnagar' or 'Harnandi Nagar', TOI reported.
The report said the issue was tabled during the latest board meeting on Tuesday.
The new names have been suggested to the Ghazibad civic body by BJP councilor Sanjay Singh, it said.
Brief history of Ghaziabad:
Ghaziabad was originally founded as Ghaziuddinnagar in 1740. The name was later curtailed to to Ghaziabad with the opening of the railways by the British in 1864.
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Name change proposal:
TOI report quoting Mayor Sunita Dayal stated that the matter has been discussed following longstanding requests to rename Ghaziabad.
She as per the report also said this was the first time the issue was being addressed at the executive level.
The proposal to rename the National Capital Region (NCR) district reportedly gained momentum during the meeting, with indications suggesting a favourable disposition within the corporation.
The push for renaming Ghaziabad has been growing in recent years, following the renaming of Allahabad to Prayagraj in 2018.
Persistent efforts to rename Ghaziabad:
The man at the forefront of renaming Ghaziabad is Mahant Narayan Giri.
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Giri is the head priest of Dudheshwar Nath temple. In 2022, he submitted a memorandum to Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, suggesting names like Gajprastha, Dudheshwarath Nagar, or Harnandipuram for Ghaziabad, the report mentioned.
The report mentioned Giri explained that the proposed names are rooted in the city's historical connections, citing the mention of elephants in the Mahabharata and historical records.
The term "Gaj" means elephant.
Giri also noted that Harnandi Nagar paid homage to the Hindon River, which flows past the city, it mentioned.
