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Ghaziabad near Delhi which comprises the National Capital Region is likely to be renamed soon. Amid demands by Hindu outfits in Uttar Pradesh, Ghaziabad may have a new name soon and would therefore join the list of places renamed in the state.
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What will Ghaziabad be known as?
BJP councillor of ward number 100, Sanjay Singh had put forward the proposal on January 8. The civic body of Ghaziabad has put this proposal on the January 9 board meeting agenda reported The Times of India. There seems to be no hurdle in proceeding with the process as BJP enjoys comfortable majority in the civic body in the state.
As per the proposal to be discussed today, the new suggested names are Gajnagar and Harnandi Nagar. Harnandi Nagar name was coined as it resonates with the Hindon River, which flows past the city.
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Sanjay Singh said, “The board has adopted my proposal and will hold a discussion on it on Tuesday. Primarily, I have proposed two names – Gajnagar and Harnandi Nagar. He added, “Ghaziabad holds a significant place in history. It’s high time the city is accorded its rightful place,” reported TOI.
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Over the renaming of Ghaziabad region, Ghaziabad mayor, Sunita Dayal said, “This is the first time the matter will be being discussed at the executive level,” reported TOI. Sunita Dayal informed that requests about renaming of the place were frequent but for the first time, these requests will be officially entertained at the executive level.
The head priest of Dudheshwar Nath temple, Mahant Narayan Giri is the leader of the pack requesting for renaming of Ghaziabad. Two years back, Mahant Narayan Giri met UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and submitted a memorandum. He said, “The CM assured me he would look into our demands. I had suggested that Ghaziabad should be named either Gajprastha, Dudheshwarath Nagar or Harnandipuram,” reported TOI.
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Mahant Narayan Giri suggested names- Gajprastha, Dudheshwarath Nagar and Harnandipuram in view of the epic Mahabharat. While providing explanation for his suggestion he said, “In Mahabharat, the area that is Ghaziabad today was once a part of Hastinapur, just 40km from here. This was a forested area and home to many wild animals like elephants. Since Gaj means elephant, the name Gajpura or Gajnagar may be apt,” reported TOI.
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UP District Gazetteers of Meerut which is a government booklet of records that was last published in 1966 also mentions elephants.
The seventh edition of the Gazetteer states, “Both in the Mahabharata and the works of Kalidasa, there is mention of huge and dense forests to the north of Hastinapur where it appears elephants lived in large numbers… This place is known by many other names and it is probably not a mere coincidence that they are mostly synonyms of the word meaning elephant.”
The word ‘Ghaziabad’ can be traced along history, Gazetteers states, “In 1739, Nadir Shah of Iran invaded the country and sacked Delhi, causing disruption in the neighbouring districts. In 1740, Ghazi-ud-din founded Ghaziuddinnagar.” However, Ghaziuddinnagar was shortened to Ghaziabad with the opening of the railways in 1864 by the British.
Places renamed in Uttar Pradesh recently
Allahabad was renamed to Prayagraj in 2018 under BJP led UP government. Since then, calls to rename Ghaziabad have grown over the years.
Faizabad junction was renamed Ayodhya Cantonment in 2021 by the Railways and Jhansi railway station was renamed Veerangana Laxmibai Railway Station.
Moreover, in December of 2023, the Union Home Ministry agreed to change the names of Mundera Baazar in Gorakhpur district to Chauri-Chaura and Telia Afghan village in Deoria district to Telia Shukla.
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Published: 09 Jan 2024, 11:28 PM IST
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