Close X
Saturday, November 9, 2024
ADVT 
India

'No Objection To Bhagat Singh's Name For Chandigarh Airport'

IANS, 29 Dec, 2015 01:06 PM
    After stirring a controversy by proposing the name of a RSS leader for the Chandigarh airport instead of Bhagat Singh, Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar on Tuesday said that his government had no objection to it being named after the famed freedom fighter.
     
    "When the matter was discussed with us, the name (of Bhagat Singh) had not been finalised. Since no name was finalised, we proposed the name of Dr Mangal Sein through a letter. Even if they keep the name (of the Chandigarh airport) after Bhagat Singh, we have no objection to it," Khattar, who was on the defensive over the controversy, told media here.
     
    "It (airport's name) can be kept on Bhagat Singh's name. But they (central government) must ensure that the airport contains the name 'Chandigarh' and nothing else. Our only objection was only on the use of the name Chandigarh," he said.
     
    The 'Civil Air Terminal Chandigarh' was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on September 11.
     
    It was proposed, and earlier agreed upon by the Punjab and Haryana governments, that it should be named after Bhagat Singh, a national icon of the country's freedom struggle.
     
    But the BJP government led by Khattar wrote a letter to the union civil aviation ministry proposing the name of once RSS leader Mangal Sein for the airport.
     
     
    His Punjab counterpart Parkash Singh Badal last week wrote an angry letter to Prime Minister Modi, clearly upset over Khattar's move, terming it as "distasteful".
     
    Minister of State for Civil Aviation Mahesh Sharma recently told parliament that naming the airport was delayed as the Punjab and Haryana government had not agreed to one name.
     
    The terminal building is actually in Punjab's Mohali town and the Punjab government calls it and has put up signages saying 'Mohali airport' - a step which has upset the Haryana government.
     
    Punjab and Haryana, which have 24.5 percent stake in the airport terminal project, had agreed long time back that it should be named 'Shaheed Bhagat Singh International Airport'. The Punjab and Haryana assemblies had, in 2009 and 2010 respectively, passed resolutions for naming the airport after the freedom fighter.
     
     
    Mangal Sein's claim to fame was being deputy chief minister of Haryana briefly in late 1970s, being seven time legislator and being the Haryana BJP president.

    MORE India ARTICLES

    Sushma Swaraj To Visit Pakistan, Meet Nawaz Sharif

    Sushma Swaraj To Visit Pakistan, Meet Nawaz Sharif
    External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj will travel to Pakistan for a regional security conference on Tuesday and also meet Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif there.

    Sushma Swaraj To Visit Pakistan, Meet Nawaz Sharif

    All Vehicles Can Ply On Sundays In Delhi

    All Vehicles Can Ply On Sundays In Delhi
    In contrast to the other six days of the week, all vehicles will be allowed to ply on Delhi's roads on Sundays, PWD Minister Satyendra Jain said on Monday.

    All Vehicles Can Ply On Sundays In Delhi

    Not Election Season But It's Raining Rallies In Punjab

    Not Election Season But It's Raining Rallies In Punjab
    The lead has been taken by the ruling Shiromani Akali Dal, which announced 'Sadbhawna rallies' in Bathinda, Moga, Gurdaspur, Jalandhar, Khadoor Sahib and a 'mega rally' in Patiala.

    Not Election Season But It's Raining Rallies In Punjab

    AAP supporters injured in police Cane-charge in Chandigarh

    AAP supporters injured in police Cane-charge in Chandigarh
    Nearly a dozen supporters of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) were injured on Sunday when they were cane-charged and tear-gassed by Chandigarh Police.

    AAP supporters injured in police Cane-charge in Chandigarh

    Delhi Traffic Rationing To Be Stopped, If Causes Inconvenience

    Delhi Traffic Rationing To Be Stopped, If Causes Inconvenience
    Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said on Saturday the decision of allowing private vehicles with even-odd registration numbers on alternate days was contingency step and would be discontinued if it inconvenienced the public.

    Delhi Traffic Rationing To Be Stopped, If Causes Inconvenience

    Chennai Staggers Back To Normalcy, Anger Grows At Lack Of Relief

    Chennai Staggers Back To Normalcy, Anger Grows At Lack Of Relief
    An intermittent drizzle since Saturday morning added to worries of Chennai residents, battling the worst floods in a century, and now facing a shortage of drinking water and power amid mounting anger about absence of relief.

    Chennai Staggers Back To Normalcy, Anger Grows At Lack Of Relief