Maharashtra govt to rename colonies having caste-based names to 'maintain social harmony'

On Thursday, the Maharashtra cabinet cleared a proposal to rename all residential colonies having caste-based names. Cabinet Minister Aslam Shaikh said that these caste-based colonies were established during British rule, to divide people. The minister added that it has been now decided to rename them after people who undertook social service for the country.

According to a press release from the Chief Minister's office, names such as Mahar-wada, Bouddh-wada, Mang-wada, Dhor-vasti, Brahman-wada, Mali-galli are unbecoming in a progressive state like Maharashtra. Such names generally indicate that members of a particular community live in the area, the press release added.  The decision to rename these localities was taken to maintain social harmony and national unity, the statement by the CMO added. These localities will be given new names such as Samata Nagar, Bhim Nagar, Jyotinagar, Shahunagar and Kranti Nagar. Earlier, the state government had renamed the Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar Dalit Mitra Puraskar (award) as Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar Samajbhushan Puraskar.

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The statement said, “Keeping that in mind and to maintain social harmony and goodwill in the state to increase national unity, all caste-based names of areas and localities in rural and urban parts of the state will be changed. They will be named after social workers or something corresponding to their work, for example, Samata Nagar, Bhim Nagar, Jyoti Nagar, Kranti Nagar." It added, "The urban development department will decide on the process in urban areas, while the rural development department will do the same for their areas."

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Moreover, the state government has also given consent to withdraw all cases related to political and social demonstrations and movements between November 1, 2014, and December 31, 2019. The BJP government under Devendra Fadnavis had withdrawn such cases registered before November 1, 2014. Meanwhile, the MVA government announced that the winter session of the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly will be held in Nagpur instead of Mumbai this time. 

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