Eknath Shinde, the chief minister of Maharashtra, stated that Ahmednagar would be renamed after the Maratha queen Ahilyabai Holkar in honour of her 298th birthday on May 31. The city in Western Maharashtra will now be called Ahilyanagar.
CM Shinde told reporters, “The government has decided to name Ahmednagar district after Punyashlok Ahilya Devi Holkar. Our government is fortunate to have taken this decision. Ahilya Devi’s work was as big and great as the Himalayan mountains. Giving her name will increase the honour of this district.”
Image Source: Wikipedia
Deepak Kesarkar, the education minister for Maharashtra, had earlier informed the state Legislative Council that he was in talks with the district administration to rename the city “Punyashlok Ahilyadevi Nagar” in December 2022.
Ahmednagar will now be AhilyaNagar !
That’s our Govt’s humble tribute to the fearless warrior queen Punyashlok Ahilyadevi Holkar..
अहमदनगर जिल्ह्याचे नाव बदलण्याची मागणी सातत्याने केली होती. माझे सहकारी राधाकृष्ण विखे पाटीलजी, राम शिंदे, गोपीचंद पडळकर आणि इतरही नेते सातत्याने… pic.twitter.com/8OBznjNlBO— Devendra Fadnavis (@Dev_Fadnavis) May 31, 2023
Ahilyabai Holkar was born in the current Ahmednagar district in Maharashtra. Ahmednagar, 120 km northeast of Pune, is claimed to have been called after its founder, the monarch Ahmad Nizam Shah I, in the 15th century.
Also Read: From Prayagraj To Mumbai: Here Are 7 Cities Whose Names Were Changed
The state government officially approved a request to rename Aurangabad as Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar and Osmanabad as Dharashiv in February of this year, making this the third city in Maharashtra to receive a new name in that time.
NCP state president and MLA Jayant Patil said, “We welcome the decision of the government to change the name of Ahmednagar to Ahilyanagar. The popularity of the Shinde-Fadnavis government is decreasing day-by-day and people of the state are now aware of it. So, such decisions are being taken to increase popularity. We welcome the decision.”
