Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on Saturday said that he has given instructions that all the symbols of colonialism in the state would be rechristened.
Chief Minister said, "After PM Narendra Modi came to power, all the symbols of colonialism are being changed in the country. The names of the roads and cities in Uttarakhand are from the British era and they will be changed. We have given instructions in the state that all symbols of colonialism be renamed."
Lansdowne Military Cantonment, a prestigious hill station in Pauri district of Uttarakhand, will now be named "Kalaon Danda" (mountain surrounded by dark clouds). This place had the same name 132 years ago, but the British government changed the name of this place to Lansdowne after the then Viceroy of India, Lord Lansdowne.
Now the Ministry of Defense has given green signal to change the names of all the roads, schools and establishments coming in the cantonment area.
The people of Uttarakhand had been demanding for a long time to rename Lansdowne as 'Kalon Danda' (mountain surrounded by dark clouds). The leaders of the ruling BJP party have also been raising this demand. Due to this, in the past, the Ministry of Defense had written a letter to the Uttarakhand government asking it to prepare a proposal to identify and change the names of cities, schools or roads with English names.
Lansdowne SDM Smriti Parmar said, “We haven’t received any communication as to renaming of Lansdowne Cantonment area from the state or central government. It may be due to the Diwali holidays. The State might be informed later if the initiative has been taken by the Defence Ministry.”