Maharashtra's 'Ahmednagar' has now been officially renamed as 'Ahilyanahar' after the Union Home ministry gave its approval for changing the name of district and city.
Speaking to news agency PTI, state revenue minister Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil said on Friday that the decision to rename Ahmednagar was taken by the state cabinet in March this year, following which it sought nod from the Centre.
In March, the state cabinet had proposed the renaming of the district after Punyashlok Ahilyabai Holkar, the 18th century queen of the Maratha-Malwa kingdom (in Madhya Pradesh), who hailed from the district. She was born in Chaundi in Ahmednagar district and was married to Khanderao Holkar of the Holkar dynasty.
Vikhe Patil welcomed the decision of the Centre and called it a "historic event". He said that this year marks the 300th birth anniversary of Punyashlok Ahilya Devi.
The Bharatiya Janata Party had been demanding the renaming of the Ahmednagar district since February after Maharashtra's Aurangabad and Osmanabad awere renamed.
The decision was taken at a state cabinet meeting presided over CM Shinde. Deputy CMs Devendra Fadnavis and Ajit Pawar were also present besides their ministerial colleagues. It was announced by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde in a program in Chondi, in erstwhile Ahmednagar district, marking the 298th birth anniversary of the queen, which is celebarted as Ahilya Devi Jayanti.
Following his announcement, the matter was discussed within the state and central government by Guardian Minister Patil. The state also requested Union Home Minister Amit Shah to approve the proposal for the name change in time.
The Railway Ministry had also informed the state and district administration that it had no objection to rename the station as Ahilyanagar.
Ahmednagar was named after Ahmed Nizamshah, founder of the Nizamshahi dynasty and Ahmednagar town in the 15th century. It is the biggest district in the western Indian state of Maharashtra in terms of area.
In 2022, the names of Aurangabad and Osmanabad were changed to Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar and Dharashiv, respectively. Aurangabad and Osmanabad were named after Mughal emperors Aurangzeb and Nizam Mir Osman Ali Khan.