Madhya Pradesh CM Thanks PM For Renaming Habibganj Station After Rani Kamlapati, Says She Was 'Pride of Gonds'

CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan wrote to the Centre on Friday asking to change the name of the station after Rani Kamlapati the widow Gond ruler of Nizam Shah.

New Delhi: Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan has thanked Prime Minister Modi after he approved changing the name of Bhopal's Habibgunj railway station after Gond ruler Rani Kamlapati. 

CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan wrote to the Centre on Friday asking to change the name of the station after Rani Kamlapati the widow Gond ruler of Nizam Shah.

"I thank PM Modi for renaming Bhopal's Habibganj railway station after the tribal queen, Rani Kamlapati. She was the pride of Gond society. She was the last Hindu queen", CM Chouhan was quoted by ANI as saying. 

In his letter, the Madhya Pradesh government said that the renaming of the station will honour Rani Kamlapati's legacy and bravery. It further said that it is in accordance with the Indian government's decision to celebrate November 15 as 'Janjatiya Gaurav Diwas' in remembrance of revered tribal leader and freedom fighter Birsa Munda.

Rani Kamlapati was the widow Gond ruler of Nizam Shah, chief of Ginnorgarh. The Gonds are the largest tribal community in India, with a population of over 12 million. According to linguists, the Gonds belong to the Gondi-Manda subgroup of the South Central branch of the Dravidian dialect family.

This week starting Monday will be honouring the Schedule Tribes of India. The Modi government has announced that November 15 will celebrate 'Janjatiya Gaurav Diwas'.  During his visit, Prime Minister Modi will also attend the massive tribal convention organized here on the birth anniversary of tribal leader Birsa Munda.

Habibganj railway station in Bhopal is the second world-class model station in the country and has all the facilities that are available at international airports. This was the second such station after the return of the Modi government in the year 2019, which has been built in a luxurious way. The first was Gandhinagar.

It has been developed under a public-private partnership and built by a private company named Bansal Group. The total cost of the station project is around Rs 450 crore.