Maharashtra govt renames Pune Airport as ‘Jagadguru Sant Tukaram Maharaj International Airport’
The plan for the renaming was put forward by Union minister of state for civil aviation Murlidhar Mohol, who is from Pune.
The Eknath Shinde-led Maharashtra government on Monday approved a proposal to rename Pune's Lohegaon International Airport as “Jagadguru Sant Tukaram Maharaj Pune International Airport”.
The decision was made during a state cabinet meeting, and the proposal will be forwarded to the Centre. The plan for the renaming was put forward by Union minister of state for civil aviation Murlidhar Mohol, who is from Pune.
Mohol expressed gratitude on X (formerly Twitter) to the ruling Mahayuti alliance, which includes the BJP, Chief Minister Eknath Shinde's Shiv Sena, and the Nationalist Congress Party led by Deputy CM Ajit Pawar.
"Thank you, Mahayuti government! Thank you, Devendraji! The first step towards naming of the international airport in Pune as 'Jagadguru Sant Tukaram Maharaj Airport' has been taken today and the proposal given by me has been approved at a cabinet meeting. It will now be sent to the central government for further processing,” Mohol posted on X.
Airport renaming proposal put forward last month
Last month, Murlidhar Mohol proposed naming the airport after the 17th-century saint, noting that Lohegaon, where the airport is situated, was the village of Sant Tukaram Maharaj’s mother. According to the procedure, the state government submits the proposal to the central government, which then makes the final decision.
Earlier on Saturday, during a foundation stone laying ceremony for various programs, deputy chief minister and BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis stated, “I want to appreciate Pune MP Murlidhar Mohol for his suggestion to name the new airport in Pune district after Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj and to rename the existing airport after Sant Tukaram Maharaj. This proposal will be brought to the next cabinet meeting and forwarded to the central government for approval.”
At the same event, Union minister Nitin Gadkari assured that he would seek Prime Minister Narendra Modi's approval for renaming Pune International Airport.
To rename an airport, a resolution must first be approved by the state assembly. It then requires approval from the Union cabinet before being officially notified in the Gazette of India.
Sant Tukaram was a significant saint and spiritual poet of the Bhakti movement, born in Pune district.
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