By Admin 
Another debate has erupted over the names of the new stations of Delhi Metro. Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) Indraprastha state minister Surendra Kumar Gupta has written a letter to the Chairman and Managing Director of Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) demanding to change the name of the proposed ‘Nabi Karim’ metro station in the Indraprastha-Inderlok corridor (Magenta Line Extension) of Phase-4 to ‘Ramnagar’.
In the letter, Surendra Gupta wrote that Delhi Metro is no longer just a means of transportation, it has also become a major part of the historical and cultural identity of the capital. Therefore, while deciding the name of the station, old revenue records, municipal corporation documents and the popular identity of the area that has been going on for decades should be the basis.
‘History will be ignored if the name Nabi Kareem is finalized’
He told that this area has been known as ‘Ramnagar’ for a long time. This name is recorded in everything from revenue records to local addresses, electricity-water bills and municipal corporation records. If the name ‘Nabi Kareem’ is finalized then it will not only ignore the local history but will also hurt the sentiments of the people and may also create confusion among the travelers about the area.
Surendra Gupta made another point that recently in the matter of changing the Hindi name of Supreme Court Metro Station to ‘Supreme Court’, DMRC had told the High Court that it would cost Rs 40-45 lakh. If local facts and sentiments are taken into account at the very beginning of naming, then there will be no need for such expensive changes in the future and wastage of public money will stop.
VHP has made three main suggestions to DMRC:
The name of the proposed station should be officially declared as ‘Ramnagar’ as soon as possible.
Local representatives, historians and people of the area should be included in the committee to decide the name.
In future, before finalizing the name of any new station, open suggestions should be taken from the public and the process should be kept completely transparent.