Chhattisgarh's upcoming capital to be named after Atal Bihari Vajpayee

The upcoming capital of Chhattisgarh, Naya Raipur, will be known as Atal Nagar as a mark of respect to former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, who passed away last week at the age of 93.

“On the demise of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, a resolution was passed in the state cabinet to rename some places after him,” Chief Minister Raman Singh said. Naya Raipur will be renamed as Atal Nagar, he added.

Naya Raipur is being built in a sprawling 8,000 hectares of land between the National Highway-6 and National Highway-3. It has the provisions for further expansion and infrastructure upgrade in the future. By 2031, it is expected to house a population of 560,000.

Naya Raipur consists of 41 villages renovated with robust facilities such as modern roads, parks and water pipelines. It is India's sixth planned city after Jamshedpur (Jharkhand), Bhubaneshwar (Odisha), Gandhinagar (Gujarat), Chandigarh (Punjab and Haryana), and Navi Mumbai (Maharashtra).

“A statue of Atal Bihari Vajpayee will also be installed at Naya Raipur and all 27 district headquarters of the state, besides a central park will be developed in the upcoming capital in the name of former prime minister,” CM Singh said. 

The Bilaspur University and the express highway in the existing capital city will also be named after Vajpayee, who ordered nuclear tests in 1998. 

The state cabinet also passed the resolution to raise a battalion of the Chhattisgarh Armed Force (CAF) as Pokhran Battalion to commemorate the former prime minister’s contribution to the nation. The newly-built medical college in Rajnandgaon and the 1000-Mw Marwa Thermal Power Plant in Janjgir-Champa district will also be named after Vajpayee.