Speed up renaming of Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, other airports: Uddhav

Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray on Friday wrote to Union Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia urging him to expedite the process to rename the airport in Aurangabad (now Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar) and the upcoming Navi Mumbai International Airport.

In a letter to Scindia, Thackeray said the Maha Vikas Aghadi government led by him had sent a proposal to the Centre in 2020 to name Aurangabad airport as Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj Airport.

Another proposal was sent in 2022 to name the Navi Mumbai international airport as D B Patil International Airport, Thackeray said.

Thackeray said while his government was seeking to rename these two airports, it was told from different quarters that the Centre's policy is to name airports only after its cities.

However, the Ayodhya airport has been renamed as Maharshi Valmiki International Airport and Mopa airport in Goa as Manohar International Airport after the state's late chief minister Manohar Parrikar, Thackeray said.

If Ayodhya airport and Mopa airport can be named after individuals, then why can't the same norm be applied to Aurangabad and Navi Mumbai airports in Maharashtra, he asked.