In line with the recent push for decolonisation by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Uttarakhand CM Pushkar Singh Dhami on Saturday, October 29, announced that all colonial symbols in the state would be gradually rechristened.
“After Modi ji became the prime minister, across India, whatever symbols of colonialism were there, they are either being removed or being given a new image. Those symbols are being changed,” he told the news agency ANI in a video.
“Similarly, in Uttarakhand, we have said whatever such symbols are there, they would all be changed, and we have sought a report on this,” Dhami added. The CM said that the names of the roads and cities in Uttarakhand that are from the British era will be changed.
#WATCH | We have given instructions in the state that all symbols of colonialism be renamed, says Uttarakhand CM Pushkar Singh Dhami pic.twitter.com/HVM2B8JONL
— ANI UP/Uttarakhand (@ANINewsUP) October 29, 2022
The Uttarakhand Chief Minister’s remarks came a day after it was reported that the Defence Ministry has requested renaming recommendations from the Lansdowne cantonment administration. It has also requested that the Lansdowne cantonment board supply information on any British-named sites in the area.
Lansdowne was created in the year 1887, when the first battalion of the Garhwal Rifles relocated from Almora. It was given its current name in 1890, 132 years ago, after the town was founded by the then-Viceroy of India, Lord Lansdowne.
Previously, it was known as Kalu Danda, which translates to “Black Mountain” in Garhwali, the local dialect. The former name is proposed as a replacement in a proposal sent in response to the ministry’s directives.
It may be recalled that during his Independence Day speech from the Red Fort this year, PM Modi had stressed upon decolonisation. In keeping with the goal of eliminating imperial remains, the central government has been modifying several British-era names. Only two months earlier, Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the ‘Kartavya Path’, the reconstructed and renamed New Delhi’s historic Rajpath. Prior to this, the Indian Naval ensign was changed to remove St George’s Cross from the ensign, and the Scottish hymn ‘Abide By Me’ was removed from the Beating Retreat ceremony during Republic Day celebrations.
