RailEnquiry

Fifty MPs have demanded that Mumbai Central station be named after the late Prime Minister, Rajiv Gandhi.

    Gandhi’s 21st death anniversary falls on Monday. The railway minister has inprinciple accepted the renaming proposal, mooted by city Congress MP Sanjay Nirupam at a press conference in his Mumbai north constituency.

    The signatories include three Mumbai MPs — Milind Deora, Priya Dutt and Eknath Gaikwad. Some of the prominent signatories are Shashi Tharoor, P C Chacko, Uday Pratap Singh, Mohammad Azharuddin, Raj Babbar, Jagadambika Pal, Sanjay Singh, Sandeep Dikshit and Datta Meghe.

    The Republican Party of India (RPI) is now keen on reviving its demand to rename Dadar station after Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar, whose apartment is a stone’s throw away. However, the Shiv Sena, which has a strong bond with Dadar, has opposed the RPI’s suggestion.

    Interestingly, the Sena had, a few years ago, suggested that Grant Road railway station be renamed after Nana Jagannath Shankar Shet, one of the doyens of the 19th century Mumbai.

    At the same press conference, Nirupam said that in keeping with the railway minister’s makeover plans for Borivli station and in an attempt to generate more resources, a shopping plaza will be built atop the station. Washrooms for women are also being planned at suburban stations on the Western track.