Uttar Pradesh: Yogi’s new achievement, renames Faizabad to Ayodhya

In an attempt to woo voters before 2019 Lok Sabha polls, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said on Tuesday, November 6, that the Faizabad district of Uttar Pradesh will be renamed Ayodhya. He seems to be making up for lack of governance with city name changes.

In his Diwali speech he said "Ayodhya hamari aan baan shaan ka prateek hai, Ayodhyaki pehchan Bhagwan Ram se hai. (Ayodhya is our symbol of our pride and prestige). It owes its identity to Lord Ram," in the city revered as the birthplace of Lord Ram by Hindus.

This announcement came days after Allahabad was renamed as Prayagraj by the Uttar Pradesh.

Adityanath said that the UP government will construct an airport and a medical college in Ayodhya and name it after Lord Ram and King Dasharatha (Ram's father in the Ramayana) respectively.

“A medical college will be established here in Ayodhya, I want it to be named after King Dasharatha. We will also construct an airport here named after Lord Ram,” he said while addressing the gathering at Deepotsav.

The Faizabad district comprises the twin towns of Faizabad and Ayodhya on the banks the Saryu.

"I want to make sure that Lord Ram's legacy lives forever," explained the priest-politician, who took charge as the chief minister of Uttar Pradesh after the BJP's massive victory in the state of 2017.

When responding to critics regarding his renaming drive, he said that the name matters and asked why those protesting people are not named Raavan or Duryodhan. “Why didn't their parents name them 'Raavan' and 'Duryodhan' in that case? In this country, the name holds a lot of significance," he said.

The South Korean First lady Kim Jung-sook, accompanied a cultural delegation, that attended the grand Diwali celebrations, which included a dazzling display of lakhs of diya at Ram ki Paidi.

The Deepotsav is an initiative by the Tourism and Cultural Department of Uttar Pradesh to celebrate Lord Ram's victory over Ravana.