Yogi govt to rename Allahabad as Prayagraj

After renaming 'Mughalsarai' railway station as 'Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Nagar', Uttar Pradesh government may soon rechristen Allahabad as 'Prayagraj', its ancient name.
 
An indication to this effect was given by the office bearers of All India Akhara Parishad (AIAP), an apex body of Hindu seers and saints after their meeting with UP chief minister Yogi Adityanath here on Tuesday.
 
The AIAP president Mahant Narendra Giri said that the saints had proposed to the chief minister to rechristen Allahabad as 'Prayagraj'. ''A formal announcement in this regard will be made shortly,'' the Mahant said.
 
He said that the chief minister had assured the saints that the government would consider their demand. The saints said that renaming of Allahabad was essential to reflect the cultural heritage and religious importance of the place.
 
The AIAP also handed over the list of 14 ''fake'' babas to Adityanath and asked him to take action against those, who had made UP their home. ''He (Adityanath has assured action against fake babas,'' Narendra Giri said.
 
The AIAP also urged the chief minister not to allow such 'fake' babas to take part in the 'Ardhakumbha' (a religious congregation on the confluence of Ganga, Yamuna and the mythical Saraswati rivers)  scheduled to be held in Allahabad in 2019. A full fledged 'Kumbha' is held after every 12 years while an 'Ardhakumbha' is held after every six years.
 
Allahabad was known as 'Prayag' in the olden times. The word 'Prayag' means 'place of offerings' and it was given the name owing to the confluence of the three holy rivers there.
 
According to the historians, Mughal emperor Akbar had in 1575 given the town the name 'Illahabad', which in Persian meant 'place of god'. It later became Allahabad.
 
The centre had recently rechristened 'Mughalsarai', an important railway junction in UP's Chandauli district, after BJP ideologue Deen Dayal Upadhyaya.