FROM COLONIAL TO LOCAL

Elphinstone Road station on the suburban rail network of Mumbai is now Prabhadevi station. The station, named after Governor of Bombay Presidency from 1853 to 1860 Lord Elphinstone, has been rechristened as Prabhadevi in honour of a local deity Prabhadevi and to erase a "colonial" name. The new nomenclature came into effect from Wednesday midnight.

Commuters, meanwhile, reported that indicators fixed within the coaches were still showing Elphinstone Road, to which WR said it will be rectified in a few days.

The decision to change the name of the station was approved by the Maharashtra Assembly on December 16, 2016. The demand for change of name of the station had been raised by leaders of the ruling BJP and Shiv Sena.

After the change of name came into effect, Shiv Sena workers on Thursday came out with huge banners, thanking party leaders for pushing the move. Mumbai BJP said it would write to Railway Minister Piyush Goyal, seeking renaming of at least seven more suburban stations.

Welcoming the renaming of the station, Mumbai BJP general secretary Amarjeet Mishra said, "This is really heartening to see Prabhadevi written on the station. It gives a sense of belongingness."

Mishra, who had submitted memoranda to the then railway minister Suresh Prabhu requesting change of Elphinstone Road station's name, added that there are a few more stations that need to be rechristened. "Time has come to rename a few more stations which carry a sense of colonial mindset. We will pursue this issue with the state government and the Railway Ministry," he said.

"Currey Road station should be renamed as Lalbaugh, Charni Road station as Gaon Devi, Sandhurst Road station as Dongri, Grant Road station as Babu Genu or August Kranti, Reay Road as Ghodapdeo, Cotton Green as Kalachowki, Mumbai Central as Nana Chowk, etc," he said.