Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Sunday welcomed the announcement made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to rename Chandigarh airport after Shaheed Bhagat Singh, saying a long pending demand of Punjabis has been fulfilled.
In his Mann Ki Baat radio broadcast, PM Modi said the Chandigarh airport will now be named after Shaheed Bhagat Singh as a tribute to the great freedom fighter.
"Finally our efforts paid off. On behalf of entire Punjab, we welcome the decision of naming the Chandigarh airport after Shaheed Bhagat Singh ji," Mann said in a tweet in Punjabi.
Thanking the prime minister, he said, "a long pending demand of Punjabis has got fulfilled".
BJP leader and former chief minister Amarinder Singh, expressed gratitude to the PM Modi "for accepting our demand" of renaming the airport.
"Grateful to PM @narendramodi ji for accepting our demand of renaming Mohali airport after Shaheed Bhagat Singh.
"This is a befitting tribute to the great freedom fighter who gave his life for the country and is an inspiration to millions of fellow countrymen," Singh, who recently joined BJP, said in a tweet.
Haryana's Deputy Chief Minister Dushyant Chautala also welcomed the announcement.
Chautala said Punjab and Haryana governments had earlier agreed to name the Chandigarh international airport after Bhagat Singh.
The decision had come after Mann and Chautala held a meeting over this issue last month.
Referring to his meeting with Chautala, Mann said, "we held discussions, then a consensus was reached".
"Later, the Punjab government had also sent a letter to the Union Civil Aviation Ministry, saying that Bhagat Singh's birth anniversary falls on September 28 and it will be good if the airport could be named after the legendary freedom fighter before that.
"I am happy that our efforts bore fruit and the prime minister made the announcement in the Mann Ki Baat programme," said Mann.
Thanking Modi, Chautala said "it is also a matter of happiness that the announcement came on the birth anniversary of Chaudhary Devi Lal (on Sep 25)".
Chautala said Shaheed Bhagat Singh is one such martyr of the country's freedom struggle, who inspired the youth of every generation.
Other Punjab BJP leaders including Sunil Jakhar, state unit chief Ashwani Sharma and party unit general secretary Subhash Sharma also welcomed the PM's announcement.
Jakhar said by announcing to rename the airport after Shaheed Bhagat Singh, PM Modi has paid a befitting tribute to the Shaheed-e -aazam on behalf of a grateful nation.
Notably, a row had erupted over the issue of renaming the Chandigarh international airport earlier.
The Punjab government in 2017 had demanded that the airport should be named as "Shaheed-e-Azam Sardar Shaheed Bhagat Singh International Airport, Mohali".
The Haryana government had no objection over the use of Bhagat Singh's name but it had raised its concerns about the use of 'Mohali' in the airport's name.
Chandigarh International Airport Limited is a joint venture company incorporated under the Companies Act, 2013 by Airports Authority of India (AAI) in association with governments of Punjab and Haryana.
The airport runway is located in Chandigarh while the international terminal is located on the south side of the runway in the village of Jhiurheri, Mohali.
Notably, the airport lies in defence airfield that is being used by civilian operators as well. The Air Traffic Control and runway operations lie with the IAF.
