‘Rename Mangaluru Central station after Narayana Guru’

The Council of Mangaluru City Corporation (MCC) decided to refer the proposal on renaming of Mangaluru Central Railway Station after Sri Narayana Guru to the Standing Committee.

Opposition leader Abdul Ravoof moving the proposal said the reformer saint Narayana Guru had reached Mangaluru via train in 1908. To immortalise his social reforms, the railway station should be named after him. The MCC council should pass a resolution and later refer it to the Standing committee before submitting it to the state government, he said.

The meeting witnessed pandemonium after BJP corporators accused Congress members of having double standards. BJP leaders welcoming the decision to rename railway station after Narayana Guru, recollected that Congress earlier had opposed a proposal to rename Lady Hill Circle after Sri Narayana Guru.

Pandemonium prevailed in the meeting, with ruling and opposition members levelling allegations against each other. Opposition members even trooped to the well of the council while countering the allegations of ruling BJP corporators. The charges by both BJP and Congress members continued even after the meeting.

The meet also resolved to submit a proposal to the government on renaming Mangaluru Junction Railway station after former Union Minister George Fernandes.

Board of directors

The meeting witnessed pandemonium with Congress corporators taking MCC to task for not including the names of Congress corporators recommended for the Board of directors of Mangaluru Smart City Limited (MSCL). MSCL, a special purpose vehicle (SPV) to implement the Smart City Mission projects, does not have nominated directors from MCC.

Abdul Ravoof said that in the previous meeting, names of Premananda Shetty, Sudheer Shetty, Lohith Amin and A C Vinayraj was finalised for MSCL's board of directors. Congress Corporators insisted that a Congress corporator should be nominated to MSCL. In the absence of MCC Mayor, BJP turned down the request of opposition leading to a heated exchange of words among members. Deputy Mayor said a decision will be taken in the presence of Mayor.