The JNNURM Housing Colony in Singhnagar that was recently inaugurated by Chief Minister N. Kiran Kumar Reddy will be named after freedom fighter Alluri Sitarama Raju.
Several speakers suggested that a district in Andhra Pradesh be named after the great fighter at a meeting held here after the unveiling of a ten-foot statue of the martyr at Budameru Bridge here on Sunday. It was, however, decided that a colony in Vijayawada should be named after him as a first step before sending the proposal of naming a district to the Chief Minister and Vijayawada Central MLA Malladi Vishnu was the first to suggest that one district in the State should be named after the freedom fighter and the meeting should become platform for launching an agitation for it.
Industrialist and Andhra Pradesh Cricket Association president Gokaraju Ganga Raju said there were demands from three districts—Visakhapatnam, East and West Godavari – to name their district after Alluri. Mr. Ganga Raju said the onerous task of doing it should be taken up by MLA Vishnu and Vijayawada MP Lagadapati Rajagopal.
Mr Rajagopal said that before asking to name a district after the freedom fighter, a colony in the city should be named after him. Mr Vishnu immediately suggested that the JNNURM colony with 5,000 houses was still to be named. TTD chairman Kanumuri Bapi Raju who unveiled the statue said he was glad that the MP and MLA took a quick decision and named the housing colony after the freedom fighter.
