MADURAI: Putting an end to the controversy around renaming the Periyar Bus Stand to Meenakshi Bus Stand, the Madurai Corporation decided to keep the old name. The civic body installed an LED board that reads ‘Periyar Bus Terminus’ on the spot.
As part of the Smart City mission, Rs 167.06 crore worth of development works have been carried out for Periyar Bus Terminus since January 2019. Ever since the revamping works began, Hindu outfits have been constantly demanding that the authorities rename the bus stand after Madurai Meenakshi Amman.
A rumour spread that the facade of the renovated bus stand would have a gopuram like structure symbolising Madurai as the city of temples. The demand was strongly opposed by Dravidian outfits, which pointed out that former chief minister M Karunanidhi rechristened central bus stand as Periyar Bus Stand in 1971, and the proposed ‘gopuram’ design was an attempt by Hindutva forces to ‘infiltrate’ Tamil society.
The decision to go with the old name has been widely welcomed by the district residents. Corporation Commissioner KP Karthikeyan told TNIE, “The very name of the project was redevelopment of ‘Periyar Bus Stand’. Why would we consider changing the name now? There was no proposal to rename it in the project. Further, there is no plan to construct any ‘gopuram’ as per our tender documents.”