Centre approves renaming of Aurangabad and Osmanabad

Category : State Published on: February 27 2023

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The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has approved the renaming of Aurangabad city as “Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar” and the Osmanabad city as “Dharashiv”.
Aurangabad derives its name from Mughal emperor Aurangzeb, while Osmanabad was named for a 20th century ruler of the princely state of Hyderabad.
Chhatrapati Sambhaji, the eldest son of warrior king Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, was the second ruler of the Maratha state founded by his father.
Sambhaji Maharaj was executed on Aurangzeb's orders in 1689. Dharashiv, the name of a cave complex near Osmanabad, dates back to the 8th century as per some scholars.
Approval has been given to name this city Dharashiv in his name.
The demand to rename the two cities was first raised in 1988 by Shiv Sena founder Bal Thackeray.