Why is Rajasthan government changing the names of villages in Rajasthan?

Miya ka Bada in Barmer is now called Mahesh Nagar

Islampur in Jhunjhunu is Pichanva Khurd now

And Salemabad in Ajmer has been renamed as Shri Nimbark Teerth.

Can you now guess the reason for the change?

The name which used to sound Muslim are Hinduized, or rather Indianized by the government. And according to the former Sarpanch of Miyan ka Bada, it was villagers who demanded the change of names. The change in the name of 27 villages in Rajasthan was proposed by the state government, but the Center approved only 7.

The specific reason of the demand for such change was the difficulty faced by the villagers due to the Muslim names of their villages. “There were complaints from these villages that people hesitate to marry their children due to the Muslim names”, reports Hindustan Times. Quite intriguing.

The other villages whose names are going to be changed shortly are Mohammadpur in Chittaurgarh as Medikh Kheda, Navabpura in Chittaurgarh as Nai Sarthal, Rampura-Ajampur in Chittaurgarh as Sitaramji Kheda and Mandfiya in Chhitaurgarh as Sanwaliyaji.

Rajasthanis certainly don’t appreciate the popular saying “What’s in a name?” Well, this I bet is not only true with Rajasthan. Indians in many regions still face this identity crisis even after India being a secular country.