Bhubaneswar: Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has requested the Union Government to name the Jharsuguda airport in memory of eminent freedom fighter Veer Surendra Sai.
In a letter addressed to Civil Aviation Minister Suresh Prabhakar Prabhu, Patnaik stated, "There is a public demand for naming the Jharsuguda Airport in the name of renowned freedom fighter of Odisha Veer Surendra Sai, who hails from the same locality. Naming the Airport in his name will be a fitting tribute to the legendary son of the soil."
Patnaik further requested that his proposal should be considered seriously and the airport should be named as 'Veer Surendra Sai Airport, Jharsuguda.'
Earlier in April, Chief Secretary Aditya Prasad Padhi had placed a similar demand before the Centre. Padhi while forwarding copy of a letter of Bargarh MP Prabhas Kumar Singh to Airports Authority of India (AAI) Chairman Guruprasad Mohapatra, had urged the airport to be named after western Odisha’s veteran freedom fighter Veer Surendra Sai.