Hindi name board removed from Thanjavur railway station after protest

TIRUCHY: The Hindi name board at Thanjavur railway station was removed after a protest by the DMK cadres and pro-Tamil outfit members on Thursday.

It is said that the Thanjavur railway station was renovated at an estimated cost of Rs 21 crore under Amrit Bharat project through which separate entry and exit points were established with the replica of the Big Temple in both the points.

On Wednesday, the railway authorities installed name boards in Tamil, English and Hindi. Particularly, the Hindi letters were fixed on the Big Temple replica, and soon, the political functionaries, pro-Tamil outfit members, social activists and the public opposed the move taken by the railways, and a few organisations staged a demonstration on Wednesday late evening, but the board remained the same.

On Thursday, the DMK cadres along with the Tamil outfit members assembled in front of the railway station and staged a protest demanding to remove the Hindi name board. The Thanjavur DMK MP S Murasoli, MLA Durai Chandrasekaran, Mayor (in charge) Anjugam Boopathi, former mayor Shan Ramanathan and the Tamil outfit members took part in the protest and raised slogans against the railway administration for imposing Hindi in Thanjavur, a town noted for Tamil enthusiasts.

The protesting members also attempted to besiege the railway station. However, the railway workers were deployed to remove the name boards displayed in all three languages. Subsequently, the protest was withdrawn. The MP Murasoli warned the railway administration not to entertain such activities at any time, which would invoke strong protest from the people of Thanjavur.