Uttarakhand passes resolution to name Jollygrant airport after Vajpayee

Uttarakhand Assembly Wednesday passed a resolution on naming the Jollygrant airport here after former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee.

The resolution, tabled in the House by Parliamentary Affairs Minister Prakash Pant, was passed by voice vote in the absence of opposition members.

The resolution will now be sent to the Centre for its approval.

The state cabinet chaired by Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat had given its nod to a proposal to name the airport after Vajpayee at a meeting here last month.

The cabinet's decision had ignited a controversy with former chief minister Harish Rawat objecting to it on the ground that a proposal to name the airport after Adi Guru Shankaracharya had already been moved during his tenure.

However, the CM had defended his cabinet decision by saying he was not aware of any such proposal being mooted by the previous government.

(With inputs from agencies.)