Nagaon (Assam), Aug 12 (PTI) The ‘Dhakapatty’ area in Nagaon town has been renamed ‘Rupkonwar Chowk’ from Tuesday, following instructions from Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, a senior official said.
Jyoti Prasad Agarwala, a noted playwright, songwriter, poet and freedom fighter of Assam, is popularly called ‘Rupkonwar’ (prince of beauty). He is also considered the father of Assamese cinema as he made the first two feature films of the state. Agarwala died in 1951 at the age of 47.
Dhakapatty got its name from labourers brought from Dhaka, now the capital of Bangladesh, in the 19th century.
Addressing a press conference here, Nagaon District Commissioner Devashish Sharma ceremonially declared to rechristen the name of Dhakapatty in the heart of Nagaon town in central Assam to Rupknowar Chowk as per a collective decision of esteemed local citizens.
“As directed by the Assam CM and following advice from eminent personalities, the decision of renaming Dhakapatty area as Rupkonwar Chowk was taken unanimously in the fond memory of Assam’s noted cultural icon,” Sharma said.
The age-old street area, starting from RD Store point to Sayar Store point, is rechristened as Rupkonwar Chowk from erstwhile Dhakapatty, he added.
“The name of the street area, starting from Sayar Store towards the greater Barabazar area, is also renamed as ‘Barabazar’ instead of Dhakapatty,” the DC said.
After signing the Yandabo Treaty in 1826 with the Burmese kingdom, the British brought some skilled labourers to Assam’s Jorhat town from Dhaka for baking, stitching, binding, and other works.
Later, those labourers from Dhaka were brought to Nagaon town for similar purposes, and that was how the name ‘Dhakapatty’ came.
“People from every walk of life in Nagaon district have welcomed the government’s decision to rename the said area after Assam’s pride Rupkonwar Jyoti Prasad Agarwala instead of the capital of Bangladesh,” Sharma claimed.
He sought public cooperation with the said decision and requested the traders of area to rewrite the name as ‘Rupkonwar Chowk’ in the signboards of commercial establishments in the locality within the next one month.
“I also request the traders to write the name as Barabazar instead of Dhakapatty in the signboards of their business establishments situated in between Sayar Store point to greater Barabazar point area,” the official said.
He also said that a circle will be constructed at the newly named Rupkonwar Chowk point after a detailed discussion with the Nagaon Municipal Board and the departments concerned. PTI TR TR NN
This report is auto-generated from PTI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.