Bengaluru: A road in Bengaluru’s Domlur municipal ward, which until recently didn’t have a name, will now be called Birbal — after the sharp-witted courtier of Mughal emperor Akbar.
Domlur Corporator C.R. Lakshminarayan, who is known to name roads after historical figures, is behind the initiative. The Domlur road was named on 28 July.
When asked why he decided to name it after Birbal, the corporator said the courtier needed to be given more recognition than just being mentioned in story books.
“Birbal was Akbar’s closest and trustworthy advisor. He was a great strategist and one who knew how to win the hearts of people, something even politicians do,” he told ThePrint.
Other roads named by Lakshminarayanan in his municipal ward are after Mahabharata characters Arjuna and Nakula.
“When you name roads after historical characters, it also becomes a landmark and people remember it for posterity,” he said.
Lakshminarayanan believes that quirky or historical names lend an identity to a place.
The 2,000-odd residents of Domlur always found it difficult to give their addresses. Without a name, it was hard for post persons and courier services to trace the addresses of houses on this road.
“Now I can put the name of our road on my address. I used to walk up to a certain point to collect my parcels as courier agents would get confused without a road name. Now I am proud to add Birbal road to my address, it is very unique,” said Pushpa S, a resident of the area.
Also read: After furore over dropping Tipu Sultan from textbooks, Karnataka govt puts decision on hold