26/11 attacks: Sultanpur becomes Rahul Nagar, locals rename it after martyr

Sultanpur a village in Maharashtra with a population of around 1000 and 600 houses will now be known as Rahul Nagar as the local residents have changed its name in memory of its native who laid down his life while fighting terrorists during the 2611 Mumbai attacks in 2008Rahul Shinde a constable of the State Reserve Police Force SRPF attained martyrdom during the terror attacks 14 years ago Shinde who hailed from Sultanpur in Madha tehsil of Solapur district was amongst the first police personnel to enter the Taj Mahal Palace Hotel in south Mumbai after reports of firing by terroristsShinde was hit with a bullet in his stomach by terrorists in which he diedWhile the government honoured him by conferring the Presidents Police Medal on him posthumously for his supreme sacrifice the residents of Sultanpur decided to rename their village after him as he was born and brought up there However the official renaming ceremony is yet to take placeAll the government formalities for renaming the village are done We are now waiting for the official renaming ceremony Subhash Vishnu Shinde father of late Rahul Shinde told PTI on the eve of the 14th anniversary of the 2611 attacksWe are waiting for the confirmation of dates from the dignitaries and guests and it will soon be finalised he said adding Joint Commissioner of Police Law and Order Vishwas Nangre Patil who was then Deputy Commissioner of Police zoneI in Mumbai helped him in the processI had been following up with the government on this for the last 10 years Finally it is done I am satisfied now and dont want anything more I feel honoured that the village now bears the name of my son he saidSpeaking about his martyred son Shinde said he showed courage while fighting against terrorists and made the supreme sacrifice for the countryI am proud of my son he saidSubhash Shinde has two more children a son and a daughter He now lives with his younger son who got married a few years agoAlso Read Mumbai Maharashtra govt asks BMC chief to draw ward boundariesRahuls mother is still under trauma She has not been able to come to terms with the situation yetShe is still unable to digest the fact that Rahul is no more he saidAfter Rahuls demise the government provided financial assistance to us as per rules We also got a flat in Mumbai and a gas agency at the taluka place which helps the family earn a living he saidThe Shinde family is also involved in farmingThis year we harvested sugarcane on our farm he saidShinde also set up a memorial of Rahul in the village in 2010The aid of Rs 10 lakh which the family received from the Mumbai civic body was used in installing the memorial he saidThe memorial is meant to inspire the younger generation The youth should feel that when it is required one should be ready to make the supreme sacrifice for the country he saidI did all this by keeping my personal sorrow aside to keep his memories alive Shinde said adding that he was just waiting for the official renaming ceremonyOn November 26 2008 10 LashkareTaiba terrorists from Pakistan arrived by sea route and opened fire killing 166 people including 18 security personnel and injuring several others during the 60hour siege in MumbaiThe Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus the Oberoi Trident the Taj Mahal Hotel Leopold Cafe Cama Hospital and the Nariman House Jewish community centre now renamed Nariman Light House were some of the places targeted by terroristsNine terrorists were later killed by the security forces including the NSG the countrys elite commando force Ajmal Kasab was the only terrorist who was captured alive He was hanged four years later on November 21 2012This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever