Raipur, Oct 8: Clarifying confusion over the proposed development of Telibandha Chowk in Raipur, Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai on Tuesday said the name of the prominent intersection would remain unchanged and there was no proposal to rename it.

Speaking to the media, Sai said 38 locations across Chhattisgarh had been identified for development under the ‘Seva Jyoti Sankalp Chowk’ initiative, with Telibandha Chowk among them.

He said the initiative was aimed at developing and beautifying the identified locations in keeping with the spirit of ‘Seva Jyoti Sankalp’ and did not involve changing their existing names or character.

“There should be no confusion in this regard,” the Chief Minister said, reiterating that Telibandha Chowk would continue to be known by its existing name.

On his tour programme, Sai said Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s birthday was being observed as part of the ‘Seva Sankalp Abhiyan’. As part of the campaign, he was scheduled to visit Durg to participate in the ‘Seva Setu’ programme, where the 32nd instalment of the Mahtari Vandan Yojana would also be released.

Reacting to Congress leader Gyanesh Kumar’s resignation and the Opposition’s criticism of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs), Sai said the Congress had lost credibility and was gradually shrinking.

He alleged that the party questioned EVMs and the Election Commission whenever it lost elections but did not raise similar concerns when its candidates won using the same voting system.

On the issue of religious conversion, the Chief Minister said strict laws had been enacted in Chhattisgarh to curb illegal conversions. He said stern action would be taken against anyone found violating the law.

Sai also expressed grief over the reported death of actor Nana Patekar, describing him as a fine artist whose acting had been widely appreciated. He said the actor’s death was an irreparable loss to the film industry.