Lucknow :

To mark the birth centenary of ghazal queen Begum Akhtar, Uttar Pradesh government has directed its cultural department to take forward its four proposals that stand to bring back Begum to our times.

The government will rename two roads after her — one in Lucknow and the other in Faizabad, her birthplace. An award in her name is set to be christened, while the house in Faizabad, where she was born, would be restored.

While the directive had come in over a month now, the house in Faizabad is yet to be acquired and converted into a museum of her relics. With the present owners of the house unwilling to part with the property, the district administration is focussing on an alternative land or building in Faizabad to replenish the musical genius of Mallika-e-Ghazal, said a senior officer.

The draft for the award in Begum’s memory has been set, ready to be sent to the cabinet, after which it will be finalized and given the green signal.

The road around her residence after marriage with Barrister Ishtiaq Ahmed Abbasi, on Fawn Brake Avenue in Lucknow and the one around her maternal home ‘Mushtari ka Makaan’ in Faizabad are the two proposed to be renamed after Begum Akhtar. The municipal corporations of the respective cities have been directed in this regard, awaiting the final work to be taken up, said joint director, culture department, Anuradha Goel.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Lucknow / TNN / October 30th, 2014