A vintage photograph of India’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru arriving by an aeroplane at Mamunur Airport to inaugurate the Regional Engineering College (REC) in Warangal— DC File

WARANGAL: The proposal to rename Mamunur Airport in Warangal has turned from choice of a name to how history should be preserved. Under discussion is an array of names – Rani Rudramadevi, Chakali Ailamma, Sarvai Papanna Goud, Sammakka-Sarakka, Prataparudra, Prof. Jayashankar, and P.V. Narasimha Rao. There is a section of local residents that wants the name Mamunur to be retained.

“If Rudramadevi is to be honoured, why erase a name that locals link to her daughter Mummidamma,” is a contention that the area people raise. Was Mummidamma the daughter of Rudramadevi?

According to accounts of those who have researched the area’s history, the name Mamunur is believed to have originated from the name of Mummidamma, said to be the daughter of Rani Rudramadevi. They contend the name Mummidamma gradually underwent changes over time and eventually came to be known as Mamunur.

Sculptures at an ancient temple in Mamunur village provide a historical backdrop to this claim, says noted litterateur and Mamunur native Ganta Ramireddy. He points out that the sculptural features found there bear similarities to those seen in Kakatiya monuments, such as the Warangal Fort and the Thousand Pillar Temple.

However, the historical link between Mummidamma and the name Mamunur needs verification through authoritative archaeological and historical evidence.

Airport’s history dates back to the Nizam era

Mamunur is not merely the name of a village. It has been associated with Warangal’s aviation history for nearly a century. Warangal region’s historians say land acquisition for the airport started during the reign of the seventh Nizam, Mir Osman Ali Khan in the early 1930s and the process was completed by 1934. Mamunur subsequently emerged as an important aviation centre in the erstwhile Hyderabad State.

The name continued even after Independence. Local residents still recall the occasion when the country’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru arrived at Mamunur Airport for inauguration of the newly set up Regional Engineering College (REC) in Warangal. Nehru travelled from there to the Warangal city by road.

The Nizams did not change the airport’s name. Independent India did not change it. Despite decades of aviation activity, Mamunur Airport remained an integral part of the everyday identity among the people of Warangal.

Now that the airport is set to get a new lease of life, area people assert that it does not mean it should acquire a new name.

A name steeped in history is not just a signboard

Renaming an airport is not merely a matter of replacing a signboard. Maps, government records, air tickets, and addresses may change. But so can an identity that has been associated with a place for generations.

Why not explore a way to preserve the name Mamunur while recognising the legacy of Rani Rudramadevi? Why not showcase the history?

Along with modernising the airport, authorities could consider setting up at the airport premises a Kakatiya heritage gallery, a Mamunur aviation history museum, and a dedicated section on the historical connection between Rudramadevi and Mummidamma.

This could serve two purposes. On one hand, Mamunur could acquire a new identity as a modern airport. On the other hand, the journey of Mamunur — from the Kakatiyas and the Nizam to Nehru and modern Telangana — could be preserved and showcased for future generations.

The question should no longer be merely about choosing a name… it must be about choosing how history is remembered.


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