Prayagraj:
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Thursday announced that Prayagraj's Kasari-Masari, once considered a stronghold of slain gangster-politician Atiq Ahmed, would be renamed Shrikrishnapuri, with houses for 1,200 poor families coming up on land freed from the mafia leader's possession.
Issuing a stern warning to criminals, he said no one would dare to indulge in mafia activities in Prayagraj, and those who did, would have to be prepared to be "reduced to dust".
"Mafia Atiq Ahmed's terror stronghold Kasari-Masari will be developed as 'Shrikrishnapuri'," he said, adding that the proposed township and development projects planned during the ongoing Sharadiya Navratri period would be part of the initiative.
The chief minister made the announcement after performing the 'bhoomi pujan' of the Padma Lok Apartment project, a multi-storey residential complex being developed on government land in Prayagraj that was freed from the possession of Atiq Ahmed.
Under the state government's drive to reclaim land from mafias and provide housing to the poor, 602 families in Kasari-Masari would receive houses in the first phase and another 598 in the second phase, Adityanath said.
The project would eventually accommodate around 1,200 families, comprising more than 6,000 people, the chief minister said, adding that 86 poor families had earlier been provided houses in Lokarganj under a similar initiative.
Adityanath alleged that wherever Atiq Ahmed and his brother Ashraf wanted, the land effectively became theirs, while the previous government remained silent before them.
Atiq Ahmed and his brother Ashraf were killed by three men posing as journalists in the middle of a media interaction on the night of April 15, 2023, while police personnel were escorting them for a court-mandated medical check-up.
The chief minister warned that strict action would be taken against those illegally occupying other people's property. If required, their ancestral properties would also be confiscated and used to construct houses for the poor.
Recalling the period when people in Prayagraj lived under the shadow of mafia intimidation, he said development, investment and employment opportunities could not flourish in an atmosphere of insecurity.
The chief minister said the BJP government, which came to power in Uttar Pradesh in 2017, had adopted a "zero-tolerance" policy towards crime and criminals, with the objective of establishing the rule of law and making the state a growth engine of the country's economy.
Targeting the Samajwadi Party, Adityanath alleged that its government had encouraged mafias and criminals, while the BJP government had brought development and change.
Highlighting improvements in road and air connectivity, he said the Ganga Expressway had made travel from Prayagraj to Meerut and Delhi easier.
He also announced that an industrial training institute (ITI) coming up in Prayagraj would be named after Maharaja Bijli Pasi.
The proposed 'Shrikrishnapuri' township would have a market, parks, sports facilities and a gym, with the Prayagraj Development Authority (PDA) responsible for developing the amenities.
According to PDA Secretary Vineet Kumar Singh, the Padma Lok Apartment project would span 9,811 square metres and comprise a 14-storey building with 602 flats. Each flat would have two bedrooms, a hall and a kitchen (2BHK), with an area of 56.45 square metres.
Besides residential facilities, the complex would have a rainwater harvesting unit, a solar system, a swimming pool, a community hall and a commercial complex.
The PDA had selected the beneficiaries for the flats through a lottery in April 2025.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)