Who Is DB Patil? Devendra Fadnavis Announces Navi Mumbai Airport To Be Named After People’s Leader

The Navi Mumbai International Airport will be named after people’s leader DB Patil, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis made the announcement on Monday. 

He was speaking at a public meeting in Airoli at an event that was part of the Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation election campaign. Fadnavis called DB Patil a people's leader and said that the airport would boost regional development. 

The project will support trade, jobs and investment. Fadnavis also said Navi Mumbai is an extension of Mumbai. He added that the city will become the next engine of economic growth. 

Following significant consideration, it has been decided that this airport will be named after the former MLA, who is beloved in the region as a local hero.

Dinkar Balu Patil, popularly known as DB Patil, was a senior leader from Raigad district. An MLA from Panvel in Raigad district between 1957 and 1980, he was known for his fight for farmers’ rights. He was born in Jasai village in Uran taluka of Raigad district and came from a farming family. He completed his LLB degree in 1951. A year later, he entered public life after winning the Kolaba district local board election.

Patil was associated with the Peasants and Workers Party (PWP) for most of his political career. He also served as a Member of Parliament from Kolaba in 1977 and again in 1984. In 1992, he became a member of the Maharashtra Legislative Council.

Patil served as Leader of the Opposition in the Maharashtra Assembly from 1972 to 1977 and again during 1982–83. He was arrested during the Emergency in 1975 for opposing government policies.

He led several protests in Panvel and surrounding areas after CIDCO acquired land during the 1970s and 1980s. In a major protest in 1984, four farmers were killed. This agitation later led to the introduction of the 12.5% developed land scheme for affected farmers, which is now followed across Maharashtra.

Patil also fought for villagers displaced by the Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust project in Uran. He led these protests while he was in an ambulance at the age of 86. He died in 2012 at 87.