Kerala To Be Renamed ‘Keralam’? Union Cabinet’s Big Decision On Poll-Bound State Today

New Delhi: A Bill to change the name of Kerala to “Keralam” is likely to be passed in the Union Cabinet meeting today. The move carries both symbolic and political weight as the state is likely to go to the polls before May.

The development follows a formal request from the Kerala Legislative Assembly, which had adopted a resolution urging the Centre to amend the First Schedule of the Constitution to reflect the state’s name as “Keralam”, the term used in Malayalam.

Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan had piloted the resolution, arguing that while the state is known as “Keralam” in its native language, it continues to be recorded as “Kerala” in the Constitution. The Assembly first cleared the proposal in 2024, but it was reintroduced and passed again on June 25, 2024, after the Ministry of Home Affairs flagged certain technical aspects requiring modification.

The state government has maintained that the change is rooted in historical and linguistic identity. The demand for a unified region for Malayalam-speaking people predates Independence and “Keralam” is widely used in cultural and literary contexts within the state.

For the change to take effect, Parliament would need to amend the Constitution under Article 3, which deals with the formation of new states and alteration of areas, boundaries or names of existing states. The proposed revision would also require updating the state’s name in all languages listed in the Eighth Schedule.

The timing of the Cabinet’s likely consideration is significant. Kerala is due to vote for its 140-member Assembly in the coming months, though the Election Commission has not yet announced the polling schedule.

The Union Cabinet is meeting in the new office of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, its first meeting at Seva Tirtha. The last meeting was held on February 13 in Prime Minister's Office at South Block, hours before the office shifted.

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