Goodbye 'Kerala'? ‘Keralam’ name change proposal gets Cabinet nod

Kerala is known for attracting a large number of tourists every year.

Following the Cabinet’s approval, the President of India will refer the proposed legislation — the Kerala (Alteration of Name) Bill, 2026 — to the Kerala Legislative Assembly for its views under the proviso to Article 3 of the Constitution of India.

After receiving the Assembly’s views, the Government of India will take further action.

The President’s recommendation will then be sought for introducing the Bill in Parliament to formally alter the name of the state from ‘Kerala’ to ‘Keralam’.

The Kerala Legislative Assembly had earlier passed a unanimous resolution on June 24, 2024, urging the Centre to amend the First Schedule of the Constitution to reflect the name ‘Keralam’.

The resolution stated that the state is known as ‘Keralam’ in the Malayalam language and that states were reorganised on linguistic lines on November 1, 1956 — a date commemorated as Kerala Piravi Day.

It further noted that despite the long-standing demand for a united Malayalam-speaking state, the Constitution records the name as ‘Kerala’.

The Kerala government subsequently requested the Centre to initiate steps under Article 3 of the Constitution to amend the First Schedule and officially adopt ‘Keralam’ as the state’s name.

Article 3 empowers Parliament to alter the name of any state by law. However, such a Bill can only be introduced on the recommendation of the President and must first be referred to the concerned state legislature for its views within a specified timeframe.

The proposal was examined by the Ministry of Home Affairs and approved by Union Home Minister Amit Shah before being circulated to the Department of Legal Affairs and the Legislative Department under the Ministry of Law and Justice for their comments. Both departments have concurred with the proposal.