Union Cabinet Nod for Changing Kerala’s Official Name to Keralam

New Delhi: The Union Cabinet has approved the proposal to change the official name of the state from “Kerala” to “Keralam” in the Constitution of India. As part of the constitutional procedure, the President will forward the Bill to the Kerala Legislative Assembly for its views. The proposed amendment will also require approval by Parliament before it comes into effect.

On June 24, 2024, the Kerala Legislative Assembly had unanimously passed a resolution seeking a constitutional amendment to rename the state as “Keralam.” The resolution was introduced by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, urging the Central Government to initiate steps under Article 3 of the Constitution to amend the First Schedule and officially record the state’s name as “Keralam.”

An earlier resolution on the same matter had been passed by the Assembly in 2023. That resolution sought amendments to both the First Schedule and the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution. However, the Union Home Ministry clarified that amending the First Schedule alone would suffice, as changes to the Eighth Schedule were not required. Following this clarification, the Chief Minister introduced a revised resolution focusing solely on the necessary amendment to the First Schedule.

The move is aimed at aligning the state’s official name with its native Malayalam usage, “Keralam.”