New Delhi, February 24 – The Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, approved the proposal to change the name of "Kerala" to "Keralam" on Tuesday, according to government officials.
Following the Union Cabinet's approval, President Droupadi Murmu will refer a Bill, namely the Kerala (Alteration of Name) Bill, 2026, to the Kerala Assembly to express its views under Article 3 of the Constitution of India.
After receiving the views of the Kerala Assembly, the Union government will take further action, and the recommendation of President Murmu will be obtained for introducing the Kerala (Alteration of Name) Bill, 2026, in Parliament to change the name of "Kerala" to "Keralam".
Incidentally, the Kerala Assembly passed a resolution on June 24, 2024, to change the name of "Kerala" to "Keralam," which reads: "The name of our State is 'Keralam' in the Malayalam language."
"States were formed on the basis of language on November 1, 1956. Kerala Piravi Day is also observed on November 1. Since the time of the country's independence struggle, there has been a strong demand for the formation of a United Kerala for people who speak the Malayalam language. However, the name of our state is recorded as 'Kerala' in the First Schedule to the Constitution. The Kerala Assembly unanimously appeals to the Central government to take urgent steps as per Article 3 of the Constitution for modifying the name as 'Keralam'."
Subsequently, the Kerala government requested the Union government to take necessary steps to amend the First Schedule to the Constitution by changing the name of "Kerala" to "Keralam" as per Article 3 of the Constitution.
Article 3 of the Constitution provides for the alteration of names of existing states.
According to Article 3, Parliament may, by law, alter the name of any state in the country.
Further, Article 3 states that no Bill for this purpose will be introduced in either House of Parliament except on the recommendation of the President, and unless the proposal contained in the Bill affects the area, boundaries, or name of any state, the Bill has been referred by the President to the Legislature of that state for expressing its views thereon within such period as may be specified in the reference or within such further period as the President may allow, and the period so specified or allowed has expired.
The matter regarding changing the name of "Kerala" to "Keralam" was considered in the Union Ministry of Home Affairs. With the approval of Union Home Minister Amit Shah, a draft note for the Union Cabinet to change the name of "Kerala" to "Keralam" was circulated to the Department of Legal Affairs and Legislative Department of the Ministry of Law and Justice for their comments.
The Department of Legal Affairs and Legislative Department of the Ministry of Law and Justice has agreed with the proposal to change the name of "Kerala" to "Keralam".