February 24, New Delhi – The Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, today approved the proposal to change the name of the State of ‘Kerala’ to ‘Keralam’.
The decision was announced during a Cabinet briefing by Union Minister for Railways, Information & Broadcasting, and Electronics & Information Technology, Ashwini Vaishnaw.
Following the Union Cabinet’s approval, the President of India will refer the Kerala (Alteration of Name) Bill, 2026 to the State Legislative Assembly of Kerala to obtain its views under the proviso to Article 3 of the Constitution of India. After receiving the views of the State Legislative Assembly, the Government of India will take further action and obtain the recommendation of the President for introducing the Kerala (Alteration of Name) Bill, 2026 in Parliament to change the name of the State of ‘Kerala’ to ‘Keralam’.
The Legislative Assembly of Kerala had passed a resolution on June 24, 2024, to change the name of the State of “Kerala” to “Keralam”. The resolution stated that the name of the State is ‘Keralam’ in the Malayalam language and noted that states were formed on the basis of language on November 1, 1956. It also mentioned that Kerala Piravi Day is observed on November 1 and recalled the longstanding demand since the National Independence Struggle for the formation of a United Kerala for Malayalam-speaking people. The resolution pointed out that in the First Schedule to the Constitution, the name of the State is recorded as ‘Kerala’ and unanimously appealed to the Central Government to take urgent steps under Article 3 of the Constitution to modify the name to ‘Keralam’.
Subsequently, the Government of Kerala requested the Government of India to take necessary steps to amend the First Schedule to the Constitution by changing the name of the State of ‘Kerala’ to ‘Keralam’ in accordance with Article 3.
Article 3 of the Constitution provides for the amendment of the names of existing States. It states that Parliament may, by law, change the name of any State. The proviso to Article 3 further specifies that no Bill for this purpose shall be introduced in either House of Parliament except on the recommendation of the President and unless the Bill has been referred by the President to the Legislature of the concerned State for expressing its views within the specified period.
The matter regarding the alteration of the name of the State of ‘Kerala’ to ‘Keralam’ was considered by the Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India. With the approval of Union Minister of Home Affairs and Minister of Cooperation Amit Shah, the draft Note for the Cabinet was circulated to the Department of Legal Affairs and the Legislative Department under the Ministry of Law and Justice for comments. Both departments have agreed with the proposal to change the name of the State of ‘Kerala’ to ‘Keralam’.
(Source: Cabinet)