Kerala is now ‘Keralam’: Union Cabinet approves proposal to rename state

The Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has approved the proposal to alter the name of the State of Kerala to “Keralam”. Following the Cabinet’s decision, the President of India will refer the Kerala (Alteration of Name) Bill, 2026 to the Kerala Legislative Assembly for expressing its views, as required under Article 3 of the Constitution. After receiving the Assembly’s views, the Centre will take further steps before introducing the Bill in Parliament.

The move follows a resolution passed unanimously by the Kerala Legislative Assembly on June 24, 2024, urging the Centre to modify the name recorded in the First Schedule of the Constitution. The Assembly stated that the name of the state in Malayalam is “Keralam” and appealed for urgent steps to reflect this in the Constitution. The resolution also referenced the historical demand for a unified state for Malayalam-speaking people and noted that states were reorganised on linguistic lines in 1956.

Under Article 3 of the Constitution, Parliament has the authority to alter the name of any state by law. However, such a Bill can be introduced only on the recommendation of the President and after the proposal is referred to the concerned State Legislature for its views within a specified period.

The proposal was examined by the Ministry of Home Affairs, and after approval by the Union Home Minister, the draft Cabinet note was circulated to the Department of Legal Affairs and the Legislative Department of the Ministry of Law and Justice. Both departments concurred with the proposal to alter the name from “Kerala” to “Keralam”.