India's Union cabinet approves renaming Kerala to 'Keralam', aligning with cultural heritage

Dubai: India's Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has officially approved the proposal to rename the state of Kerala to ‘Keralam’. This landmark decision follows a series of resolutions moved by the Kerala state government, which sought to alter the state's name under Article 3 of the Constitution of India.

The move aims to align the official English title of the state with its native Malayalam name, a change that has been a point of cultural pride for decades.

According to the reports, the administrative process will now move to the next constitutional stage. Following the Cabinet's approval, the President of India will refer the Kerala (Alteration of Name) Bill, 2026 to the Kerala State Legislative Assembly. This step allows the state legislature to express its views on the matter, as required by the proviso to Article 3.

Once these views are received, the Government of India will obtain the President’s recommendation to formally introduce the Bill in Parliament for the final amendment of the First Schedule.

The push for this change has been a persistent effort by Chief Minister of Kerala, Pinarayi Vijayan, who moved resolutions in both 2023 and 2024. Although the Kerala Assembly had previously passed a resolution to this effect, the Ministry of Home Affairs suggested specific technical changes, necessitating a second vote by the state legislature. The Chief Minister emphasised that while the state was formed on linguistic lines on November 1, 1956, it was recorded in the Constitution as ‘Kerala’ despite being known as ‘Keralam’ in the Malayalam language since the Independence struggle.

The timing of the approval is particularly significant as the state prepares for the Kerala Assembly elections, which are expected to take place in April or May 2026.

While the Election Commission of India (ECI) has yet to announce the official polling dates, the renaming is seen as a major milestone for the state’s linguistic identity. By adopting ‘Keralam’ across all languages included in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution, the government seeks to honour the historical and cultural roots of the Malayalam-speaking population.