Union Cabinet clears proposal to change Kerala’s name to ‘Keralam’

The Union Cabinet on Tuesday approved a proposal to change the name of the state of Kerala to ‘Keralam’.

The decision was taken at the first meeting of the Union Cabinet at the newly inaugurated Seva Teerth, the new address of the PMO and the Cabinet Secretariat.

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The Press Information Bureau said the renaming of the state reflects a long-standing demand since the linguistic reorganisation of states, as the state is known as ‘Keralam’ in Malayalam.

While the proposal has been approved, the way forward involves a lengthy legal process, including approval of the State Legislative Assembly, the Central Government, and Parliament.

Cabinet approves alteration of the name of the State of “Kerala” to “Keralam”

➡️ After approval of #UnionCabinet, the President of India will refer a Bill, namely the Kerala (Alteration of Name) Bill, 2026 to the State Legislative Assembly of Kerala for expressing its views… pic.twitter.com/7Rjf8gHQiY

— PIB India (@PIB_India) February 24, 2026

The President will first refer a Bill, namely the Kerala (Alteration of Name) Bill, 2026, to the State Legislative Assembly of Kerala for expressing its views under proviso to Article 3 of the Constitution.

After the Centre receives the Kerala Assembly’s views, it will then take further action, and the President’s recommendation will be obtained for the introduction of the Kerala (Alteration of Name) Bill, 2026, to alter the name of the State of ‘Kerala’ to ‘Keralam’ in Parliament.

It may be recalled that the Kerala Assembly had passed a resolution on June 24, 2024 to change the name of the State of “Kerala” to “Keralam.”

The state government had then requested the Centre to take necessary steps to amend the First Schedule to the Constitution for changing the name of the state.

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan had earlier said that in Malayalam, the name Keralam is used.

“The name of our state is written as Kerala in the First Schedule of the Constitution. This Assembly requests the Centre to take immediate steps to amend it as ‘Keralam’ under Article 3 of the Constitution and have it renamed as ‘Keralam’ in all the languages mentioned in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution,” Vijayan said.

Meanwhile, Kerala BJP state president Rajeev Chandrashekhar has described the move to change the name of the state as very appropriate. He said every Malayali wishes to see the name Keralam.

#WATCH | Thiruvananthapuram | On bill to rename Kerala to Keralam, State BJP President Rajeev Chandrashekhar says,” Calling our state Keralam will be appropriate because we are going to be a state that is going to restore and protect our traditions and culture and also build a… pic.twitter.com/1UufJaaVOD

— ANI (@ANI) February 24, 2026

“Calling our state Keralam is very appropriate because we are going to be a state that is going to restore and protect our traditions and culture and also build a forward-looking state economy. It is clear that every Malayali wants change and wants to set aside politics of lies and fake promises and bring in politics of performance, politics of serving the people,” Chandrashekhar said.