Kerala Assembly officially approves the motion to alter the state’s official name to ‘Keralam’ – indiansupdate.com
In a significant move, the State Legislative Assembly unanimously adopted a resolution on Wednesday, urging the Central government to officially alter the name of the State from ‘Kerala’ to ‘Keralam.’ The Assembly’s resolution calls for a constitutional amendment to reflect the proposed name change, as the current Constitution also identifies the State as ‘Kerala.’
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan presented the resolution’s content in accordance with Rule 118 of the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business in the Kerala Legislative Assembly. Though ‘Keralam’ is the accepted and widespread usage in the Malayalam language, official records, particularly in English, commonly refer to the State as ‘Kerala.’ This nomenclature is reinforced by the First Schedule of the Constitution, which specifies the State’s name as ‘Kerala.’
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan emphasized, “The name of our State in Malayalam is ‘Keralam.’ The linguistic reorganization of states took place on November 1, 1956, a date commemorated as ‘Keralappiravi’ day. The demand for a unified ‘Keralam’ for the Malayalam-speaking population has strong historical roots dating back to the freedom struggle. Nonetheless, the First Schedule of the Constitution designates the State’s name as ‘Kerala.’ To rectify this, urgent action is warranted under Article 3 of the Constitution to amend it to ‘Keralam.'”
Article 3 of the Constitution pertains to the establishment of new States and modifications to the areas, boundaries, or names of existing States. Furthermore, the resolution calls upon the Central government to implement the usage of ‘Keralam’ across all languages included in the Eighth Schedule. This move underscores the State’s commitment to recognizing its historical and linguistic identity and seeks to align its official designation with its deeply-rooted heritage. The unanimous passage of this resolution reflects the collective will to honor the cultural and linguistic uniqueness of the State.