Kerala Assembly Passes Resolution to Rename State as ‘Keralam’

Thiruvananthapuram:  The Kerala Assembly unanimously adopted a resolution on Monday urging the Centre to officially change the state’s name to ‘Keralam’ in all languages listed in the Eighth Schedule of the Indian Constitution.

This marks the second time the Assembly has passed such a resolution, following the Union Home Ministry’s request for technical revisions to the first submission.

Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, who presented the resolution, noted that the state is traditionally known as ‘Keralam’ in Malayalam. He highlighted the longstanding demand for a unified Kerala for Malayalam-speaking communities, which dates back to the national freedom struggle.

“The name of our state is currently listed as Kerala in the First Schedule of the Constitution. This Assembly urges the Centre to amend it to ‘Keralam’ under Article 3 of the Constitution, ensuring the name change is reflected in all Eighth Schedule languages,” stated CM Vijayan.

The resolution received bipartisan support, with both the ruling LDF and the opposition Congress-led UDF backing the move. Despite UDF legislator N Shamsudeen proposing amendments to the resolution’s structure, these suggestions were not incorporated, and the resolution was declared unanimously adopted by Speaker A N Shamseer.

The initial resolution, passed in August last year, was returned by the Union Home Ministry for technical modifications. Following further examination, necessary changes were made, leading to the revised resolution presented this week.