President Murmu approves bill renaming Kerala as Keralam

President Droupadi Murmu has given assent to the Kerala (Alteration of Name) Bill, 2026, making the state's renaming from Kerala to Keralam official. The bill was passed by the Lok Sabha on August 11 and by the Rajya Sabha the next day, greaterkashmir.com and english.mathrubhumi.com report.

In the Rajya Sabha, Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai said the Kerala Assembly passed a resolution in 2024 urging the Centre to bring a law for the name change. The state government submitted that resolution to the Centre in June 2024. President Murmu then referred the Bill to the state legislature, which adopted a unanimous resolution agreeing with it.

The Act amends the First Schedule to the Constitution under Article 3, changing the state's name from Kerala to Keralam. The legislation also contains necessary amendments and consequential provisions to give effect to the change.