Constitutional Provisions
- Renaming a state is governed primarily by Article 3 of the Constitution.
- Parliament can alter the name of an existing state through an ordinary law passed by a simple majority; a constitutional amendment under Article 368 is not required
Procedure to Rename the States
- Initiation of Proposal: A proposal may originate from the State Legislature or the Union Government.
- Union Government Examination: The proposal is examined by the Ministry of Home Affairs.
- President’s Recommendation: A Bill dealing with the alteration of the name of a state can be introduced in either House of Parliament only on the recommendation of the President.
- Reference to State Legislature: Before recommending the Bill, the President refers it to the concerned State Legislature for expressing its views within a specified period.
- Advisory Nature of State’s Opinion: The State Legislature’s views are not binding on Parliament. Parliament may accept, modify or reject them. It may also proceed if the State Legislature fails to respond within the prescribed period.
- Parliamentary Passage: The Bill is passed by both Houses of Parliament by a simple majority.
- Presidential Assent: After receiving the President’s assent, the Bill becomes an Act.
- Official Implementation: The new name is notified, and the relevant constitutional schedules and official records are amended.
Examples
- Uttaranchal was renamed Uttarakhand with effect from 1 January 2007, while Orissa was renamed Odisha in 2011.
Source: The Hindu