Dear Comrades,
NEW DELHI: The Lok Sabha on Tuesday cleared the Bill to rename Orissa as `Odisha' and its language as `Odiya' instead of Oriya.
The Orissa (Alteration of Name) Bill was piloted by home minister P Chidambaram in the House. Adoption of the Bill by the Rajya Sabha is likely to be a mere formality.
A number of states and cities have shed their more anglicised names adopted during the colonial rule to revert to their original forms. Among similar rechristened cities and states are Mumbai (Bombay), Chennai (Madras), Kolkata (Calcutta) and Karnataka (Mysore). Uttarakhand, born as Uttaranchal, later adopted its present name.
The Times of India
