The Orissa government has decided to move the Centre to change the state's name to Odisha and its language from Oriya to Odia.
A state cabinet meeting on Monday passed a proposal to introduce a bill in the coming monsoon session of the assembly for making an amendment in the Constitution in this regard, Chief Secretary Ajit Kumar Tripathy said.
A bill in this regard will be placed in the monsoon session, Home Secretary T K Mishra said observing the state's name had been wrongly spelt in the Constitution, and no such move had been taken till now.
Official sources said ever since the BJD-BJP government came to power in 2000, it had been demanding a change in the Constitution in this regard and according to the Centre's suggestion the Cabinet on Monday approved the amendment.
Stating the disparities due to 'wrong spelling of state's name', Mishra said though it was being written as Udisa in Hindi and Orissa in English, the real name was Odisha.
Similarly, the name of the state's language is written as Udiya in Hindi and Oriya in English when it should be Odia.
"We hope that the Constitution will be amended accordingly to effect the changes in this regard by end of this year," Mishra said.
The government's move to amend constitution was praised by all sides including former chief minister and leader of opposition J B Patnaik.
It should be done soon, Patnaik said while noted novelist Santanu Acharya complimented everybody associated with the move to change name of the state.
"Above all it is the question of pride of the state," Acharya said.
