Bangalore city renamed Bengalooru

BANGALORE: India's technology hub of Bangalore changed its name to its vernacular original Bengalooru on Wednesday in what is seen as a bid to appease locals upset at the influx of outsiders.

The name change was announced to mark the 50th anniversary celebrations of the formation of Karnataka state, of which the city is the capital.

However, the change is expected to take about a month to come into effect legally as it needs central government approval, a senior state official said.

Historians say Bengalooru is derived from Bendakalooru, meaning a town of boiled beans, as the place was named when it was born in the 14th century.

Bangalore is the anglicised version of Bengalooru, a city which was popular with India's British colonial rulers for its temperate weather throughout the year.

Home to more than 1,500 computer software and back office firms -- including global giants such as IBM, Dell, Intel, Google and Oracle -- the city has seen an influx of outsiders drawn by lucrative employment opportunities.

Although it has traditionally been among India's more cosmopolitan centres, the increased migration over the last decade has alienated some locals and led to the resurgence of regional chauvinistic groups, analysts say.

Their campaign seeking primacy for the local Kannada language -- which they say is threatened by the influx -- has seen shops and businesses in Bangalore removing English signboards and instead prominently displaying Kannada signs.

Kannada activists and writers have also opposed a state government move to introduce teaching English in primary government schools across the state.

JUST COSMETIC?

The decision to change names -- just as Bombay became Mumbai and Madras became Chennai -- was the regional government's bid to appease these vocal groups, analysts said.

"All cities in Karnataka with anglicised names should be changed to the local language," said Chandrashekhar Patil, president of the literary organisation, Kannada Sahitya Parishad, adding that Bangalore's name change was a socio-cultural event.

"We know what action to take if they do not support the cause of Kannada," he said after a demonstration in the city's fashionable Commercial Street.

A section of the IT industry is known to have reservations about the name change as they are apprehensive it could hurt the city's branding, but few officials were willing to speak out openly for fear of being targeted by Kannada groups.

Others, like Mohandas Pai, a director at top software exporter, Infosys, said the change was cosmetic and would not make much of a difference.

"There is not much of a fundamental change in calling Bangalore Bengalooru. We will live with it. It will not affect the industry," Pai said.

"Names are being changed the world over and people accept it. Peking became Beijing and Bombay is now Mumbai."