Odisha govt directs collectors to ensure use of revised place-name spellings across state
Bhubaneswar, Sep 6
The Odisha Revenue and Disaster Management Department has directed Collectors of all districts to ensure the uniform and consistent use of recently revised English spellings of different place names in the state, in line with their Odia pronunciation, across all government offices and institutions in their respective districts, an official said on Sunday.
The officials noted that the Additional Chief Secretary of the Revenue and Disaster Management Department, Dr Arabinda Kumar Padhee, has written to all Collectors directing them to undertake a comprehensive review of the nameplates and signboards of Government offices and institutions and ensure that the revised spellings approved by the Government are used uniformly.
As per the Gazette Notification issued by the state government on June 22, 2026, the government offices and institutions were required to adopt the revised spellings on their signboards within one month. A period of six months was prescribed for private and non-Government institutions.
The decision has already been implemented successfully in several districts. Under the revised nomenclature, Angul is to be written as "Anugola", Balasore as "Baleshwar", Kendrapara as "Kendrapada" and Cuttack as "KATAKA". These revised spellings are being progressively adopted across Government establishments.
"However, the State Government has observed that some Government offices are still using old English spellings on their signboards. The Collectors have therefore been directed to ensure that spellings such as "Jeypore" and "Soro" are replaced by the Government-approved spellings "Jayapur" and "Sora", respectively," the officials said.
Additionally, the department has emphasised that maintaining consistency and uniformity in official place names is essential for effective implementation of the State Cabinet decision. Continued use of old spellings on Government signboards may result in inconsistencies in official nomenclature and dilute the objective of the decision.
Accordingly, Collectors have been instructed to personally review the status of implementation in all Government offices, institutions and other Government establishments in their respective districts and ensure the use of the revised English spellings in all official signboards and nameplates. The department also advised the collectors to facilitate and encourage private and non-Government institutions to adopt the revised spellings within the stipulated timeframe and ensure their wider use.
"The department has accorded top priority to the implementation of the decision. All Collectors have been directed to take necessary action and submit a compliance report within one week indicating the status of implementation in their respective districts," added the officials.
— IANS
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