Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa on Monday requested his Kerala counterpart Pinarayi Vijayan not to change the names of 11 villages in Kasaragod and Manjeshwara taluks in Kasaragod district, which abuts Karnataka.

The Karnataka Border Area Development Authority (KBADA) chairman Dr C Somasekhara on Monday brought the matter to the notice of Yediyurappa stating that the Kerala government intended to change the names of some Kerala villages from Kannada to Malayalam sounding names.

 Reacting immediately, the Chief Minister said the matter has been brought to his notice now. He would bring it to the knowledge of the Kerala Chief Minister, an official press release said. The Chief Minister said Malayalis and Kannadigas in Kasaragod and Manjeshwar have been living harmoniously, hence it is not proper to change the Kannada names of places to Malayalam. He said he would write to the Kerala Chief Minister requesting him to stop the process immediately.

Somasekhara pointed out that the decision to change the Kannada names of the villages might have been taken at the local level and the Chief Minister Vijayan may not be aware of it. Karnataka's Forest and Kannada and Culture Minister Aravind Limbavali wrote to the state chief minister regarding Kerala government's move to change names of border villages in the state from Kannada to Malayalam. He said the Kerala government is implementing its decision to change the Kannada names of villages in Kasargod and Manjeshwar taluks, which border Karnataka, into Malayalam.

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