Orissa finally becomes Odisha

BHUBANESWAR: Finally, Orissa freed itself from one of the baggage of its colonial past. Officially, the State’s name has been changed to Odisha. President Pratibha Patil on Friday gave assent to the Bill earlier passed by Parliament for changing the name of the State from Orissa to Odisha. Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik wrote the first letter to the President on his official letterhead in which Orissa was struck down and replaced by Odisha. Naveen conveyed to the President the deep sense of gratitude of the people of the State, now to be known as Odisha. With the Orissa (the Alteration of Name) Bill becoming an Act, ‘Oriya’ will now be known as ‘Odia’. The Chief Minister and his Cabinet colleagues celebrated the occasion by distributing sweets and bursting crackers. Change in the name of the State and its language was a long-standing demand of the people. The Assembly had passed a unanimous resolution in August, 2008 for changing the name of the State and its language. The Chief Minister announced holiday on Saturday as per the Negotiable Instrument Act.All schools, colleges, Government offices and banks will remain closed on Saturday. The Bill was passed by the Lok Sabha on November 9 last year and sent to the Rajya Sabha for concurrence.  The Uppe r Hous e passed it with amendments on March 24 and returned it to the Lower House the same day.