India's high-tech capital Bangalore, known world-wide as an outsourcing hub, on Wednesday changed its name to reflect the local language and became 'the town of boiled beans'.
The city in south-west India, capital of Karnataka, will officially use the local Kannada language name Bengaluru from now on, chief minister H.D. Kumaraswamy said at the 50th anniversary celebrations of the state's formation.
"As per the people's aspirations the government has decided to change the name of Bangalore into Bengaluru," Kumaraswamy told a gathering of more than 30,000 people at a cricket stadium. "The legal process is on."
The change, first announced last December, will take a couple of months to implement as it has to be approved by the federal government.
Nine other Karnataka towns are also changing their names, the minister added.
Bangalore, according to state historians, got its name from Bendakalooru (the town of boiled beans) after a king strayed into the area during a hunting trip in the late 14th century.
A woman offered him a meal of boiled beans which the king enjoyed so much that he named the town after the dish.
Bengaluru is a transliteration of the original spelling, according to state historians.
In recent years regional groups and prominent writers demanded the name of the city, home to six million people, be changed to better reflect the local language.
Language activists, who have demanded that signboards and billboards be displayed in Kannada as well, have also opposed the introduction of English in primary schools.
Sunil Mehta, vice-president of Indian software and outsourcing services lobby group NASSCOM, said the new name would not affect the more than 1,500 information technology companies that have set up base in Bangalore.
"One does not need to worry because of a change in name," Mehta told AFP. "The location is known as the upcoming Silicon Valley of the world."
Top technology companies such as Cisco, Dell, IBM, Sun Microsystems and Microsoft have set up shop in the city, which accounts for a major portion of outsourcing work in India.
"There will be no impact as Bangalore or Bengaluru will continue to deliver top class development and research services due to its highly skilled work force," Mehta said.