The Narendra Modi government on Tuesday issued orders formally renaming several key institutions as part of a nationwide rebranding of government-property nomenclature.
The official residences of Governors previously known as Raj Bhavan — along with analogous residences known as Raj Niwas — will now be called Lok Bhavan (and Lok Niwas respectively), effective immediately.
Within hours, the official residence of the Governor of Telangana, hitherto known as “Raj Bhavan, Telangana,” was changed to “Lok Bhavan, Telangana.”
“This has been done to reiterate the strength and vibrancy of our democratic values as we march with confidence towards a Viksit Bharat.
The new nomenclature “Lok Bhavan, Telangana” comes into immediate effect for all official purposes, references, and records,” a notification said.
Simultaneously, the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) will be rechristened as Seva Teerth.
The new PMO complex, located in the Executive Enclave, will function from “Seva Teerth-1”, one of three modern buildings constructed as part of the relocation.
In its broader administrative reshuffle, the old Central Secretariat — the nerve-centre of India’s bureaucracy — has been renamed Kartavya Bhavan.
The renaming aligns with the inauguration of the first building under the new Common Central Secretariat project, intended to house several key ministries under one roof.
This move — dropping colonial-era titles like “Raj” (royalty) from public offices — is being portrayed as a symbolic shift towards people-centric governance.
Officials say the new names reflect a commitment to public service, accountability and accessibility.
In line with the Union Ministry of Home Affairs’ recent advisory urging Governors and Lieutenant Governors to consider renaming Raj Bhavan and Raj Niwas establishments to eliminate colonial vestiges, multiple states have initiated the renaming exercise.
Acting on the Centre’s communication, several states — including West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Assam, Kerala, Tripura, and Odisha — have already replaced the titles of their Raj Bhavans with the nomenclature “Lok Bhavan.”
The move is part of a broader national effort to remove symbols associated with colonial-era administration and replace them with terms reflecting democratic and people-centric governance.
