Speculation is rife this month after BRICS member India considered renaming the country to ‘Bharat’. The development comes after India’s G20 invitation displayed, ‘The President of Bharat’ referring to President Droupadi Murmu, instead of the President of India.
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Article 1 in the Indian Constitution begins with the words “India, that is Bharat, is a ‘Union of States”. In addition, India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi attended the G20 summit in New Delhi with the desk nameboard reading Bharat.
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However, renaming India to Bharat comes at a cost, as the nation should change all official documents to the newer version. This includes freshly reprinting millions of passports, bank details, and insurance, among many other intricacies. The move comes with a price and remains an expensive affair for the developing country.
BRICS: Renaming India to Bharat Would Cost $1.68 Billion
Darren Oliver, a South African-based intellectual property lawyer, devised a method to calculate the approximate cost of renaming a country. In 2018, he compared the renaming of African nations to corporate rebranding exercises. Oliver came up with a calculative method highlighting the cost of renaming BRICS member India to Bharat.
Applying the same formula with India, he estimates that it would cost $1.68 billion to be renamed ‘Bharat’, reported Outlook Business India. In Indian Rupees, the amount comes up to 14,000 crore.
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However, there is no official confirmation that BRICS member India will rename itself Bharat. The speculations come due to the G20 invite and Modi’s name board at the summit. The Government of India has not released an official statement about renaming the country.
Nonetheless, the country is divided in the matter, as some want India to remain while others want Bharat. For the uninitiated, Bharat is an ancient Sanskrit word that historians believe dates back to early scriptures.
