In a significant symbolic move, the official residence of the Chhattisgarh Governor in Raipur will now be known as "Lok Bhavan", shedding its former title of "Raj Bhavan". The formal order for this change was issued from the state capital on December 2, 2025.
Notification and Official Confirmation
Confirming the development, C R Prasanna, the Secretary to the Governor, stated that a formal notification has been dispatched from the Governor's office to the Ministry of Home Affairs in New Delhi. The notification clarifies that the renaming aligns with a recommendation from the 2024 conference of Governors and a subsequent communication from the Union Home Ministry.
The directive mandates that for all government purposes, official correspondence, records, and communications, the establishment must be referred to as Lok Bhavan. This instruction acts on the directions referenced in a letter from the Government of India's Ministry of Home Affairs, which itself pointed to decisions taken at the pivotal Governors' Conference held the previous year.
Administrative Rollout and Symbolic Meaning
To ensure uniform adoption, copies of the order have been sent to key offices including the President’s Secretariat, the Prime Minister’s Office, the Union Home Minister’s office, the Chhattisgarh Chief Secretary, all state government departments, district collectors, and the Deputy Secretary to the Governor.
Officials explained that the core intention behind the renaming of Raj Bhavan is to symbolically underscore the Governor's house as a "people's house". The move is seen as a step away from nomenclature associated with princely or colonial-era imagery, aiming to present the constitutional office as more accessible and connected to the public.
Practical Implementation and Future References
While the notification does not announce any immediate changes in protocol or the functioning of the Governor's establishment, the new name—Lok Bhavan, Raipur—is expected to be promptly reflected on official signage, stationery, and all forms of communication originating from the premises.
Consequently, all future references in state and central government documents, invitations, and media communications will use the updated designation. This marks a formal shift in how the constitutional office's residence is described in Chhattisgarh, replacing the decades-old "Raj Bhavan, Raipur" with the newly minted "Lok Bhavan, Raipur".
