Published Sep 26, 2026 | 8:38 AM ⚊ Updated Sep 26, 2026 | 8:48 AM
File photo of billboards reading boycott of 2026 Tamil Nadu elections plastered in the village. (Supplied)
Synopsis: South First reported the issue in April 2026, documenting the residents’ concerns and the continued appearance of the name in official records. The report also highlighted the residents’ protest over the delay in implementing the Tamil Nadu government’s 2025 order on removing caste-based names.
The long-pending demand to remove the caste-linked name “Paraicheri” from a hamlet in Virudhunagar district has now moved towards implementation, months after South First first reported the issue and highlighted the continued use of the name in official records.
The hamlet, located in the Achamthavizhtthan revenue village of Srivilliputhur taluk, has been known as “Paraicheri”, a name residents had objected to on the grounds that it identifies the locality through caste.
South First reported the issue in April 2026, documenting the residents’ concerns and the continued appearance of the name in official records. The report also highlighted the residents’ protest over the delay in implementing the Tamil Nadu government’s 2025 order on removing caste-based names.
Ahead of the 2026 Assembly elections, residents had also decided to boycott the 2026 Assembly elections.
Following the report and the wider attention the issue received, the Tamil Nadu Adi Dravidar and Tribal Welfare Commission also intervened. Later, in April 2026, the Commission sought an explanation from the Virudhunagar district administration over the continued use of “Paracheri”, asking officials to explain why the name had not been changed despite the government order.
Also Read: Identity vs dignity: Virudhunagar Dalits to boycott TN polls over caste-based village name
The development comes after the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court dismissed a challenge to the Tamil Nadu government’s October 6, 2025 Government Order (G.O. Ms. No. 313) on removing or renaming caste-based names in settlements, streets, roads, water bodies and revenue villages.
On September 23, 2026, the court upheld the government’s guidelines and directed the state to identify places left out of the exercise and take steps to rename them as well.
The Tamil Nadu government has now initiated action to rename “Paraicheri” as “Vadakku Achamthavizhtthan”. A September 25, 2026 communication in the file directs the concerned authorities to take the necessary action in accordance with the government’s guidelines
In the northern part of Achamthavilthan revenue village, more than 60 families from the Paraiyar community live in a segregated cluster. Over time, the locality came to be called “Paracheri”, a name residents say is now used both socially and in official records.
This name appears in documents such as voter lists, bank records, Aadhaar, and PAN cards. However, in land patta records, the village is still officially recorded as Achamthavilthan. Thus, while some government documents mention Achamthavilthan, others continue to use “Paraicheri.” This split keeps the caste label in daily use.
Residents said this has fixed caste identity in everyday life.
“Wherever we go, the moment we mention our village name, people identify our caste,” said A. Abi, a PhD scholar from the village.
For more than 15 years, residents have petitioned authorities—from the Tahsildar to the Chief Minister—to rename the locality “North Achamthavilthan”.
S.V. Kumar, who leads the effort, said the effect goes beyond administrative inconvenience.
“When we say our village name, others immediately correct it to ‘Paraicheri’. That moment is humiliating,” he said.
(Edited by Sumavarsha)
