On the 26th July 2024, the Karnataka Cabinet approved a move to rename Ramanagara district as Bengaluru South. The move is expected to benefit the district, by capitalising on the “Brand Bengaluru” name, and drive up development of infrastructure and real-estate prices.

However, the new district Bengaluru South, joins a list of other Souths in Bengaluru which can be very confusing for a lay person or a recent migrant, especially around the time of elections or property registration. Here’s a guide to know your Bengaluru Souths from your Bangalore Souths and what these multiple Souths mean at what points.

Electoral Constituencies

The most famous Bangalore South is the Lok Sabha constituency which is considered a bastion of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party. It is currently represented by Tejasvi Surya from the BJP and was previously held for 6 terms by Ananth Kumar of the BJP from 1996 until his death in 2019.

The less famous Bangalore South is the much larger assembly constituency which lies South of its Lok Sabha counterpart. While the Lok Sabha constituency has existed since 1977, the assembly constituency was created in 2008 after the recent delimitation from the erstwhile Uttarahalli Assembly Constituency. Since its delimitation, the constituency has been represented by M Krishnappa of the BJP who is now in his fourth consecutive term from the constituency.

However, do note that the Bangalore South assembly constituency is part of the Bangalore Rural Lok Sabha constituency and is represented by Dr. C.N Manjunath in the Lok Sabha.

Administrative Taluk

The Taluk an area lies in becomes important when registering properties as the survey numbers and other revenue details of a plot are delineated using the Taluk, Hobli and village. It is also important when it comes to administration in the case of villages, but not so much in the case of cities where the dominant currency is the ward.

The Bangalore South Taluk lies to the South of Bangalore North Taluk, and to the West of Bangalore East Taluk. It isn’t the southernmost Taluk though, that honour belongs to Anekal. However, since the division of Taluks follows an older version of Bengaluru based on population there are many areas, like Basavanagudi and Lalbagh that are considered South Bengaluru but are actually part of North Bangalore Taluk.

Interestingly, a large part of Bangalore South Taluk falls in the Bangalore North Lok Sabha constituency. While most of the Bangalore South Lok Sabha constituency falls inside the Taluk, a large part of the assembly constituency falls under Anekal Taluk.

The District

Given the proliferation of Bangalore Souths, Bengaluru South becomes the newest addition to the mix. And as can be seen below it is much larger in size than the Bengaluru Urban district. As recent as 2007, Ramanagara district was a part of Bengaluru Rural district, which itself was part of a much larger Bangalore district until 1986.

The district has four assembly segments – Ramanagara, Magadi, Kanakapura and Channapatna, and is part of Bangalore Rural Lok Sabha constituency along with the Bangalore South assembly constituency.

Given the size, the potential to capitalise on “Brand Bengaluru” and drive up real-estate is high. However, the same can also be said of Bengaluru Rural district, where real estate development is focused along specific sections, and not all.

Amidst this potpourri of Souths in Bengaluru, to add to the confusion, there is also South End Circle. While it does draw the border between Basavanagudi and Jayanagar, it no longer signifies the end of anything significant. If you’re driving towards J.P Nagar, it can however signal the start of your traffic woes.

Given the number of Souths in Bengaluru, we’ve put together an interactive map to explore the parliamentary and assembly constituencies, Taluks and districts around Bengaluru to help you figure out what someone is talking about when they mention a Bangalore/Bengaluru South.

The Way Forward

Using the same name for multiple entities is bound to spell confusion and this is something that needs to be addressed soon. Cities like Chennai and Mumbai have directional names like North, South and Central for their Lok Sabha constituencies, while their assembly constituencies follow local area names. The same holds for their Taluks.

One of the first changes needed is for the assembly constituency to be renamed to a more accessible name like Jigani or Bannerghatta, which are the major areas in the constituency. In the case of Taluks there is a need for further demarcation. We need more Taluks in Bengaluru Urban district and naming that reflects the areas. Chennai district for e.g. has 10 Taluks none of which have the name Chennai as the first name, and their names reflect the major areas they cover.

The Lok Sabha constituencies need a relook from scratch as the population dynamics have changed in the 15 years since the boundaries were drawn. If Ramanagara district gets renamed to Bengaluru South, the current Bangalore Rural should take that name, and a different naming will be needed within the Urban district along with a delimitation that reflects current population realities.