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Government of Kerala has agreed

Government of Kerala have agreed

which is the correct usage

H K Prasad
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    In the UK (Indian English may be different) you can use either so long as you are consistent within the same document, though you would typically start with "The Government ...". Using the singular emphasises the government as a single body; using the plural emphasises the government as a collective group of ministers. – Henry Apr 21 '17 at 08:06
  • @Henry Not quite. In the same document (assuming context allowed for both statements), notional agreement would use 'the team was founded in 1877' and 'the team were fighting among themselves'. – Edwin Ashworth Aug 02 '21 at 09:51
  • @EdwinAshworth perhaps take Gowers's advice "the number ought not to be varied in the same document without good cause. Accidentally changing it is a common form of carelessness" – Henry Aug 02 '21 at 10:06

2 Answers2

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The usage of the word government depends upon the context. If it is used to denote a collective group, then the singular form may be used and the plural form may be used while referring to the members of the government. for example: The government has announced a new policy for the poor and underprivileged. The government have not yet approved the budget for this year.

sajammy
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Unlike in the UK, Indian English would conventionally treat "government" as singular. So 'government has agreed' is the formally proper form.

Examples:

The government has to take a decision on the question of extending the deadline.

The government is the sole determinant of who is defined as a citizen.

The government may be made up of many different members but it functions as a single, united body.

Please note that it has apparently become fashionable to treat words such as team, group, committee, and government like plural nouns to give the meaning of an entity composed of many individuals, but strict grammarians may not approve of this style, and I have not yet seen a reference where 'government' was treated as plural in the Indian context, possibly because of the older 'monolithic' concept of 'Government' and the bureaucracy. So if you are in doubt, keep it singular for now!

English Student
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  • When the idea of plurality needs to be suggested, we have typically tended to used terms like 'members' or 'officials' along with 'government' as in "members of the government are concerned over the delay in addressing the unemployment problem" or "officials within the government are unanimously demanding a comprehensive pay revision." – English Student Apr 21 '17 at 14:45
  • In a related usage, sports teams like 'India' and 'Kerala' are often referred to in the plural during commentary, as in "India now face an uphill task to win this Test match" and "Kerala have improved tremendously in football since the start of the ISL." – English Student Apr 21 '17 at 15:08