States and Union Territories
India has 28 states and 8 Union Territories. The map shows them with capitals.
How the map was redrawn
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 1947-50 | Integration of about 560 princely states; Constitution came into force 26 January 1950 with states in Parts A, B, C and D. |
| 1953 | Andhra State created from Madras after the death of Potti Sriramulu (fast for a Telugu state). |
| 1953-55 | States Reorganisation Commission (Fazl Ali, K.M. Panikkar, H.N. Kunzru). Language became the main basis. |
| 1956 | States Reorganisation Act: 14 states and 6 UTs from 1 November 1956; Parts A, B, C abolished. |
| 1960 | Bombay split into Maharashtra and Gujarat. |
| 1961-62 | Dadra and Nagar Haveli (1961), Goa, Daman and Diu (1961), Puducherry (1962) joined as UTs. |
| 1963 | Nagaland (16th state; 13th Amendment). |
| 1966 | Haryana carved from Punjab; Chandigarh made a UT; hill areas joined Himachal. |
| 1971 | Himachal Pradesh became a full state. |
| 1972 | Meghalaya, Manipur, Tripura became states. |
| 1975 | Sikkim became the 22nd state (36th Amendment). |
| 1987 | Mizoram, Arunachal Pradesh, Goa became states (23rd, 24th, 25th). |
| 1991 | Delhi became the National Capital Territory (69th Amendment). |
| 2000 | Chhattisgarh (1 Nov), Uttarakhand (9 Nov), Jharkhand (15 Nov). |
| 2014 | Telangana (2 June), 29th state, carved from Andhra Pradesh. |
| 2019 | Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act: the state became two UTs, Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh (31 October 2019); India then had 28 states, 9 UTs. |
| 2020 | Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu merged (26 January 2020); UTs reduced to 8. |
Union Territories (8)
| UT | Capital | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Andaman and Nicobar Islands | Port Blair (renamed Sri Vijaya Puram in 2024) | Largest island UT |
| Chandigarh | Chandigarh | Capital of Punjab and Haryana too |
| Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu | Daman | Merged 2020 |
| Delhi (NCT) | New Delhi | Legislature; special status under Art. 239AA |
| Jammu and Kashmir | Srinagar (summer), Jammu (winter) | Legislature; Darbar Move |
| Ladakh | Leh (and Kargil) | No legislature; Leh and Kargil districts (five more districts were announced in 2024) |
| Lakshadweep | Kavaratti | Smallest UT |
| Puducherry | Puducherry | Legislature; enclaves Karaikal, Mahe, Yanam |
Quick records
- Largest state by area: Rajasthan (342,239 sq km). Smallest state: Goa (3,702 sq km).
- Largest UT by area: Ladakh (about 59,000 sq km by India's count; J&K UT about 42,000). Smallest UT: Lakshadweep (32 sq km).
- Most populous state: Uttar Pradesh. Least populous state: Sikkim.
- States without a coastline and landlocked states are listed in Regional Profiles.
Keep practising
Notes are only half the work. Test yourself with questions and discuss doubts with other aspirants.
Prepared for exam revision from NCERT, standard geography textbooks, the Census of India 2011, the India State of Forest Report, IMD, Ministry of Agriculture and other official sources. Maps are schematic teaching maps, not Survey of India maps, and zone boundaries are approximate. Figures such as production, capacity, counts of parks and ports, and census status change, so check the latest official source before relying on them. Found a mistake? Tell us.