Polity · X-Factor Notes
States and Union Territories revision notes for UPPCS Prelims.
29 revision facts
| Concept | What to remember | Asked in UPPCS |
|---|---|---|
| Name and Territory (Article 1) | India, that is Bharat, shall be a Union of States. This structure implies states have no right of separation. | UPPCS (Pre) 1999, UPPCS (Mains) 2008 |
| Admission or Establishment of New States (Article 2) | Provides for the admission or establishment of New States. The executive power to admit or establish a new State is vested in the Parliament. | UPPCS (Pre) 1990, U.P.R.O./A.R.O. (Mains) 2014, UPPCS (Mains) 2013 |
| Formation/ Alteration of Existing States (Article 3) | Parliament is empowered to form new States, and alter the area, boundaries, and names of existing States. Parliament can make these changes even without the State's consent. | UPPCS (Mains) 2015, UPPCS (Pre) 1999, U.P. Lower Sub. (Mains) 2015, UPPCS RO-ARO 2023 Prelims |
| Required Amendment | If a new state or UT is created, the First Schedule (which lists the names of states and territories) must be amended. Amendments made under Article 2 and 3 are outside the scope of Article 368. | I.A.S. (Pre) 2001, I.A.S. (Pre) 2003, UPPCS (Mains) 2014, U.P. Lower Sub. (Spl) (Pre) 2008 |
| Current Status (States/UTs) | Presently, India consists of 28 States and 8 Union Territories. | UPPCS (Pre) 2002, UPPCS (Mains) 2013 |
| Concept | What to remember | Asked in UPPCS |
|---|---|---|
| Princely States Integration | Of 552 Princely States, 549 initially joined India. Hyderabad joined via military Action, Junagarh via referendum, and Kashmir via the Instrument of Accession signed by Maharaja Hari Singh. | - |
| Original Classification (1950) | The Constitution categorized territories into Part A, Part B, Part C, and Part D. | - |
| Dhar Commission (1948) | Recommended the reorganization of States based on administrative convenience rather than linguistic basis. | UPPCS (Mains) 2008 |
| JVP Committee (1948) | Committee included Jawaharlal Nehru, Vallabh Bhai Patel, and Pattabhi Sitaramaiya; it rejected the linguistic basis for reorganization. | UPPCS (Mains) 2008 |
| First Linguistic State | Andhra Pradesh was the first state formed on a linguistic basis in October 1953. | U.P. P.C.S. (Pre) 2018,, UPPCS (Mains) 2009 |
| States Reorganization Commission (SRC) | Constituted in 1953 under the Chairmanship of Fazal Ali. Other members: K.M. Panikkar and H.N. Kunzru. | |
| SRC Outcome (1956) | The States Reorganisation Act, 1956, created 14 States and 6 Union Territories. |
| Concept | What to remember | Asked in UPPCS |
|---|---|---|
| Administration of UTs | Union Territories are administered by the President (Article 239), acting through an administrator (or Lt. Governor) appointed by him. | UPPCS (Pre) 1995 |
| President's Regulatory Power (Article 240) | The President may make regulations for the peace and good governance of certain UTs, including Andaman and Nicobar Islands and Lakshadweep. | |
| Maximum Lok Sabha Seats for UTs | The maximum representation allowed for Union Territories in the Lok Sabha is 20 members (Article 81). | U.P. P.C.S. (Pre) 2018, UPPCS (Spl) (Mains) 2008, UPPCS (Mains) 2007 |
| UT Representation in Parliament | UTs get representation in both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha. Only three UTs—Delhi, Puducherry, and Jammu and Kashmir—have representatives in the Rajya Sabha. | UPPCS (Mains) 2015 |
| National Capital Region (N.C.R.) | Delhi was made the National Capital Region by the 69th Amendment Act. | UPPCS (Mains) 2009, UPPCS (R.I.) 2014, UPPCS (Pre) 2022 |
| Concept | What to remember | Asked in UPPCS |
|---|---|---|
| Andhra Pradesh | 1953 (First linguistic state). | UPPCS (Pre) 2014 |
| Gujrat | 1960 | |
| Nagaland | 1963 (16th State). | I.A.S. (Pre) 2007, UPPCS (Pre) 2010, UPPCS (Spl) (Mains) 2008, U.P. R.O./A.R.O. (Mains) 2013, U.P. R.O./A.R.O. (Mains) 2017 |
| Haryana | 1966. | I.A.S. (Pre) 2007, UPPCS (Pre) 2010, UPPCS (Mains) 2013, UPPCS (Pre) 2021 |
| Himachal Pradesh | 1971 (Was previously a Union Territory). | UPPCS (Pre) 2014, |
| Meghalaya | 1972 (Based on chronological arrangement context). | UPPCS (Pre) 2010, U.P. R.O./A.R.O. (Mains) 2013 |
| Sikkim | 16 May 1975. | I.A.S. (Pre) 2007, UPPCS (Pre) 2009, UPPCS (Pre) 2014 |
| Goa | 1987 (Separated from Daman and Diu in 1987). | UPPCS (Pre) 2021 |
| Chhattisgarh | 1 November 2000 (Carved out of Madhya Pradesh). | UPPCS (Pre) 2009, UPPCS (Mains) 2006, Chhattisgarh P.C.S. (Pre) 2011 |
| Uttarakhand | 9 November 2000 (27th State). | UPPCS (Mains) 2014 |
| Jharkhand | 15 November 2000 (Carved from Bihar). | UPPCS (Pre) 2009, U.P. R.O./A.R.O. (Mains) 2017, UPPCS (Pre) 2021 |
| Telangana | 2 June 2014 (29th State, reducing States back to 28 after J&K reorganization). | Uttarakhand U.D.A./L.D.A. (Pre) 2007, UPPCS (Mains) 2013, UPPCS (Pre) 2021, U.P. R.O./A.R.O. (Mains) 2017 |
