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Creation of New Districts
Context:
The Union Home Minister announced that five new districts—Zanskar, Drass, Sham, Nubra, and Changthang—will be established in the union territory of Ladakh to “strengthen governance in every corner.”
More On News:
- Currently, Ladakh comprises two districts, Leh and Kargil, which are governed by autonomous hill development councils.
- The initiative aims to bolster governance and create abundant opportunities for the people of Ladakh by bringing benefits directly to their doorsteps and strengthening governance in every corner.
- In August 2019, the Centre’s revocation of Article 370 led to the bifurcation of the former state of Jammu and Kashmir, resulting in the creation of two Union Territories: Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh.
The Process of Creating New Districts in India
- Power of State Governments:
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- The power to create new districts or alter or abolish existing districts rests solely with the State governments.
- This can be done either through an executive order or by passing a law in the State Assembly.
- Role of Central Government:
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- The Central government has no direct role to play in the alteration of districts or creation of new ones. States are free to decide.
- However, the Home Ministry comes into the picture when a State wants to change the name of a district or a railway station.
- Departments such as the Ministry of Earth Sciences, Intelligence Bureau, Department of Posts, Geographical Survey of India Sciences, and the Railway Ministry, provide their clearance to the proposal of the state government.
- After reviewing their responses, the state government obtains a no-objection certificate.
Trends in District Formation
- As per the 2011 Census, the country had 593 districts. Between 2001 and 2011, states created 46 new districts.
- Currently, India has over 775 districts, with Uttar Pradesh having the most (75) and Goa having the least (2).
- Between 2020 and 2023, as many as 50 new districts have been created across India, accounting for 49% of the 103 new districts formed since 2014.
