Why only 8 Union Territories has India
India comprises the union of states.
It is a secular, sovereign, democratic republic and socialist with a fully functional Parliamentary system of a Government.
The union territory is a type of geographical division rules directly by the Union Government, hence the term Union territory.
These are governed directly by the President of India through an Administrator who has been appointed by the President.
The Union Territories in India consist of special rights and status due to their development and their formation processes.
Union territories do not have a representative in the Rajya Sabha excluding Puducherry and Delhi.
The Administrator of a Union Territory has several functional responsibilities which are independent of the peer Administrators in the other Union Territories.
Each union territory is further divided into smaller administrations called Gram Panchayats who act as an administrative body that controls several small villages in a certain area.
Union Territories of India India has eight Union Territories.
Here is a detailed list of all union territories of India and their respective capitals:
a. Andaman and Nicobar Islands - Port Blair
b. Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu - Silvassa
c. Chandigarh
d. Lakshadweep -Kavaratti
e. Puducherry - Puducherry
f. Delhi - Delhi g. Ladakh
h.Jammu and Kashmir - Jammu(Winter) and Srinagar(summer)
History of Union Territories of India
During the re-organization of states in 1956, the State Re-organization Commission recommended the creation of a category of territories since these areas did not fit the
model of states and also did not follow the union pattern of governance.
During this time, it was seen that these divisions were economically imbalanced, financially weak, and politically unstable, making them unsuitable for separate administration.
Andaman and Nicobar was the first union territory which was followed by Chandigarh and the rest.
The latest union territory in Jammu and Kashmir which was broken into J & K and Ladakh Union Territories and Dadar and Nagar Haweli was merged with Daman and Diu.
Some facts related to the Union Territories of India
● The islands of Lakshadweep were constituted into one single territory, apart from this they have been administered by the Union Government through an appointed administrator.
The islands namely, Amini, Andrott, Kavaratti, and Agatti were supposed to be inhabited by Hindus who later turned to Muslims under the influence of Arab traders in the 14th century.
● From 1954 to 1961, these two union territories functioned independently.
Daman and Diu were merged with Dadra and Nagar Haveli on August 11th, 1961, and are under the administration of the Central Government of India as one of the union territories.
● The islands of Andaman and Nicobar are located between 6 and 14 North Latitude and 92 and 94 East Longitude.
The original occupant of the island lived in the forest and spent time fishing and hunting.
The area is majorly occupied by several tribes namely, Great Sentinelese, Andamanese, Onge, and Jarawa.
The Nicobar Islands are occupied by tribes called Nicobarese and Shompens.
