Indian States and Capitals, Check All 28 States and 8 Union Territories

Photo of author

Reported by Pankaj Bhatt

Published on

Indian States and Capitals: Rabindranath Tagore once called India to be the epitome of the world. His statement hinted at the beautiful amalgamation of diverse cultures co-existing in a single subcontinent. Presently, the diverse nation of India is politically divided into 28 states and 8 Union Territories. The latest list of Indian States and the Indian State Capitals is given in this article for general knowledge purposes. Make sure to read the article till the end to find out the latest information on the topic.

Indian States and Capitals

There are 28 states and 8 Union Territories in the province of India. This statistic was formed after Jammu & Kashmir’s status was upgraded to that of a Union Territory in the year 2019. In addition, the UTs of Daman and Diu & Dadra Nagar Haveli were also united on the 26th of January 2020. The list of all the Indian States & Indian State capitals as well as Union Territories and their capitals are provided in the next section.

Indian States and Capitals
Indian States and Capitals

History of Indian States formation

Until 1947, when India was under the rule of the British, the country consisted of 562 small geographical compartments called princely states. After gaining its independence, the nation needed a geographical and political structuring of the country. This need gave birth to the formation of Indian states.

Connect with us on WhatsApp WhatsApp

In 1948, during the early discussions on the development of the Constitution of India, S.K Dhar proposed an idea of state formation on the grounds of the dialects spoken in the country. This idea was formerly rejected but after various committee formations & protests (mostly due to the death of Potti Sriramalu due to his hunger strike protest) the idea was accepted. And, finally, in the year 1953, the birth of first Indian state on the basis of language took place with the formation of Andhra Pradesh.

Need for a State Capital

Wherever there is a political province, there is also a need for governmental administration. And for the smooth functioning of any state, it is necessary to have an administrative body to regulate the state system. This necessity was realized long before the formation of a constitution during the reign of kings. Presently, each state of India has a city assigned as the capital to ensure the safety and regulation of the citizens.

The list of all the Indian states along with their established dates and capitals are listed in the next section of this article.

List of All Indian States & Their Capitals

India regained its status of 28 states on the 5th of August 2019, after the revocation of Article 370 from the former state of J&K. This took place under the establishment of the Jammu & Kashmir Reorganization Act 2019. Here is the complete list of Indian States and capitals.

Name of StateCapital NameEstablished
Andhra PradeshAmaravati1/11/1956
Arunachal PradeshItanagar20/02/1987
AssamDispur26/01/1950
BiharPatna26/01/1950
ChhattisgarhNaya Raipur11/01/2000
GoaPanaji30/05/1987
GujaratGandhinagar1/05/1960
HaryanaChandigarh1/11/1966
Himachal PradeshShimla25/01/1971
JharkhandRanchi15/11/2000
KarnatakaBangalore1/11/1956
KeralaThiruvananthapuram1/11/1956
Madhya PradeshBhopal1/11/1956
MaharashtraMumbai1/05/1960
ManipurImphal21/01/1972
MeghalayaShillong21/01/1972
MizoramAizawl20/02/1987
NagalandKohima1/12/1963
OdishaBhubaneswar26/01/1950
PunjabChandigarh1/11/1956
RajasthanJaipur1/11/1956
SikkimGangtok16/05/1975
Tamil NaduChennai26/01/1950
TelanganaHyderabad2/06/2014
TripuraAgartala21/01/1972
Uttar PradeshLucknow26/01/1950
UttarakhandDehradun, Gairsain (Summer)9/11/2000
West BengalKolkata1/11/1956

Concept of Union Territory in India

UT is a small governmental division which is directly regulated by the Union government of India. The UTs are governed by a Lieutenant Governor who is chosen by the President of India themselves. In India, few UTs consist of a legislative council while some do not. On this basis, the Indian Union territories can be divided into 2 categories:

  • UTs with legislature
  • UTs without legislature

Presently, the Indian subcontinent has a total of 8 union territories after the merging of Dadra Nagar Haveli & Daman & Diu into a single UT. The complete list of Indian UT along with their capitals, the status of their legislature and the establishment date is provided in the next section.

List of All Indian Union Territories and their Capitals

This is the latest list of all 8 Union Territories along with their capitals and the details about the presence of a legislative body and the establishment year.

Name of UTCapital NamePresence of a LegislatureEstablished
Andaman and Nicobar IslandsPort BlairNo1/11/1956
ChandigarhChandigarhNo1/11/1966
Dadra Nagar Haveli and Daman DiuDamanNo26/01/2020
DelhiNew DelhiYes 
Jammu and KashmirSrinagar (Summer), Jammu (Winter)Yes31/10/2019
LadakhLehNo31/10/2019
LakshadweepKavarattiNo1/11/1956
PuducherryPuducherryYes1/11/1954

What is the difference between a State and a Union Territory in India?

The major difference between a state and a union territory is that of their administrative bodies. While a state has their own administrative body, a Union Territory is regulated directly by a federal body of central government.

When was Jammu & Kashmir made a Union Territory?

The Jammu & Kashmir Reorganization Act 2019 took effect on 31 October 2019.

How many Indian States & Union Territories are there?

There are 28 Indian States & 8 Union Territories in 2024. A detailed list of them is available on our website.

Photo of author

Leave a Comment