--- title: "States of India 2026: Full List of 28 States and 8 Union Territories" url: https://anantamias.com/state-name-of-india/ date: 2026-04-22 modified: 2026-04-22 author: "Gaurav Tiwari" description: "Full list of 28 states and 8 Union Territories of India in 2026 with capitals, official languages, and formation dates for UPSC Prelims and general awareness." categories: - "Current affairs" image: https://r2.anantamias.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/state-name-of-india-featured-1024x576.jpg word_count: 2232 --- # States of India 2026: Full List of 28 States and 8 Union Territories ## Introduction India in 2026 has 28 states and 8 Union Territories. That sentence sits at the top of every Prelims polity chapter, but it hides a long, turbulent history of linguistic reorganisation, princely state integration, tribal statehood demands, and the 2019 reorganisation of Jammu and Kashmir. For a UPSC aspirant, the map of India is not a static list. It is a living record of Article 1, Article 2, Article 3 and Article 4 of the Constitution in action. This article lays out the complete, up-to-date list of state names of India along with capitals, official languages and formation dates, and then places it in the wider constitutional and political context. You will find quick-reference tables for revision, a comparison of state and Union Territory structures, and the Prelims facts most likely to show up in objective questions. The goal is to turn a dry list into a usable mental map of the Indian Union. ![States of India 2026: Full List of 28 States and 8 Union Territories](https://r2.anantamias.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/state-name-of-india-content-1.jpg) ## Quick Facts at a Glance | Attribute | Value | | --------- | ----- | | Number of states (2026) | 28 | | Number of Union Territories (2026) | 8 | | Largest state by area | Rajasthan | | Smallest state by area | Goa | | Most populous state (Census 2011) | Uttar Pradesh | | Least populous state (Census 2011) | Sikkim | | Newest state | Telangana (2014) | | Last major reorganisation | Jammu and Kashmir, 2019 | | Constitutional basis | Article 1, Article 3, Fourth Schedule | | Official languages recognised | 22 in the Eighth Schedule | ## Background and Historical Context At independence in 1947 India was a patchwork of British-ruled provinces and more than 560 princely states. The States Department under **Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel** and V. P. Menon integrated these units, often through the Instrument of Accession and the Standstill Agreement. The Constitution of 1950 grouped the country into Part A, Part B, Part C and Part D states, a classification that proved administratively clumsy and politically controversial on linguistic lines. The Potti Sriramulu fast and the creation of **Andhra State in 1953** forced the Nehru government to appoint the **States Reorganisation Commission** under Fazl Ali. The **States Reorganisation Act, 1956** redrew state boundaries primarily on linguistic lines and abolished the A-B-C-D categorisation. Fourteen states and six Union Territories emerged from this exercise. Over the next decades, Gujarat and Maharashtra separated from Bombay State (1960), Nagaland (1963), Haryana (1966), Himachal Pradesh (1971), Meghalaya, Manipur and Tripura (1972), and Sikkim (1975) joined as full states. The most recent chapter opened in 2000, when Chhattisgarh, Uttarakhand and Jharkhand were carved out of Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar respectively. Telangana became the 29th state in 2014 on separation from Andhra Pradesh. In 2019 the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act bifurcated the former state into two Union Territories, Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, bringing the state count down to 28 and pushing the UT count up. The merger of Dadra and Nagar Haveli with Daman and Diu in 2020 brought the UT count to 8, where it stands today. ## Key Features — Full List of 28 States ### North India - **Delhi** is a UT with a legislature, not a state, but serves as the National Capital Territory and is often discussed alongside states for administrative reference. - **Haryana** was carved from Punjab on 1 November 1966. Capital: Chandigarh (shared). Official language: Hindi. - **Himachal Pradesh** became a full state on 25 January 1971. Capital: Shimla. Language: Hindi. - **Punjab** is one of the 1956 reorganised states. Capital: Chandigarh (shared). Language: Punjabi. - **Rajasthan** was formed 1 November 1956 from princely states. Capital: Jaipur. Language: Hindi. - **Uttar Pradesh** is India's most populous state. Capital: Lucknow. Language: Hindi. - **Uttarakhand** was carved from UP on 9 November 2000. Capital: Dehradun (Gairsain as summer capital). Language: Hindi. ### East India - **Bihar** has Patna as capital and Hindi as official language. - **Jharkhand** was formed 15 November 2000 from Bihar. Capital: Ranchi. Language: Hindi. - **Odisha** was formed in 1936 as a separate province. Capital: Bhubaneswar. Language: Odia. - **West Bengal** has Kolkata as capital and Bengali as official language. ### Northeast India - **Arunachal Pradesh** became a state on 20 February 1987. Capital: Itanagar. Languages: English. - **Assam** is the oldest Northeast state. Capital: Dispur. Language: Assamese. - **Manipur** became a state on 21 January 1972. Capital: Imphal. Language: Manipuri (Meitei). - **Meghalaya** became a state on 21 January 1972. Capital: Shillong. Languages: English. - **Mizoram** became a state on 20 February 1987. Capital: Aizawl. Languages: Mizo, English. - **Nagaland** became a state on 1 December 1963. Capital: Kohima. Language: English. - **Sikkim** merged with India on 16 May 1975. Capital: Gangtok. Languages: Nepali, English, Bhutia, Lepcha. - **Tripura** became a state on 21 January 1972. Capital: Agartala. Language: Bengali, Kokborok. ### West India - **Goa** became a state on 30 May 1987. Capital: Panaji. Language: Konkani. - **Gujarat** was formed on 1 May 1960. Capital: Gandhinagar. Language: Gujarati. - **Maharashtra** was formed on 1 May 1960. Capital: Mumbai. Language: Marathi. ### Central India - **Chhattisgarh** was carved from MP on 1 November 2000. Capital: Raipur. Language: Hindi. - **Madhya Pradesh** is the heart of India. Capital: Bhopal. Language: Hindi. ### South India - **Andhra Pradesh** was reorganised in 2014. Capital: Amaravati (de jure). Language: Telugu. - **Karnataka** was renamed from Mysore in 1973. Capital: Bengaluru. Language: Kannada. - **Kerala** was formed on 1 November 1956. Capital: Thiruvananthapuram. Language: Malayalam. - **Tamil Nadu** was renamed from Madras in 1969. Capital: Chennai. Language: Tamil. - **Telangana** became the 29th state on 2 June 2014. Capital: Hyderabad. Language: Telugu, Urdu. ![States of India 2026: Full List of 28 States and 8 Union Territories](https://r2.anantamias.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/state-name-of-india-content-2.png) ## Significance for UPSC and General Knowledge - Directly testable in Prelims under polity, geography and Indian national movement - Anchors Mains questions on federalism, reorganisation of states and linguistic nationalism - Frames current affairs on statehood demands such as Gorkhaland, Bodoland, Vidarbha - Essential context for Article 370 abrogation and the 2019 J&K Reorganisation Act - Connects to the Sixth Schedule for tribal autonomy in Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram - Links economic geography with political geography for Essay and GS1 answers ## Detailed Analysis — Union Territories and State-UT Distinction India's 8 Union Territories in 2026 are Delhi, Puducherry, Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh, Chandigarh, Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu, Lakshadweep, and Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Three of these, Delhi, Puducherry and Jammu and Kashmir, have an elected Legislative Assembly and a Council of Ministers. The others are administered directly by the President through an Administrator or a Lieutenant Governor. The constitutional difference between a state and a Union Territory is substantive. States are listed in the First Schedule and derive their legislative powers from the State List and Concurrent List under the Seventh Schedule. Union Territories are Centrally administered under Article 239. The Governor of a state is a constitutional head appointed under Article 153, while a UT Administrator or Lieutenant Governor represents the Union more directly. The 2019 J&K reorganisation converted a state into two UTs, the first such downgrade in Indian constitutional history, and a significant question for any polity paper. **Chandigarh** is the capital of both Punjab and Haryana and is itself a Union Territory. **Hyderabad** served as the common capital for Andhra Pradesh and Telangana until 2024. Article 3 of the Constitution empowers Parliament to form a new state, alter boundaries, increase or diminish the area of any state, and alter its name, subject to a Presidential reference to the concerned state legislature. The views of the state legislature are not binding, which underlines the quasi-federal character of the Indian polity. ![States of India 2026: Full List of 28 States and 8 Union Territories](https://r2.anantamias.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/wiki-img-40.png)Image: Wikipedia. [Source](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/States_and_union_territories_of_India). ## Comparative Perspective | Feature | State | UT with legislature | UT without legislature | | ------- | ----- | ------------------- | ---------------------- | | Example | Tamil Nadu | Delhi, Puducherry, J&K | Ladakh, Lakshadweep | | Head | Governor | Lieutenant Governor | Administrator or LG | | Legislature | State Assembly | Limited Assembly | No Assembly | | Law-making power | State + Concurrent List | Restricted list | Parliament legislates | | Constitutional reference | First Schedule | Article 239AA or similar | Article 239 | Compared with federations like the United States or Canada, Indian states have narrower autonomy. Financial dependence on the Union, the Governor's role and the residuary powers of Parliament keep the balance tilted toward the Centre. ## Challenges and Criticisms The reorganisation story is not over. There are active demands for Gorkhaland in West Bengal, Bodoland in Assam, Vidarbha in Maharashtra and Bundelkhand across UP and MP. Critics argue that the 2000 wave of smaller states delivered mixed development results. Smaller states like Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh have done well on human development, while Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh have lagged on several indicators despite resource wealth, suggesting that statehood alone does not guarantee governance outcomes. The downgrading of Jammu and Kashmir from a state to two Union Territories has drawn sharp constitutional scrutiny. The Supreme Court upheld the abrogation of Article 370 in 2023 but directed early restoration of statehood. The pending restoration remains a live political and administrative question in 2026, and Ladakh's demand for Sixth Schedule protection or full statehood continues to draw attention. Any Mains question on cooperative federalism in the current window is likely to test a student's ability to weigh these trade-offs. ## Prelims Pointers - India has 28 states and 8 Union Territories in 2026 - The States Reorganisation Act, 1956 was based on the Fazl Ali Commission report - Andhra was the first linguistic state, formed in 1953 - Telangana is the youngest state, formed on 2 June 2014 - Chandigarh is the shared capital of Punjab and Haryana - Sikkim became a full Indian state through the 36th Constitutional Amendment in 1975 - Ladakh became a UT without legislature on 31 October 2019 - Delhi is the National Capital Territory, governed under Article 239AA - The Eighth Schedule recognises 22 official languages - The largest state by area is Rajasthan and by population is Uttar Pradesh - Goa is the smallest state by area and Sikkim by population - Article 3 allows Parliament to alter state boundaries with Presidential reference ## Mains Practice Questions - The reorganisation of states in India has been driven primarily by linguistic identity. Critically examine the evolution of state formation in India since 1956 and assess whether linguistic federalism has strengthened or strained the Union. - Trace the 1953 Andhra agitation and the 1956 SRC settlement - Discuss the 2000 tribal and regional statehood wave - Evaluate 2014 Telangana and 2019 J&K reorganisation - Discuss the constitutional and political implications of converting a state into a Union Territory, with specific reference to the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019. - Outline Article 3 and the Presidential reference process - Assess federalism and citizenship dimensions - Suggest a framework for balancing security with democratic representation ## Conclusion The list of 28 states and 8 Union Territories is more than an answer key. It is a snapshot of how India has continuously rewritten its internal map while holding the Union together under Article 1. Every entry on that list carries the memory of a linguistic movement, a tribal aspiration or a security decision. For the UPSC aspirant, the best way to use this material is to memorise the list alongside capitals and formation dates, but also to track which states are in the news for demands, reorganisation or Sixth Schedule debates. An answer that names Telangana, remembers 2014, and argues from Article 3 will always land better than one that treats the map as fixed geometry. ## Frequently Asked Questions ### What is the current number of states in India? India in 2026 has 28 states. The last change came in 2019 when the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act converted the former state of Jammu and Kashmir into two Union Territories, reducing the state count from 29 to 28. Telangana, formed in 2014, remains the newest state of the Indian Union. ### Why are the states of India important for UPSC? State names, capitals and formation dates appear regularly in Prelims and in GS2 Mains questions on federalism and the reorganisation of states. Knowledge of states also anchors GS1 geography, GS3 resource distribution and current affairs like statehood demands. Treating the political map as living knowledge helps students score across multiple papers. ### How is a Union Territory related to a state? Both are part of the Union of India under Article 1, but states have autonomous legislatures and governors under the First Schedule, while Union Territories are administered by the President through an Administrator or Lieutenant Governor under Article 239. Three UTs, Delhi, Puducherry and Jammu and Kashmir, have elected legislatures with limited powers. ### Which is the newest state of India? Telangana is the newest state. It was carved out of Andhra Pradesh on 2 June 2014 under the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2014, becoming the 29th state at the time. After the 2019 J&K reorganisation, Telangana is the 28th state in the current count of the Indian Union. ### How many Union Territories does India have? India has 8 Union Territories in 2026. These are Delhi, Puducherry, Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh, Chandigarh, Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu, Lakshadweep, and Andaman and Nicobar Islands. The 2020 merger of Dadra and Nagar Haveli with Daman and Diu reduced the UT count from 9 to 8. ### Which is the largest state of India by area? Rajasthan is India's largest state by area, covering about 342,239 square kilometres. It is known for the Thar Desert, the Aravalli range, and a high share of arid and semi-arid land. For comparison, Goa is the smallest state by area at just 3,702 square kilometres, a difference of almost a hundredfold. ### What is the constitutional provision for creating new states? Article 3 of the Constitution empowers Parliament to form a new state, alter boundaries, increase or diminish the area of any state, and change its name. A bill for such a change requires a prior Presidential recommendation and a reference to the concerned state legislature, whose views are considered but not binding on Parliament. ### Which state was formed first on linguistic lines? Andhra State, formed on 1 October 1953 out of the Telugu-speaking districts of Madras Presidency, was the first state created on linguistic lines. Its formation followed the death of Potti Sriramulu during a 56-day fast and directly led to the creation of the States Reorganisation Commission and the landmark States Reorganisation Act, 1956.