india

Updated: Nov 02, 2019 20:18 IST

The Centre released India’s new political map showing 28 states and nine Union Territories on Saturday, two days after Jammu and Kashmir was officially bifurcated into the Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh.

Jammu and Kashmir was divided into the Union territories of Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh on Thursday—nearly three months after the state’s special status was by revoked by abrogating Article 370 on August 5.

The Union ministry of home affairs issued a notification regarding the new map with the details of the boundaries of the newly-created Union territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh. The new map also shows three districts — Muzaffarabad, Punch and Mirpur — which are under Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK).

The new Union territory of Ladakh has two districts of Kargil and Leh and the rest of the former state of Jammu and Kashmir is in Jammu and Kashmir, it said.

According to the release, the former state had 14 districts in 1947 and the state government of former Jammu and Kashmir had reorganised the areas of these districts into 28 districts.

“The names of the new districts are as follows - Kupwara, Bandipur, Ganderbal, Srinagar, Budgam, Pulwama, Shupian, Kulgam, Rajouri, Ramban, Doda, Kishtivar, Samba and Kargil,” it added.

Kargil district was carved out from the area of Leh and Ladakh district.

“The Leh district of the new Union Territory of Ladakh has been defined in the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganization (Removal of Difficulties) Second Order, 2019, issued by the President of India, to include the areas of the districts of Gilgit, Gilgit Wazarat, Chilhas and Tribal Territory of 1947, in addition to the remaining areas of Leh and Ladakh districts of 1947, after carving out the Kargil District,” the release said.

Union minister Jitendra Singh had tweeted the new map of India.

“New Map showing the Union Territories of #Jammu & #Kashmir and #Ladakh , as these exist after 31st October, 2019 (sic),” Singh posted along with the picture of the map.

New Map showing the Union Territories of #Jammu & #Kashmir and #Ladakh , as these exist after 31st October, 2019. pic.twitter.com/7lK5OTpyiu — Dr Jitendra Singh (@DrJitendraSingh) November 2, 2019

On Friday, serving Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer of Gujarat cadre Girish Chandra Murmu took the oath as the Lieutenant Governor of Jammu and Kashmir, and retired bureaucrat Radha Krishna Mathur as that of Ladakh.

Dilbagh Singh will continue to be the director general of J-K police and an inspector general-level officer will head the police in Ladakh.

The number of states in India has now come down to 28 and the number of Union territories has gone up to nine after the bifurcation of Jammu and Kashmir.