Districts of India

A district is an administrative division of an Indian state. India is divided into twenty-eight states and six Union territories (UT) and a national capital district. A state government has its own elected government headed by a chief minister. The head-of-state is the governor whose post is largely ceremonial. A Union territory is a possession of the Central government, whose chief administrator is an appointed Lt. Governor. The Union government may also pass a legislation allowing a Union Territory to have an elected government with limited powers. Currently only two union territories – Delhi and Pondicherry have an elected government.

Related Topics:
India - States - Union territories - Chief minister - Governor - Delhi - Pondicherry

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Each state or UT is subdivided into districts for administration purposes. A central government appointee of the Indian Administrative Service, the district collector is in charge of the revenue collection. He is also known as the district magistrate and is also responsible for the law and order of the district. In large states, a group of districts may be clubbed into a division, which is headed by a commissioner. Cities like Mumbai despite coming under a district do not have a district headquarters, though it does have a collector.

Related Topics:
Indian Administrative Service - District collector - Mumbai

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

District headquarters are the seat of administration not only for administration purposes, but also for law and order. The state police quite often have its zones and fields along district lines, but it may not always be the case.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Districts are subdived into talukas or tehsils (the former title more common across south India) headed by a talukdar or tehsildar.

Related Topics:
Taluka - Tehsil - South India

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~