Recently, June 2 marks the ten years of formation of Telangana State.
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Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2014, reorganizes the state of Andhra Pradesh by creating a separate state called Telangana with Hyderabad as its capital.
The move for a separate Telangana state was motivated by perceived regional inequality in the development.
Recently, Bhil tribe demanded an independent tribal state i.e., Bhil Pradesh, comprising parts of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, and Maharashtra.
Procedure for Formation of New States
Article 3: Provisions for formation of new States and alteration of areas, boundaries or names of existing States. As per this,
Power:Parliament mayby law form a new State by separating territory from any State, uniting two or more States, uniting parts of States and uniting any territory to a part of any State.
Presidential Recommendation: Such Bill shall be introduced in either House of Parliament only on President’s recommendation.
Consultation with State Legislatures: Before recommending a Bill, which affects area, boundaries or name of any of States, President shall refer this Bill to Legislature of that State to express its view within a specified time.
Parliament can create a new state through ordinary legislation (i.e. with simple majority).
State Reorganization Commission/Committees
S.K. Dhar Commission, 1948: Recommended re-organization on basis of administrative convenience rather than linguistic factor.
JVP Committee (named after its members Jawaharlal Nehru, Vallabhbhai Patel, and Pattabhi Sitaramayya), 1948: Rejected language as basis for reorganization of states.
Fazl Ali Commission, 1953: Identified 4 factors for state reorganization i.e.
Preservation and strengthening of unity and security of country.
Linguistic and cultural homogeneity.
Financial, economic and administrative considerations.
Planning and promotion of welfare of people and nation as a whole.
Fazal Ali Commission recommended for formation of 14 states and 6 UTs.
Parliament implemented its recommendations through Constitution (7th Amendment) Act, 1956.
Factors driving Demand for New States in post-independence India
Linguistic diversity: Language has been one of the major factors driving demand for creation of new states.
For instance, creation of Maharashtra and Gujarat in 1960.
Regionaldisparities: Underdevelopment in specific regions prompts statehood demands.
Example: Demand for Vidarbha region of Maharashtra.
Cultural identity: Various ethnic groups attempt to protect and preserve their ethnic, social and cultural identity like language, race, language, customs etc.
For example, the demand for the Statehood for the Bodoland region of Assam has been raised mainly on the issue distinct tribal culture of the region, which is different from rest of the State.
Administrative efficiency: Smaller states are perceived to enhance governance and administrative efficiency.
Example: Demand of Harit Pradesh from Uttar Pradesh.
Argument in favour for creation of new states
Argument in against for creation of new states
Effective administrative efficiency: It leads to proper utilization of resources.
E.g. Telangana was able to utilise its water resources, resulting in increase of paddy production from 4.57 million metric tonnes (mmt) in 2015 to over 20 mmt in 2023.
Innovation: Smaller states can experiment more easily with innovations in governance and service delivery, which can be replicated across states if found to be successful.
E.g. Following the success of Organic farming in Sikkim, Kerala Government has created an Organic Farming Mission (in 2023) to turn the state into an organic farming hub.
Trade: Small States like Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh and Goa tend to trade more than larger state like Utter Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh etc (Economic Survey 2016-17).
Better Development: It resulted in narrowing regional disparities.
In Uttarakhand, number of people living in multidimensional poverty has decreased to 9.67 % from 17.67% between 2015-16 and 2019-21 (Multidimensional Poverty Index 2023, NITI Aayog).
Economic Strain: Setting up a new state's administrative machinery, infrastructure, and institutions requires significant financial resources.
For instance, according to estimates, about Rs. 40,000 crore will be required to build infrastructure and various government buildings in new capital of Andhra Pradesh (Amravati).
Resource Allocation: Dividing resources like water, power, or mineral wealth between a new state and the existing one can lead to inter-state disputes.
For instance, bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana resulted in disputes over water sharing of river Krishna.
Boundary Disputes: Drawing new state boundaries can lead to territorial disputes with neighbouring regions. These disputes can be long-lasting and create tensions between communities.
For instance, Belgavi dispute between Karnataka and Maharashtra.
Pandora box: Creation of new states can further lead to the demand for and creation of other new states.
Way ahead
Development: Steps should be taken for equitable development of all regions within existing states, address economic disparities and grievances that fuel demands for statehood.
Expert committee: Creation of an expert committee engaging all stakeholders to investigate the demand/ impact of creation of new states.
Economic viability: No new state should be created unless it has the resources or revenue to incur at least 60% of its expenditure from the day of its coming into existence.
Clear Guidelines: Develop clear and objective criteria focussing on economic and social viability rather than political considerations for creation of new states.
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