A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | CH | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9
 | This article possibly contains original research. (August 2019) |
| This article is part of a series on the |
| Politics of India |
|---|
 |
|
|
|
 India portal |
The administrative divisions of India are subnational administrative units of India; they are composed of a nested hierarchy of administrative divisions.
Indian states and territories frequently use different local titles for the same level of subdivision (e.g., the mandals of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana correspond to tehsils of Uttar Pradesh and other Hindi-speaking states but to talukas of Gujarat, Goa, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, and Tamil Nadu).[1]
The smaller subdivisions (villages and blocks) exist only in rural areas. In urban areas, urban local bodies exist instead of these rural subdivisions.
Tiers of India
The diagram below outlines the six tiers of administrative divisions:
| Country (India) | |||||||||||||||||
| State (e.g. West Bengal State) | |||||||||||||||||
| Division (e.g. Presidency Division) | |||||||||||||||||
| District (e.g. North 24 Parganas District) | |||||||||||||||||
| Sub-district (Subdivision, Tehsil) (e.g. Basirhat Subdivision) | |||||||||||||||||
| Block (e.g. Basirhat II Block) | |||||||||||||||||
| Village (e.g. Champapukur village) | |||||||||||||||||
Zones and regions
Zones
The states of India have been grouped into six zones having an Advisory Council "to develop the habit of cooperative working" among these States. Zonal Councils were set up vide Part-III of the States Reorganisation Act, 1956. The North Eastern States' special problems are addressed by another statutory body - The North Eastern Council, created by the North Eastern Council Act, 1971.[2] The present composition of each of these Zonal Councils is as under:[3]
- Northern Zonal Council, comprising Chandigarh, Delhi, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh, Punjab, and Rajasthan;
- North Eastern Council, comprising Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland and Tripura; The State of Sikkim has also been included in the North Eastern Council vide North Eastern Council (Amendment) Act, 2002 notified on 23 December 2002.[4]
- Central Zonal Council, comprising the States of Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh;
- Eastern Zonal Council, comprising Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha, and West Bengal;
- Western Zonal Council, comprising Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu, Goa, Gujarat, and Maharashtra;
- Southern Zonal Council, comprising Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Puducherry, Tamil Nadu, and Telangana.
- Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Lakshadweep are not members of any of the Zonal Councils.[5] However, they are presently special invitees to the Southern Zonal Council[6]
Cultural zones
Each zone has a zonal headquarters where a zonal cultural center has been established.[7] Several states have membership in multiple zones, but no state subdivisions are utilized in the zonal divisions. In addition to promoting the culture of the zones they are responsible for, each zonal center also works to cross-promote and create exposure to other cultural zones of India by organizing functions and inviting artistes from other zones.
States and union territories
India is composed of 28 states and eight union territories (including a national capital territory).[15]