The states in India are further divided into districts for better administration. The number of districts in a state generally depends on the population density. Uttar Pradesh, which is the most populous state in India has the highest number of districts among all states. Currently, the total number of districts in India is 788 (as of October 2023).
India is a country with a humongous population. The population is still rising at a fairly high rate. The total number of districts in India is expected to rise further in the coming years. The following is a list showing the number of districts state-wise.
State-wise Number of districts
| State | Number of districts | Area rank | Population rank | |
| 1 | Andhra Pradesh | 26 | 7 | 10 |
| 2 | Arunachal Pradesh | 26 | 14 | 26 |
| 3 | Assam | 35 | 16 | 15 |
| 4 | Bihar | 38 | 12 | 3 |
| 5 | Chhattisgarh | 33 | 9 | 17 |
| 6 | Goa | 2 | 28 | 25 |
| 7 | Gujarat | 33 | 5 | 9 |
| 8 | Haryana | 22 | 20 | 18 |
| 9 | Himachal Pradesh | 12 | 17 | 20 |
| 10 | Jharkhand | 24 | 15 | 14 |
| 11 | Karnataka | 31 | 6 | 8 |
| 12 | Kerala | 14 | 21 | 13 |
| 13 | Madhya Pradesh | 57 | 2 | 5 |
| 14 | Maharashtra | 36 | 3 | 2 |
| 15 | Manipur | 16 | 23 | 23 |
| 16 | Meghalaya | 12 | 22 | 22 |
| 17 | Mizoram | 11 | 24 | 27 |
| 18 | Nagaland | 16 | 25 | 24 |
| 19 | Odisha | 30 | 8 | 11 |
| 20 | Punjab | 23 | 19 | 16 |
| 21 | Rajasthan | 50 | 1 | 7 |
| 22 | Sikkim | 6 | 27 | 28 |
| 23 | Tamil Nadu | 38 | 10 | 6 |
| 24 | Telangana | 33 | 11 | 12 |
| 25 | Tripura | 8 | 26 | 21 |
| 26 | Uttar Pradesh | 75 | 4 | 1 |
| 27 | Uttarakhand | 13 | 18 | 19 |
| 28 | West Bengal | 23 | 13 | 4 |
| Total – 743 |
| Union territory | Number of districts | Area Rank | Population rank | |
| 1 | Andaman and Nicobar islands | 3 | 3 | 6 |
| 2 | Chandigarh | 1 | 7 | 4 |
| 3 | Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu | 3 | 5 | 5 |
| 4 | Jammu and Kashmir | 20 | 2 | 2 |
| 5 | Ladakh | 2 | 1 | 7 |
| 6 | Lakshadweep | 1 | 8 | 8 |
| 7 | National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT) | 11 | 4 | 1 |
| 8 | Puducherry | 4 | 6 | 3 |
| Total – 45 |
Key points
- Kutch (Kachchh) district is the largest district in India in terms of area. It has an area of 45,674 square kilometers.
- Leh district is the second-largest district in India. However, considering the disputed regions of Gilgit Baltistan and Aksai Chin, Leh becomes the largest district.
- The smallest district in India is Mahe which is just about 9 square kilometers in area. Mahe is one of the four districts of Puducherry union territory.
- The National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT) has 11 districts.
- Goa has the least number of districts among all states. There are two districts in Goa – North Goa and South Goa.
- Sikkim now has 6 districts. Soreng district in December 2021 became the 6th district of Sikkim. Soreng was previously part of West Sikkim (Geyzing) district.
- In April 2022, the Andhra Pradesh government added 13 new districts taking the total number of districts in Andhra Pradesh to 26.
- In March 2023, 19 new districts were created in Rajasthan taking the total to 50.
The article was last updated on 3 October 2023.
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