After Bifurcating J-K, Modi Govt Plans To Merge 2 UTs -- Daman And Diu, Dadra And Nagar Haveli

After bifurcating Jammu and Kashmir into two Union Territories (UTs), the government is now planning to merge two UTs-- Daman and Diu, and Dadra and Nagar Haveli -- into one, said Union Minister Arjun Meghwal in the Lok Sabha on Friday. A bill in this effect will be introduced in Parliament next week, Meghwal announced.

The move comes three months after Jammu and Kashmir was bifurcated into two UTs -- Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh. The Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu (Merger of Union Territories) Bill 2019 is part of the proposed government business for the next week, Meghwal said.

Officials said the merger of the two UTs, located along the western coast near Gujarat, will be done for better administration and check duplications of various work.

So far, both the UTs have separate budgets and different secretariats even though they are just 35 km apart. Dadra and Nagar Haveli has just one district while Daman and Diu has two.

The merged UT is likely to be named as Dadra, Nagar Haveli, Daman and Diu and its headquarters could be Daman and Diu.

On August 5, the central government had announced the abrogation of the special status given to Jammu and Kashmir under Article 370 and its bifurcation into two UTs.

The country currently has nine UTs after the creation of the UTs of Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh. However, with the merger of Daman and Diu, and Dadra and Nagar Haveli, the number of UTs will come down to eight.