Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu is a union territory in

India India, officially the Republic of India ( Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the ...

. The territory was constituted through the merger of the former territories of

Dadra and Nagar Haveli Dadra and Nagar Haveli is a district of the union territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu in western India. It is composed of two separate geographical entities: Nagar Haveli, wedged in between Maharashtra and Gujarat states t ...

and

Daman and Diu Daman and Diu (; ) was a former union territory in northwestern India. With an area of , it was the smallest administrative subdivision of India on the mainland. The territory comprised two districts, Damaon and Dio island, geographically se ...

. Plans for the proposed merger were announced by the

Government of India The Government of India ( ISO: ; often abbreviated as GoI), known as the Union Government or Central Government but often simply as the Centre, is the national government of the Republic of India, a federal democracy located in South Asia, ...

in July 2019; the necessary legislation was passed in the Parliament of India in December 2019 and came into effect on 26 January 2020. The territory is made up of four separate geographical entities: Dadra,

Nagar Haveli Nagar Haveli is one of the two talukas of Dadra and Nagar Haveli District, Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu, India. It is surrounded by the Indian states of Gujarat and Maharashtra. Silvassa, the administrative headquarters of Dadr ...

Daman Daman may refer to: place Places *Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu, a union territory in India **Daman and Diu, former union territory of India, now part of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu **Daman district, India ***Daman, India ...

, and the island of Diu. All four areas were part of Portuguese Goa and Damaon with the former joint capital in Panjim, they came under Indian rule in the mid-20th century after the Annexation of Goa. These were jointly administered as Goa, Daman and Diu until 1987, when Goa was granted statehood after the Konkani language agitation. The current capital is Damaon and

Silvassa Silvassa ( Indo-Portuguese; ''Vila de Paço d'Arcos'') is a city and municipality in western India, and the headquarters of the Dadra and Nagar Haveli district. It was a part of the former Portuguese Goa and Damaon, and is today the largest c ...

is the largest city.

History

were Portuguese colonies from the 1520s until

annexed Annexation (Latin ''ad'', to, and ''nexus'', joining), in international law, is the forcible acquisition of one state's territory by another state, usually following military occupation of the territory. It is generally held to be an illegal act ...

by India on 19 December 1961.

were invaded by the Indian Army on 11 August 1961. Portugal officially recognised Indian sovereignty over the areas in 1974 following the

Carnation Revolution The Carnation Revolution ( pt, Revolução dos Cravos), also known as the 25 April ( pt, 25 de Abril, links=no), was a military coup by left-leaning military officers that overthrew the authoritarian Estado Novo regime on 25 April 1974 in Lis ...

. Daman and Diu were administered as part of the union territory of Goa, Daman and Diu between 1962 and 1987, becoming a separate union territory when Goa was granted statehood. In July 2019, the Government of India proposed merging the two territories into a single union territory in order to reduce duplication of services and reduce the cost of administration. Legislation to this effect, the Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu (Merger of Union territories) Bill, 2019, was tabled in the Parliament of India on 26 November 2019 and assented to by the President of India on 9 December 2019. The two union territories had previously shared a common administrator and government officials. The town of Daman was chosen to be the capital of the new combined union territory. The appointed day for the act to come into effect was notified as 26 January 2020 by the Government of India.

Geography

Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu is composed of four distinct areas located in

Western India Western India is a loosely defined region of India consisting of its western part. The Ministry of Home Affairs in its Western Zonal Council Administrative division includes the states of Goa, Gujarat, and Maharashtra along with the Uni ...

. Dadra is a small enclave within the state of Gujarat.

is a C shaped enclave located between the states of

Gujarat Gujarat (, ) is a state along the western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the fifth-largest Indian state by area, covering some ; and the nin ...

and Maharashtra which contains a counter enclave of Gujarat around the village of

Maghval Maghval, also known as Megwal and Meghwad, is a village in the Kaparada taluka Kaparada is a taluka in Valsad district, Gujarat, India, near the border to Maharashtra. It is located in the Western Ghats. It is a predominantly Adivasi tribal ...

is an enclave on the coast of Gujarat and Diu is an island off the coast of Gujarat.

Administration

Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu is administered as a union territory of India by virtue of Article 240 (2) of the

Constitution of India The Constitution of India (IAST: ) is the supreme law of India. The document lays down the framework that demarcates fundamental political code, structure, procedures, powers, and duties of government institutions and sets out fundamental ...

. The

President of India The president of India ( IAST: ) is the head of state of the Republic of India. The president is the nominal head of the executive, the first citizen of the country, as well as the commander-in-chief of the Indian Armed Forces. Droupadi Mur ...

appoints an

administrator Administrator or admin may refer to: Job roles Computing and internet * Database administrator, a person who is responsible for the environmental aspects of a database * Forum administrator, one who oversees discussions on an Internet forum * N ...

to administer the territory on behalf of the central Government of India. The central government may appoint advisers to assist the administrator with his duties.

Districts

The union territory is made up of three districts:

Law enforcement and justice

Law enforcement within the territory is the responsibility of the

Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu Police The Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu Police is the law enforcement agency for the union territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu in India. History Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu Police was created on 26 January ...

. The territory falls under the jurisdiction of the

Bombay High Court The High Court of Bombay is the high court of the states of Maharashtra and Goa in India, and the union territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu. It is seated primarily at Mumbai (formerly known as Bombay), and is one of the ...

In the Parliament of India

Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu sends two members (MPs) to the lower house of the

Indian parliament The Parliament of India ( IAST: ) is the supreme legislative body of the Republic of India. It is a bicameral legislature composed of the president of India and two houses: the Rajya Sabha (Council of States) and the Lok Sabha (House of the ...

the

Lok Sabha The Lok Sabha, constitutionally the House of the People, is the lower house of India's bicameral Parliament, with the upper house being the Rajya Sabha. Members of the Lok Sabha are elected by an adult universal suffrage and a first-pas ...

. The territory is divided into the constituencies of

and

Demographics

Religion

References

External links

Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu AdministrationDadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu Tourism
{{Authority control Union territories of India Former colonies in Asia Former Portuguese colonies Former countries in South Asia States and union territories of India States and territories established in 2020 2020 establishments in India India–Portugal relations Enclaves and exclaves