The southern Indian

state State most commonly refers to: * State (polity), a centralized political organization that regulates law and society within a territory **Sovereign state, a sovereign polity in international law, commonly referred to as a country **Nation state, a ...

Karnataka Karnataka ( ) is a States and union territories of India, state in the southwestern region of India. It was Unification of Karnataka, formed as Mysore State on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, 1956, States Re ...

consists of 31 districts grouped into 4 administrative divisions, ''viz''.,

Belagavi Belgaum (Kannada ISO 15919, ISO: ''Bēḷagāma'', ), officially known as Belagavi (also Belgaon), is a city in the Indian state of Karnataka located near its northern western border in the Western Ghats. It is the administrative headquarters ...

, Bengaluru , Gulbarga, and

Mysore Mysore ( ), officially Mysuru (), is a city in the southern Indian state of Karnataka. It is the headquarters of Mysore district and Mysore division. As the traditional seat of the Wadiyar dynasty, the city functioned as the capital of the ...

. Geographically, the state has three principal variants: the western coastal stretch, the hilly belt comprising the Western Ghats, and the plains, comprising the plains of the

Deccan plateau The Deccan is a plateau extending over an area of and occupies the majority of the Indian peninsula. It stretches from the Satpura Range, Satpura and Vindhya Ranges in the north to the northern fringes of Tamil Nadu in the south. It is bound ...

History

Karnataka took its present shape in 1956, when the former states of

and

Coorg Kodagu district () (also known by its former name Coorg) is an administrative district in the Karnataka state of India. Before 1956, it was an administratively separate Coorg State at which point it was merged into an enlarged Mysore State ...

were unified into a linguistically homogenous

Kannada Kannada () is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly in the state of Karnataka in southwestern India, and spoken by a minority of the population in all neighbouring states. It has 44 million native speakers, and is additionally a ...

-speaking state along with agglomeration of districts of the former states of

Bombay Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial centre, financial capital and the list of cities i ...

Hyderabad Hyderabad is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part of Southern India. With an average altitude of , much ...

, and

Madras Chennai, also known as Madras ( its official name until 1996), is the capital and largest city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost state of India. It is located on the Coromandel Coast of the Bay of Bengal. According to the 2011 Indian ce ...

as part of the States Reorganisation Act of 1956. The unified Mysore State was made up of ten districts, ''viz''.,

Bangalore Bengaluru, also known as Bangalore (List of renamed places in India#Karnataka, its official name until 1 November 2014), is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the southern States and union territories of India, Indian state of Kar ...

Kolar Kolar may refer to: Places India * Kolar, Karnataka, a city in India **Kolar Assembly constituency *Kolar district, in Karnataka, India *Kolar Gold Fields, former gold mines in Karnataka, India **KGF (disambiguation) **Kolar Gold Field Assembly co ...

Tumkur Tumkur, officially Tumakuru, is a city and headquarters of Tumakuru district in the Karnataka state of India. Tumkur is known for Siddaganga Matha. Tumkur hosts India's first mega food park, a project of the ministry of food processing. The Ind ...

Mandya Mandya is a city in the state of Karnataka. It is the headquarter of Mandya district, Sugar factories contribute to the major economic output. It is also called Sugar City (Kannada: ''Sakkare Nagara'') because sugarcane is a major crop grown ...

, Hassan, Chikkamagalur,

Shimoga Shimoga, officially Shivamogga, is a city and the district headquarters of Shimoga district in the Karnataka state of India. The city lies on the banks of the Tunga River. Being the gateway for the hilly region of the Western Ghats, the city ...

Chitradurga Chitradurga is a city and the headquarters of Chitradurga district, which is located on the valley of the Vedavati river in the central part of the Indian state of Karnataka. Chitradurga is a place with historical significance and a major tou ...

, and

Ballari Ballari (formerly Bellary) is a city in the Ballari district in state of Karnataka, India. Ballari houses many steel plants such as JSW Steel, JSW Vijayanagar, one of the largest in Asia. Ballari district is also known as the ‘Steel city of ...

which had been transferred from Madras Presidency to Mysore State earlier in 1953, when the new state of

Andhra Pradesh Andhra Pradesh (ISO 15919, ISO: , , AP) is a States and union territories of India, state on the East Coast of India, east coast of southern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, seventh-largest state and th ...

was created out of Madras' northern districts. Coorg State became

Kodagu district Kodagu district () (also known by its former name Coorg) is an administrative List of districts of Karnataka, district in the Karnataka state of India. Before 1956, it was an administratively separate Coorg State at which point it was merged ...

South Canara South Canara (South Kannada) was a district of the Madras Presidency of British Raj, located at . It comprised the towns of Kassergode and Udipi and adjacent villages, with the administration at Mangalore city. South Canara was one of the mos ...

was transferred from Madras State,

North Canara Uttara Kannada is a fifth largest district in the Indian state of Karnataka, It is bordered by the state of Goa and Belagavi districts to the north, Dharwad District and Haveri District to the east, Shivamogga District, and Udupi District to ...

Dharwad Dharwad (), also known as Dharwar, is a city located in the northwestern part of the Indian state of Karnataka. It is the headquarters of the Dharwad district of Karnataka and forms a contiguous urban area with the city of Hubballi. It was merged ...

Belgaum Belgaum (Kannada ISO 15919, ISO: ''Bēḷagāma'', ), officially known as Belagavi (also Belgaon), is a city in the Indian state of Karnataka located near its northern western border in the Western Ghats. It is the administrative headquarters ...

, and

Bijapur Bijapur (officially Vijayapura) is the district headquarters of Bijapur district of the Karnataka state of India. It is also the headquarters for Bijapur Taluk. Bijapur city is well known for its historical monuments of architectural importa ...

from Bombay State.

Bidar Bidar ( ) is a city and headquarters of the Bidar district in Karnataka state of India. Bidar is a prominent place on the archaeological map of India, it is well known for architectural, historical religious and rich heritage sites. Pictures ...

, Gulbarga, and

Raichur Raichur, also pronounced as Rāyachūru (formerly Raichore), is a city and headquarters of eponymous Raichur district in the Karnataka state of India. Raichur, located between Krishna River, Krishna and Tungabhadra rivers. History Ancient His ...

from Hyderabad State. The state received its new name of

in the year 1973.

Formations of districts

Administrative structure

District administration

A district of an Indian state is an administrative geographical unit, headed by a

Deputy Commissioner A deputy commissioner is a police, income tax or administrative official in many countries. The rank is commonplace in police forces of Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth countries, usually ranking below the Commissioner. Australia In all Aust ...

(DC), an officer belonging to the

Indian Administrative Service The Indian Administrative Service (IAS) is the Public administration, administrative arm of the All India Services of Government of India. The IAS is one of the three All India Services along with the Indian Police Service (IPS) and the Indian ...

(IAS). The Deputy Commissioner reports to the Regional Commissioner. The Deputy Commissioner is also the Collector and

District Magistrate The district magistrate, also known as the district collector or deputy commissioner, is a career civil servant who serves as the executive head of a district's administration in India. The specific name depends on the state or union territo ...

of the district. The Deputy Commissioner is assisted by a Additional Deputy Commissioner at the district headquarters. The deputy commissioner is assisted by a number of officers belonging to the Karnataka Administrative Service. The deputy commissioner/collector is assisted by assistant commissioners and tahsildars, who are incharge of subdivisions and

taluks A tehsil (, also known as tahsil, taluk, or taluka () is a local unit of administrative division in India and Pakistan. It is a subdistrict of the area within a district including the designated populated place that serves as its administrative ce ...

respectively. The district (''revenue district'') is divided into subdivisions. Each subdivision consists of several talukas under its administrative purview. Each subdivision is headed by a Sub-Divisional Officer (SDO), who holds the designation of Assistant Commissioner and Sub-Divisional Magistrate. Each taluka is headed by a Tahsildar. These subdivisions and talukas are established for land revenue and land administration purposes. Each taluk contains

hobli A hobli, nad or mágani is a cluster of adjoining villages administered together for tax and land tenure purposes in the states of Karnataka India. This clustering of villages was formed mainly to streamline the collection of taxes and maintenan ...

and villages, headed by Revenue Inspectors and Village Accountants respectively.

Police administration

A Superintendent of Police (SP), usually an officer belonging to the

Indian Police Service The Indian Police Service (IPS) is a civil service under the All India Services. It replaced the Indian Imperial Police in 1948, a year after India became Partition of India, independent from the British Empire. Along with the Indian Admini ...

(IPS), is entrusted with the responsibility of maintaining law and order and related issues of the district. He is assisted by the officers of the Karnataka Police Service and other Karnataka Police officials. Big cities like

Bengaluru Bengaluru, also known as Bangalore (List of renamed places in India#Karnataka, its official name until 1 November 2014), is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the southern States and union territories of India, Indian state of Kar ...

, Hubballi-Dharwad, Kalaburagi,

Mangaluru Mangaluru (), formerly called Mangalore ( ), is a major industrial port city in the Indian state of Karnataka and on the west coast of India. It is located between the Laccadive Sea and the Western Ghats about west of Bengaluru, the stat ...

and

Mysuru Mysore ( ), officially Mysuru (), is a city in the southern Indian state of Karnataka. It is the headquarters of Mysore district and Mysore division. As the traditional seat of the Wadiyar dynasty, the city functioned as the capital of the ...

are headed by a

Commissioner of Police A police commissioner is the head of a police department, responsible for overseeing its operations and ensuring the effective enforcement of laws and maintenance of public order. They develop and implement policies, manage budgets, and coordinate ...

holding the rank of Additional Director General of Police(ADGP) for Bengaluru, Inspector General of Police (IGP) for Mysuru and Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG) for Belagavi, Hubballi-Dharwad, Kalaburagi and Mangaluru. They are assisted by officers belonging to the Karnataka Police Service (KSPS).

Forest

A Deputy Conservator of Forests, an officer belonging to the

Indian Forest Service The Indian Forest Service (IFS) is the premier forest service of India. .The IFS is one of the three All India Services along with the Indian Administrative Service (IAS) & the Indian Police Service (IPS). It was constituted in the year 1966 un ...

selected through the UPSC examination is responsible for managing the forests, the environment and wildlife of the district. He is assisted by the officers of the Karnataka Forest Service selected through the KPSC examination.

Other department

Sectoral development is looked after by the district head of each development department such as Public Works, Health, Education, Agriculture, Animal husbandry, etc. These officers belong to the various state services.

Administrative divisions

Alphabetical listing of districts

Proposed districts

References

External links

{{Districts of India *

Districts A district is a type of administrative division that in some countries is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions ...

History

Formations of districts

Administrative structure

District administration

Police administration

Forest

Other department

Administrative divisions

Alphabetical listing of districts

Proposed districts

See also

References

External links