Know how Telangana has re-ignited demands for creation of new states

New Delhi: Ahead of the 2009 general elections in India, all the major parties in Andhra Pradesh supported statehood for Telangana and on Feb 18, 2014 Lok Sabha passed the bill to carve Telangana out of Andhra Pradesh as the 29th state of India. The timeline for the creation of the new state involves an elaborate process, which has been allotted at least six months. But, the creation of Telengana has re-ignited old pending demands for creation of new states in India. Several new states and union territories have been created out of existing states since 1956.This is a list of proposed states and territories of India, in addition to the existing twenty eight states and seven union territories.Map & Proposed States And Territories Of India Dividing UP: Harit Pradesh, Awadh, Bundelkhand & Purvanchal Harit Pradesh is a proposed state, which would comprise 22 districts of Western Uttar Pradesh, currently forming six divisions – Agra, Aligarh, Bareilly, Meerut, Moradabad, and Saharanpur. Purvanchal comprises the eastern end of Uttar Pradesh state. It comprises Azamgarh, Ballia, Chandauli, Deoria, Ghazipur, Gorakhpur, Jaunpur, Kushinagar, Maharajganj, Mau, Mirzapur, Sant Kabir Nagar, Sant Ravidas Nagar, Siddharth Nagar, Varanasi. Awadh state consisting of Awadhi speaking districts of central Uttar Pradesh. The population of proposed state would be approximately 5. Bundelkhand comprises Jhansi, Lalitpur, Jalaun, Mahoba, Hamirpur, Chitrakoot and Banda.Vidarbha - Maharashtra Vidarbha comprises the Amravati and Nagpur divisions of eastern Maharashtra. The demand for the creation of a separate state are based on allegations of neglect by the Maharashtra state government. Gorkhaland - West Bengal Gorkhaland is a proposed state covering areas inhabited by the Gorkha people, namely Darjeeling hills and Dooars in the northern part of West Bengal. The movement for a separate state of Gorkhaland gained serious momentum during the 1980s, when a violent agitation was carried out by Gorkha National Liberation Front (GNLF) led by Subhash Ghising. The agitation ultimately led to the establishment of a semiautonomous body in 1988 called the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council (DGHC) to govern certain areas of Darjeeling district. Bodoland – Assam The agitation for the creation of a separate Bodoland state resulted in an agreement between the Indian Government, the Assam state government and the Bodo Liberation Tigers Force. Per that agreement of 10 February 2003, the Bodoland Territorial Council, an entity subordinate to the government of Assam, was created to govern four districts covering 3082 Bodo-majority villages in Assam.Tulu Nadu - Between The States Of Karnataka and Kerala The demand for Tulu Nadu is based on a distinct culture and language (Tulu, which does not have official status), and neglect of the region by the two state governments. To counter these demands and accusations, the Karnataka and Kerala state governments have created the Tulu Sahitya Academy to preserve and promote Tuluva culture. The proposed state would comprise three existing districts; Dakshina Kannada and Udupi in Karnataka, and Kasaragod in Kerala.Mithilanchal - Bihar Mithilanchal is proposed to cover the Maithili speaking regions of Bihar and Jharkhand. There are twenty-four Maithili-speaking districts in Bihar: Araria, Banka, Begusarai, Bhagalpur, Darbhanga, East Champaran, Jamui, Katihar, Khagaria, Kishanganj, Lakhisarai, Madhepura, Madhubani, Monghyr, Muzaffarpur, Purnea, Saharasa, Samastipur, Sheikhpura, Sheohar, Sitamarhi, Supaul, Vaishali, and West Champaran. There are six Maithili-speaking districts in Jharkhand: Deoghar, Dumka, godda, Jamtara, Pakaur, and Sahebganj.Vindhya Pradesh - Madhya Pradesh Vindhya Pradesh was a former state in central India, named after the Vindhya Range. It was merged into Madhya Pradesh in 1956, following the States Reorganization Act. In 2000, Sriniwas Tiwari, ex-speaker of the Madhya Pradesh assembly, called for nine districts to be separated from Madhya Pradesh to create a new state of Vindhya Pradesh, although this was rejected by the Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh.Kosal Pradesh - Odisha The Kosal region is located in Odisha state, comprising the districts of Sundargar, Jharsuguda, Debagarh, Sambalpur, Bargarh, Sonepur, Boudh, Bolangir, Nuapada, Kalahandi, Nabarangpur, Aathmallik sub-division of Angul district and Kashipur block of Rayagada district.Saurashtra – Gujarat Saurashtra till 1956 was a state and it was counted among one of the good-administrated states. After its merger with Gujarat, it is claimed that the development process of the region has slowen.Kongu Nadu – Tamilnadu Kongu Nadu is a region of Tamil Nadu, southwest of the Tondai Nadu region, northwest of the Chola Nadu region, southeast of the state of Karnataka and east of the state of Kerala. The proposed state would comprise ten districts of Tamil Nadu: Coimbatore, Nilgiris, Karur, Namakkal, Erode, Tirupur, Salem, Krishnagiri, Dharmapuri and Dindigul.