Government flooded with new state demands

The Union home ministry finds itself flooded with demands for the creation of at least 15 new states.

After the clamour for carving out separate states - Telangana in Andhra Pradesh, Vidarbha in Maharashtra and Bundelkhand in Uttar Pradesh - the ministry of home affairs (MHA) has told Parliament that it has received recommendations from "various sources" for the creation of several new states, such as Bhojpur in East Uttar Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Bihar, Saurashtra in Gujarat, Coorg in Karnataka, Koshalanchal in western Orissa, Gorkhaland in West Bengal, Mithilanchal in north Bihar, parts of Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal, and Purvanchal, Harith Pradesh, Braj Pradesh and Awadh Pradesh from various regions of Uttar Pradesh.

The MHA has denied receiving any recommendation from "state governments" for the creation of new states, which includes the demand for Telangana and the call for the trifurcation of UP, a move supported by UP chief minister Mayawati. The ministry has said that all the "demands and representations" for creation of new states have been coming from "various sources" from time to time. The MHA, however, has not specified these "sources".

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