States and Capitals of India: Total States, Capitals, Chief Ministers and Governors

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Published on 23 July 2026 by
States and Capitals of India

India is a vast country, and one of the most common General Knowledge questions asked by students and exam aspirants is how many states in India exist today. If you have ever searched for total states in India, how many states are there in India, or how many state and capitals are there in India, this article gives you every answer in one place. Below you will find the total states in India, the complete list of states and capitals, current Chief Ministers and Governors, Union Territories, and the state that follows a seasonal capital system.

How many states are in India?

The most searched question on this topic is simple: how many states in India are there right now? As per the latest administrative structure, India has 28 states and 8 Union Territories. Each state has its own elected government headed by a Chief Minister, while Union Territories are largely administered by the Central Government through an Administrator or a Lieutenant Governor, though Delhi, Puducherry, and Jammu & Kashmir also have their own Chief Ministers. Telangana is the newest state, carved out of Andhra Pradesh on 2 June 2014, making it India’s 28th state.

ParticularsNumber
Total States in India28
Total Union Territories8
Total Administrative Divisions36
Capital of IndiaNew Delhi
Newest StateTelangana (2014)
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How many states and capitals are there in India?

Many aspirants search for how many states and capitals there are, how many states and capitals are in India, or how many states and capitals there are. The answer is straightforward: India has 28 states, and every state has one designated capital city, except Uttarakhand, which follows a seasonal capital system. Knowing which states in India and their capitals is one of the most frequently tested topics in SSC, Banking, Railways, UPSC, and State PSC exams.

StateCapitalFormation Date
Andhra PradeshAmaravati1 November 1956
Arunachal PradeshItanagar20 February 1987
AssamDispur26 January 1950
BiharPatna26 January 1950
ChhattisgarhRaipur1 November 2000
GoaPanaji30 May 1987
GujaratGandhinagar1 May 1960
HaryanaChandigarh1 November 1966
Himachal PradeshShimla25 January 1971
JharkhandRanchi15 November 2000
KarnatakaBengaluru1 November 1956
KeralaThiruvananthapuram1 November 1956
Madhya PradeshBhopal1 November 1956
MaharashtraMumbai1 May 1960
ManipurImphal21 January 1972
MeghalayaShillong21 January 1972
MizoramAizawl20 February 1987
NagalandKohima1 December 1963
OdishaBhubaneswar26 January 1950
PunjabChandigarh1 November 1956
RajasthanJaipur1 November 1956
SikkimGangtok16 May 1975
Tamil NaduChennai26 January 1950
TelanganaHyderabad2 June 2014
TripuraAgartala21 January 1972
Uttar PradeshLucknow26 January 1950
UttarakhandDehradun (Winter) / Gairsain (Summer)9 November 2000
West BengalKolkata1 November 1956
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States, Capitals, Chief Ministers and Governors of 2026

Along with which state in India and its capital, competitive exams frequently ask about the current Chief Minister and Governor of each state. Below is the complete, verified list of all 28 states with their capital, current Chief Minister, and current Governor.

StateCapitalChief MinisterGovernor
Andhra PradeshAmaravatiN. Chandrababu NaiduSyed Abdul Nazeer
Arunachal PradeshItanagarPema KhanduKaiwalya Trivikram Parnaik
AssamDispurHimanta Biswa SarmaLakshman Acharya
BiharPatnaSamrat ChoudharyArif Mohammad Khan
ChhattisgarhRaipurVishnu Deo SaiRamen Deka
GoaPanajiPramod SawantAshok Gajapathi Raju
GujaratGandhinagarBhupendra PatelAcharya Devvrat
HaryanaChandigarhNayab Singh SainiAshim Kumar Ghosh
Himachal PradeshShimlaSukhvinder Singh SukhuShiv Pratap Shukla
JharkhandRanchiHemant SorenSantosh Kumar Gangwar
KarnatakaBengaluruD. K. ShivakumarThawar Chand Gehlot
KeralaThiruvananthapuramV. D. SatheesanRajendra Arlekar
Madhya PradeshBhopalMohan YadavMangubhai C. Patel
MaharashtraMumbaiDevendra FadnavisAcharya Devvrat (Additional Charge)
ManipurImphalYumnam Khemchand SinghAjay Kumar Bhalla
MeghalayaShillongConrad Kongkal SangmaC. H. Vijayashankar
MizoramAizawlLalduhomaV. K. Singh
NagalandKohimaNeiphiu RioAjay Kumar Bhalla (Additional Charge)
OdishaBhubaneswarMohan Charan MajhiKambhampati Hari Babu
PunjabChandigarhBhagwant Singh MannGulab Chand Kataria
RajasthanJaipurBhajanlal SharmaHaribhau Bagade
SikkimGangtokPrem Singh Tamang (Golay)Om Prakash Mathur
Tamil NaduChennaiC. Joseph VijayRajendra Arlekar (Additional Charge)
TelanganaHyderabadA. Revanth ReddyJishnu Dev Varma
TripuraAgartalaManik SahaN. Indrasena Reddy
Uttar PradeshLucknowYogi AdityanathAnandiben Patel
UttarakhandDehradun / GairsainPushkar Singh DhamiGurmit Singh
West BengalKolkataSuvendu AdhikariR. N. Ravi

Note: Chief ministers and governors are constitutional appointments that change from time to time following elections, resignations, or transfers. This list reflects the position as of July 2026.

check important list of ministers and their portfolios

Union Territories of India and Their Capitals

Apart from the 28 states, India also has 8 union territories, each administered directly by the central government. Of these, Delhi, Puducherry, and Jammu & Kashmir have their own elected chief ministers, while the rest are governed by an administrator or lieutenant governor appointed by the president.

Union TerritoryCapitalFormation Date
Andaman and Nicobar IslandsPort Blair1 November 1956
ChandigarhChandigarh1 November 1966
Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and DiuDaman26 January 2020
Delhi (NCT)New Delhi9 May 1905
Jammu and KashmirSrinagar (Summer) / Jammu (Winter)31 October 2019
LadakhLeh31 October 2019
LakshadweepKavaratti1 November 1956
PuducherryPuducherry1 November 1954
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Which Indian State Has Different Capitals in Summer and Winter?

This is one of the most frequently asked GK questions: which Indian state has different capitals in summer and winter? The answer is Uttarakhand, and among the Union Territories, Jammu & Kashmir also follows the same seasonal system.

  • Uttarakhand: Dehradun is the winter capital, and Gairsain is the summer capital, as notified in 2020.
  • Jammu & Kashmir (UT): Srinagar serves as the Summer Capital, and Jammu serves as the Winter Capital.

Important Facts About States and Capitals of India

These quick facts are useful for revising states and capitals. How many questions before an exam?

  • India has 28 states and 8 Union Territories, totaling 36 administrative divisions.
  • New Delhi is the capital of India.
  • Chandigarh is the shared capital of both Punjab and Haryana.
  • Uttarakhand has two capitals: Dehradun (winter) and Gairsain (summer).
  • Jammu & Kashmir (UT) has Srinagar (Summer) and Jammu (Winter) as its capitals.
  • Telangana became India’s 28th state on 2 June 2014, after separating from Andhra Pradesh.
  • Only Delhi, Puducherry, and Jammu & Kashmir among the union territories have their own chief minister.
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FAQs

Q1. How many states are there in India?

A1: India has 28 states as of 2026.

Q2. What are the total states in India, including union territories?

A2: India has 28 states and 8 Union Territories, making 36 administrative divisions in total.

Q3. How many states and capitals are there in India?

A3: There are 28 states, and each has its own capital, except Uttarakhand, which has a summer and a winter capital.

Q4. Which Indian state has different capitals in summer and winter?

A4: Uttarakhand has Dehradun as its winter capital and Gairsain as its summer capital.

Q5. Which is the newest state in India?

A5: Telangana is the newest state, formed on 2 June 2014.

Q6. Which city is the capital of both Punjab and Haryana?

A6: Chandigarh serves as the shared capital of Punjab and Haryana.

Q7. How many Union Territories does India have?

A7: India has 8 Union Territories.

Q8. Which Union Territory also has a summer and winter capital?

A8: Jammu & Kashmir (UT) has Srinagar as its summer capital and Jammu as its winter capital.