Why Rajasthan keeps redrawing its map — explained

The road never stops for Rajasthan’s cartographic experiments.

Governments in Rajasthan, India’s largest state by area, have considered amending district boundaries for administrative convenience and logistical ease. The state spans over 3.4 lakh sq. km, stretching approximately 869 km from east to west and 826 km from north to south. It is typically a mix of overpopulated urban sprawls and remote regions.

So, when the Bharatiya Janata Party-led Rajasthan government annulled nine of the 17 new districts formed by the previous Ashok Gehlot-led Congress government last December, it was merely following what has long been the norm in the state. The new BJP government, led by Bhajan Lal Sharma, had set up a committee headed by Lalit K. Panwar to review the earlier changes.

In March 2023, the Congress government announced the creation of 17 new districts, ostensibly to facilitate better administration. With a single decision, Rajasthan’s total number of districts jumped from 33 to 50, more than doubling the number created over the previous 52 years.

The move was based on the recommendations of a committee led by retired IAS officer Ramlubhaya.

Following the BJP’s decision to slash nine districts, Rajasthan now has 41.

BJP member and former MP Manvendra Singh says, “The redrawing of districts is based on geographical location, administrative ease, population, the distance of the farthest tehsil from the district headquarters, effective law and order governance, the disposal of pending schemes, regional backwardness, availability of basic facilities and services, public sentiment, and cultural harmony.”

Internal reorganisation has long dominated the state’s agenda. Between 1956, the year Rajasthan came into being, and 2008, seven new districts were created. Dholpur was carved out of Bharatpur in 1982; in 1991, Baran, Dausa, and Rajsamand were carved out from Kota, Jaipur and Udaipur, respectively. Hanumangarh was created in 1994 from Sri Ganganagar. In 1997, Karauli was formed based on the recommendations of the R.S. Kumat Committee.

The last district created before the 2023 reorganisation was Pratapgarh, carved out of Udaipur, Banswara, and Chittorgarh in 2008 during the first term of BJP leader Vasundhara Raje as Chief Minister. In 2014, during her tenure, the Parmesh Chandra Committee recommended the formation of four more districts, Balotra, Beawar, Deedwana, and Kotputli, but the proposal remained confined to official files.

According to a Rajasthan government official, beyond healthcare, people expect improvements in governance, budgetary allocation, infrastructure, and greater attention to the region. The reorganisation was intended to bring the government closer to the people by rapidly creating new administrative centres.

The peril of creating new districts can scarcely be overstated, none more so than the financial burden it entails. Lalit K Panwar, who headed the BJP government’s committee on rationalising the number of districts, estimated that, on average, it costs the state exchequer around ₹1,000 crore to develop a single district, with ₹500 crore potentially spent on building administrative offices alone. This would have amounted to a budget of ₹17,000 crore for all 17 districts, a significant expenditure. “This was one of the key reasons to reconsider the number of new districts,” the official said.

The administrative reality, however, was far messier. A government official said many of the new districts faced serious administrative challenges, including staff shortages and a lack of proper office infrastructure.

Newly appointed collectors and SPs are operating with limited resources, compounded by ongoing border disputes between districts.

But annulling the new districts comes with its own set of downsides. Communities that briefly experienced administrative independence, only to have it withdrawn, are now deeply resentful. Neem Ka Thana is a case in point. Located about 120 km from Jaipur, it was carved out of Sikar and Jhunjhunu as a new district by the Gehlot government. After the BJP administration reversed the decision, the region has witnessed widespread protests.

“A long-standing demand has been betrayed. Since the announcement, daily rallies and demonstrations have taken place, with people demanding the restoration of Neem Ka Thana as a district,” says Joginder Kumar, general secretary of a local market union.

The cost of dismantling barely established infrastructure can be painful. According to locals, during the 14 months Neem Ka Thana functioned as a district, several newly established administrative offices began to shut down. Officials have since been transferred back to the state secretariat and other locations.

At a deeper level, the issue raises a fundamental question that challenges governance in India: How can political parties decentralise administration and bring it closer to the people? As Rajasthan has demonstrated, there are no easy answers.