10 state name examples of India, plus the full rajya list

Which 10 state name examples should you learn first?

For a quick 10 state name answer, use Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Bihar, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Rajasthan, Karnataka, Gujarat and Kerala. They are large, well known and spread across north, west, east and south India, so they cover most of the map at a glance.

The ten with their capitals

Uttar Pradesh – Lucknow, Maharashtra – Mumbai, Bihar – Patna, West Bengal – Kolkata, Madhya Pradesh – Bhopal, Tamil Nadu – Chennai, Rajasthan – Jaipur, Karnataka – Bengaluru, Gujarat – Gandhinagar and Kerala – Thiruvananthapuram.

The ten by plate letters

On vehicles the same states appear as UP, MH, BR, WB, MP, TN, RJ, KA, GJ and KL. Seeing these letters on a number plate tells you which state’s transport department registered the vehicle.

Why this is only a sample

School worksheets ask for ten names because the full list is long. A test or form, however, may need the exact official spelling of any of the 28, so keep the complete table below handy.

India ka state kya hai?

India ka state kya hai is usually asked in two ways: what a state (rajya) means, and which states exist. A state is a part of the Union with its own elected government, Chief Minister and Governor. A union territory is governed mainly by the Centre through a Lieutenant Governor or Administrator.

Rajya and Kendra Shasit Pradesh

In Hindi a state is a rajya and a union territory is a kendra shasit pradesh. Both appear on government forms, and both have their own vehicle code.

Where the powers come from

The Constitution divides subjects between the Union and the states. Road transport and vehicle registration are handled by state transport departments, which is why each state runs its own RTOs on the national Vahan system.

Rajya name list: all 28 states

Here is the full rajya name list with each capital, its vehicle registration letters and its number of districts. District counts come from the Wikipedia list of districts (December 2025) and change whenever a state creates new ones, so confirm a current total on the Local Government Directory.

Northeast states

Seven states sit in the Northeast besides Sikkim: Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland and Tripura. Their names are often misspelt, so copy them from the table.

Southern states

Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Telangana make up the south. Telangana is the youngest state, formed from Andhra Pradesh in 2014.

Which are the 8 union territories?

The eight union territories are Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Chandigarh, Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu, Delhi, Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh, Lakshadweep and Puducherry. Delhi, Jammu and Kashmir and Puducherry also have elected assemblies, which is why people sometimes count them as states.

The newest merger

Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu were merged into one union territory on 26 January 2020, so they share the DD prefix today.

A renamed capital

The Andaman capital, Port Blair, was renamed Sri Vijaya Puram on 13 September 2024. Older lists still print the former name.

Is there a 30 state name list for India?

No genuine 30 state name list exists. India had 29 states until 31 October 2019 and has had 28 since then. Lists showing 30 usually add Delhi and Puducherry, or come from guesswork. Adding the 8 union territories gives 36 entities, not 30.

Where 29 came from

From Telangana’s creation in 2014 until 2019 the count was 29. The Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019 split the old state into two union territories, Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh.

What to write in an exam

If a question asks for the number of states, the answer today is 28. If it asks for “states and UTs”, say 28 and 8.

Kaun se rajya mein hai? Finding a town’s state

To answer kaun se rajya mein hai for a town or village, first find its district, then look that district up in the Local Government Directory, which maps every district to its state. A PIN code and a vehicle plate give quick extra clues, but the district is the reliable link.

Using the district

Every village and town belongs to exactly one district, and every district to exactly one state or union territory. Our district name guide explains how to check the current spelling and count.

Names that exist in two states

Several place names repeat across states, such as Pratapgarh, a district name in both Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan. Always confirm the district and PIN before assuming the state.

How does a number plate show the rajya?

The first two letters on an Indian number plate are the state or UT code of the registering authority, such as RJ for Rajasthan or DL for Delhi. The digits after them name the RTO office. The plate shows where the vehicle was registered, not where its owner lives now.

Codes that do not match the name

A few codes are not obvious: OD is Odisha, UK is Uttarakhand, TG is Telangana and LA is Ladakh. The full prefix list and its exceptions are on our state code page.

Plates with no state at all

Bharat series plates start with a year and BH instead of a state code, so they do not reveal a rajya.

Which rajya is the biggest and which the smallest?

By area, Rajasthan is the largest state at 342,269 sq km and Goa the smallest at 3,702 sq km. By population in the 2011 Census, Uttar Pradesh led with about 199.8 million people, while Sikkim had the fewest at about 610,000.

Union territory extremes

Ladakh is the largest union territory by area (59,146 sq km) and Lakshadweep the smallest (32 sq km). Delhi had the most people of any UT in 2011.

Why population figures are old

India’s last completed census was in 2011, so every population ranking still rests on it. Newer projections exist but are estimates.

Rajya mein kitne jile hain?

The number of districts in each rajya ranges from 3 in Goa to 75 in Uttar Pradesh. Madhya Pradesh (55), Rajasthan (41) and Bihar and Tamil Nadu (38 each) follow. India had about 802 districts in December 2025, and states keep adding more.

Small states, few districts

Sikkim has 6 districts and Tripura 8, while Chandigarh and Lakshadweep are single-district union territories.

How districts link to RTO codes

Most districts have at least one RTO with its own number, so the number of codes in a state usually runs close to its district count. Large cities often get several codes.

State ki rajdhani: which capitals are shared?

Most state ki rajdhani questions have one answer, but a few do not. Chandigarh serves both Punjab and Haryana. Some states also hold assembly sessions in a second city, and Jammu and Kashmir moves between a summer and a winter capital.

One city, three governments

Chandigarh houses the governments of Punjab and Haryana and is also a union territory run by the Centre.

Second legislative capitals

Maharashtra’s assembly also meets in Nagpur in winter, Himachal Pradesh’s in Dharamshala, and Uttarakhand lists Bhararisain as its summer legislative capital.

Which states changed their name, code or status?

Recent changes explain most errors in older lists. Telangana moved from TS to TG for new registrations in March 2024, Jammu and Kashmir lost statehood in 2019, and two western union territories merged in 2020. Orissa’s name changed to Odisha in 2011, which is why its plates read OD.

Do old plates change?

No. Vehicles registered under an older code, such as TS or OR, keep their existing number; only fresh registrations use the new prefix.

Which state do you pick on transport forms?

On RC and licence forms, choose the state of the RTO that holds your record, not your birthplace. If you moved, the address on your RC may still show the old state until you transfer it. The Vahan services guide lists the forms for address and ownership changes.

Drop-down spellings

Portals use fixed drop-downs, so pick Odisha, not Orissa, and Puducherry, not Pondicherry.

State versus union territory on forms

Delhi, Chandigarh and the other UTs appear in the same drop-down as states. Choose them there even though they are not states.

Which mistakes show up in copied state name lists?

The common errors are calling Delhi or Jammu and Kashmir a state, counting 29 or 30 states, printing Port Blair as a capital and showing TS for new Telangana plates. Check any list against the Local Government Directory before using it in an exam answer or on a form.

A quick self-check

A correct list has 28 states and 8 UTs, shows Chandigarh twice as a capital and spells Thiruvananthapuram in full.