The Act that made two Union Territories one, under the Bombay High Court

Background

The Union Territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu, whose administration is issuing its Official Gazette and departmental notifications through October 2026, was created by the Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu (Merger of Union Territories) Act, 2019. The Bill was piloted by the Ministry of Home Affairs, passed by the Lok Sabha on 27 November 2019 and by Parliament on 3 December 2019, when Minister of State G. Kishan Reddy replied in the Rajya Sabha. It merged the two separate Union Territories into a single Union Territory of the same name, placed under the jurisdiction of the Bombay High Court. The reasons given were that two secretariats and parallel departments duplicated infrastructure and manpower, that officials divided their time between the two on alternate days, and that central departments had to coordinate with each separately. The release said there would be no change in administration, service conditions or reservation.