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.
Act:
Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu (Merger of Union Territories) Act, 2019
Ministry:
Ministry of Home Affairs
High Court:
Bombay High Court
Why it matters for exams: The Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu (Merger of Union Territories) Act, 2019 is the Act that reduced India's Union Territories by one, and the merged UT falls under the Bombay High Court.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
MHA Ministry of Home Affairs — The Union ministry that administers Union Territories.
Background
Diu, one of the three districts of the Union Territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu, is an island slightly off the Kathiawad coast near the port of Veraval in Gujarat. Its own district administration records a coastline of about 21 km, a distance of about 768 km from Daman, and boundaries with the Gir-Somnath and Amreli districts of Gujarat to the north and the Arabian Sea on three sides. The island measures 4.6 km north to south and 13.8 km east to west, stands about 6 metres above sea level and is generally plain with hillocks up to 30 metres. It is connected to the mainland by two bridges. The district is headed by Collector Rahul Dev Boora, IAS, under Administrator Praful Patel.
Coastline:
about 21 km
Distance from Daman:
about 768 km
Altitude:
6 metres above sea level
Why it matters for exams: Diu is an island district bounded by Gujarat's Gir-Somnath and Amreli districts and the Arabian Sea - a standard map and location question.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
Background
Dadra and Nagar Haveli, the mainland district of the Union Territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu, lies near India's western coast in two separate pieces: Dadra, surrounded by Gujarat, and Nagar Haveli, on the border of Gujarat and Maharashtra. Its own district administration records hilly terrain in the north-east and east where the Sahyadri or Western Ghats ranges run, and says the Daman Ganga river and its three tributaries flow through the territory. The main tribes are the Dhodia, Kokna and Varli, with smaller groups of Koli, Kathodi, Naika and Dubla. The territory became part of India on 11 August 1961 and was declared a Union Territory. Languages spoken include Gujarati, Dhodia, Varli, Hindi, Marathi, Konkani, Bhilodi and Bhili.
River:
Daman Ganga and its three tributaries
Became part of India:
11 August 1961
Main tribes:
Dhodia, Kokna, Varli
Why it matters for exams: The Daman Ganga river, the Sahyadri ranges and the Dhodia, Kokna and Varli tribes are the standard geography and tribal facts asked about Dadra and Nagar Haveli.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
Background
Diu's own district administration records that Diu is about 768 km from Daman, which it names as the capital of the Union Territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu. Diu is an island off the Kathiawad coast, bounded by the Gir-Somnath and Amreli districts of Gujarat to the north and connected to the mainland by two bridges. The Union Territory's capital therefore sits on the Arabian Sea coast at Daman while its island territory lies nearly eight hundred kilometres away — the administration whose Transport Department at Daman and whose Public Works Department are issuing notifications and tenders this month works across that distance.
Capital:
Daman
Distance of Diu from Daman:
about 768 km
Bordering districts of Gujarat:
Gir-Somnath and Amreli
Why it matters for exams: Daman is the capital of the Union Territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu, which has three districts - a direct map and administration question.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
Background
Undergraduate admissions are open at the NAMO College of Nursing and Allied Health Sciences at Silvassa and Daman, and the Prime Minister's Office lists six national level institutes in the Union Territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu: Namo Medical College, Gujarat National Law University, IIIT Diu, the National Institute of Fashion Technology, the Institute of Hotel Management and Catering Technology, and Daman Engineering College. The group is unusual for a Union Territory of three small districts, and places an Indian Institute of Information Technology on the island district of Diu.
National level institutes listed:
6
Institute in the island district:
IIIT Diu
Why it matters for exams: IIIT Diu is one of the Indian Institutes of Information Technology and NIFT works under the Ministry of Textiles - both are asked as institution-and-location facts.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
IIIT Indian Institute of Information Technology — A group of institutes for information technology education, several of them set up in public private partnership.
Background
With nursing admissions open at Silvassa this season, the standing fact behind them is that Silvassa holds both NAMO Hospital, a 450-bed hospital built at a cost of over Rs 460 crore in its first phase, and Namo Medical College. The Prime Minister's Office records these alongside village and other road infrastructure, schools, health and wellness centres, Panchayat and administrative buildings, Anganwadi centres and water supply and sewage infrastructure in the Union Territory, together worth over Rs 2,580 crore.
Hospital beds:
450
Hospital cost:
over Rs 460 crore
Town:
Silvassa
Why it matters for exams: Health and Wellness Centres are the primary care arm of Ayushman Bharat and Anganwadi centres run under the Integrated Child Development Services - both named in this Union Territory's works.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
Background
The Union Territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu, which runs its scheme listing through its own portal, has two standing livelihood schemes for women. The Gir Adarsh Aajeevika Yojana supports women from Scheduled Caste, Scheduled Tribe, Other Backward Class, minority and divyangjan communities through small dairy farms. The Sylvan Didi scheme gives carts to women street vendors and is co-funded under PM SVANidhi, the central micro credit scheme for street vendors run by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs.
Dairy livelihood scheme:
Gir Adarsh Aajeevika Yojana
Street vendor scheme:
Sylvan Didi
Why it matters for exams: PM SVANidhi is the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs micro credit scheme for street vendors, and this Union Territory's Sylvan Didi scheme is co-funded under it.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
PM SVANidhi Pradhan Mantri Street Vendor's AtmaNirbhar Nidhi — A central micro credit scheme for street vendors under the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs.
Background
As the tourist season opens on the beaches of this Union Territory, the standing fact about Ghoghla in Diu is that it is a Blue Flag certified beach, and that it is the venue on which the Khelo India Beach Games have been played. The Blue Flag is an international eco-label awarded to beaches, marinas and sustainable boating operators that meet standards on water quality, environmental management, safety and services. Khelo India itself is run by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, with the Khelo India Beach Games held under the technical supervision of the Sports Authority of India and the national sports federations, and Diu has hosted them as a Union Territory venue.
Beach:
Ghoghla, Diu
Certification:
Blue Flag
Technical supervision of the Games:
Sports Authority of India
Why it matters for exams: Ghoghla in Diu is a Blue Flag beach and the venue of the Khelo India Beach Games, which the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports runs with the Sports Authority of India.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
In plain words
Blue Flag Blue Flag beach certification — An international eco-label for clean, safe and well managed beaches and marinas.
SAI Sports Authority of India — The national sports body under the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports.
Background
The Official Gazette of this Union Territory and the circulars of its Directorate of Education reach a population that speaks several languages. The Dadra and Nagar Haveli district administration lists Gujarati, Dhodia, Varli, Hindi, Marathi, Konkani, Bhilodi and Bhili as the languages spoken in the territory. Dhodia, Varli and Kokna are also the names of its main tribes, with smaller groups of Koli, Kathodi, Naika and Dubla. Gujarati, Hindi, Marathi and Konkani are all languages listed in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution, which the territory's position on the Gujarat and Maharashtra border explains.
Languages listed:
Gujarati, Dhodia, Varli, Hindi, Marathi, Konkani, Bhilodi, Bhili
Main tribes:
Dhodia, Kokna, Varli
Why it matters for exams: Gujarati, Hindi, Marathi and Konkani are Eighth Schedule languages, and Dhodia, Varli and Kokna are the tribal languages and tribes of this Union Territory.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC
Background
Notifications issued by the departments of this Union Territory are challenged, when they are challenged, before the Bombay High Court, which has jurisdiction over the Union Territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu and which also hears Goa matters through its Bench at Panaji. In a petition by Delta Corp Ltd against the UT Administration of Daman and Diu, seeking a licence to run electronic amusement or slot machines at its property in Daman, that Court held there is no legal regime in force permitting such activity in the Union Territory of Daman. Betting and gambling is a State List subject, so each State and Union Territory needs its own law before such activity can be licensed.
High Court:
Bombay High Court
Goa Bench:
Panaji
Subject list for betting and gambling:
State List
Why it matters for exams: Betting and gambling is a State List entry of the Seventh Schedule, and the Bombay High Court is the High Court for this Union Territory and for Goa.
Kerala PSCUPSCSSC