A district ofUttarakhand state is an administrative geographical unit, headed by aDistrict Magistrate (earlier called District Collector), an officer belonging to theIndian Administrative Service. The district magistrates are assisted by a number of officers such as deputy collector, assistant collector, additional district magistrate,sub-divisional magistrate,tehsildar,naib tehsildar belonging to theUttarakhand Civil Service and other Uttarakhand state services.
ASuperintendent of Police, an officer belonging to theIndian Police Service, heads thepolice in the district and is entrusted with the responsibility of maintaining law and order and related issues. He is assisted by the officers of theUttarakhand Police Service.
A Deputy Conservator of Forests, an officer belonging to theIndian Forest Service, is responsible for managing the Forests, environment and wild-life related issues of the district. He is assisted by the officers of theUttarakhand Forest Service and other Uttarakhand forest officials and Uttarakhand wildlife officials.
Sectoral development is looked after by the district head of eachdevelopment department such as Public works, Health, Education, Agriculture, Animal husbandry, etc. These officers belong to the various Uttarakhand state services.
Four new districts are proposed in Uttarakhand: Didihat, Kotdwar, Ranikhet and Yamunotri.[1]
| Code | District | Headquarters[2] | Formed | Population (As of 2011)[3] | Area (km2)[4] | Density (/km2) | Division | Map |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AL | Almora | Almora | 621,972 | 3,083 | 201 | Kumaon | .svg) | |
| BA | Bageshwar | Bageshwar | 16 September 1997 | 259,840 | 2,302 | 113 | Kumaon | .svg) |
| CL | Chamoli | Gopeshwar | 391,114 | 8,030 | 49 | Garhwal | .svg) | |
| CP | Champawat | Champawat | 16 September 1997 | 259,315 | 1,781 | 146 | Kumaon | .svg) |
| DD | Dehradun | Dehradun | 1,695,860 | 3,088 | 550 | Garhwal | .svg) | |
| HA | Haridwar | Roshnabad | 28 December 1988 | 1,927,029 | 2,360 | 817 | Garhwal | .svg) |
| NA | Nainital | Nainital | 955,128 | 3,860 | 247 | Kumaon | .svg) | |
| PG | Pauri Garhwal | Pauri | 686,572 | 5,399 | 127 | Garhwal | .svg) | |
| PI | Pithoragarh | Pithoragarh | 24 February 1960 | 485,993 | 7,100 | 68 | Kumaon | .svg) |
| RP | Rudraprayag | Rudraprayag | 16 September 1997 | 236,857 | 1,890 | 125 | Garhwal | .svg) |
| TG | Tehri Garhwal | Tehri | 616,409 | 4,080 | 151 | Garhwal | .svg) | |
| US | Udham Singh Nagar | Rudrapur | 29 September 1995 | 1,648,367 | 2,908 | 567 | Kumaon | .svg) |
| UT | Uttarkashi | Uttarkashi | 24 February 1960 | 329,686 | 8,016 | 41 | Garhwal | .svg) |
In November 2000 when Uttarakhand was created as a new state it had inherited 13 districts. As of November 2022, no new districts have been created even though other newly created states have almost doubled the number of new districts for rapid development.[5]
Indian National Congress had planned the following for districts which did not matter last due to the change in the government.[5]
| Proposed District | Proposed Headquarters | Current District | Division |
|---|---|---|---|
| Didihat | Didihat | Pithoragarh | Kumaon |
| Kotdwar | Kotdwar | Pauri Garhwal | Garhwal |
| Ranikhet | Ranikhet | Almora | Kumaon |
| Yamunotri | Yamunotri | Uttarkashi | Garhwal |
From time to time, several chief ministers and elected representatives, such as MLAs and MPs, have proposed the following new districts:[5]
