The Congress government in the Indian state of Rajasthan has announced plans to create 19 new districts and three more divisional headquarters, saying the move would improve services for people who live far away from existing council headquarters. However, opposition party the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) alleged that the real motivation for the plan was to “meet personal political ends”. Rajasthan, which is the largest state in the country in terms of geographical area, currently has 33 districts. The new districts will be created with an initial budget of INR20bn ($280m). Rajasthan is due to go to the polls later this year and both the Congress and BJP have already commenced campaigns.
