For a century and a half, the fertile plains along the Ganga river that make up modern-day Uttar Pradesh have gone by different names but the region itself has remained a stable geographical and cultural entity.

Several Indian states were transformed under the British and in independent India – especially with the linguistic reorganisation of states in 1956. But Uttar Pradesh, since it came into being on January 24, 1950, has largely been unchanged.

With an estimated population of 240 million, as per projections of the 2011 census, Uttar Pradesh could be the world’s fifth-largest country. The state’s 80 seats in the 543-member Lok Sabha make it the largest player in Indian politics.

The outcomes of the Lok Sabha elections in Uttar Pradesh can make or break national political fortunes. In the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, the Bharatiya Janata Party won 33 seats in Uttar Pradesh, down from 62 in 2019, losing its majority in Parliament. Nine out of 14 Indian prime ministers, including Narendra Modi, were elected from the state.

Uttar Pradesh is also a contentious element that fuels the North-South divide. The state receives the highest share of taxes from the Centre – 17.94% in 2023-’24. This is more than the total received by all southern states, which stands at 15.8%.

Uttar Pradesh is also the source of the largest number of inter-state outmigrants in India: 12.32 million according to Census 2011.

The southern states, which contribute a lion’s share of taxes to the central kitty, have fewer seats in Parliament because they have been more successful in reducing the sizes of their populations. They resent the political dominance of the largest state and its Hindi-speaking counterparts.

What is it about Uttar Pradesh that it has such outsized importance? Its historical journey provides some insight.

Princely states

Before the rebellion of 1857, the region, excluding Awadh, was known as the North-Western Provinces. Delhi was part of this region until 1849 when the East India Company transferred the territory to British Punjab.

The region was governed by Lieutenant Governor James Thomason, who implemented educational reforms, including the establishment of model tehsil schools, the promotion of vernacular medium instruction and the establishment of the first engineering college, Thomason College – now known as the Indian Institute of Technology, Roorkee.

Figure 1: North West Province and Oudh between 1872-1881 – districts, type (British and princely states), and the administrative division. Source: Administrative Atlas of India 1872-2011. Census of India.

After the British annexed Awadh in 1856, the region was renamed the North-Western Provinces and Oudh. Allahabad became the administrative capital and from 1902 and 1937, the region was called the United Provinces of Agra and Oudh, later shortened to the United Provinces. Lucknow became the capital of the United Provinces in 1921 with a complete administrative shift to the city by 1935.

Figure: From North West Provinces and Oudh to United Provinces of Agra and Oudh – between 1881 and 1911. Source: Administrative Atlas of India 1872-2011, Census of India.

Princely states

At the time of Independence, the United Provinces had three princely states: Tehri Garhwal, Rampur and Benaras. Tehri Garhwal, located in present-day Uttarakhand, posed a dilemma with its merger into Uttar Pradesh or Himachal Pradesh. The princely state eventually joined Uttar Pradesh due to similarity with the regions of Kumaon and Pauri Garhwal. Rampur, with an area of 900 square miles and a population of 500,000, was the first significant Muslim-ruled state to accede to India. The princely state of Benaras existed as two non-contiguous regions within the United Provinces.

Until 1911, Benaras’s Narayan dynasty rulers were directly under the control of the British. In 1911, two parts of Benaras – the parganas of Bhadohi and Keramnagar, and Chakia and Ramnagar – became a princely state with 13 gun salutes, while the remaining territory of Benaras had remained under the British. Rampur was allocated the highest privy purse among the three, of Rs 7 lakh, followed by Tehri Garhwal, which got Rs 3 lakh and Benaras was allocated Rs 2.8 lakh.

Figure: Map of the United Provinces from The Imperial Gazetteer of India 1907-1909. Credit: in public Domain via Wikimedia Commons.

Several small states under the Central Indian Agency – parts of which went into modern-day Madhya Pradesh – including portions of Baoni, Beri, Jigni, and Charkhari, were enclaves within the United Provinces. These areas were later merged into Uttar Pradesh due to geographical contiguity.

Figure 5: Map of United Province in 1941. Princely states in yellow. Note that Benaras fragmented into three parts in 1911. Two parts under the Narayan Dynasty rulers, and the central one under the British administration. Source: Created by authors using data from Administrative Atlas of India 1872-2011. Census of India.

Names are tricky business

Historically, Uttar Pradesh has named and renamed regions along ideological and nationalistic lines. Even the name of the state was a matter of debate in Independent India, with there being resistance to the British-assigned name of United Provinces. The names Oudh, Hindustan and Aryavarta were suggested in the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly, with most favouring Aryavarta. However, the Constituent Assembly and the Provincial Congress Committee rejected names representing the whole of India, opting instead for Uttar Pradesh – a name reflecting the region without evoking a specific community.

Even today, the renaming of districts and towns reflects the state’s political aspirations and changing power dynamics.These changes have been influenced by religion and caste. Since 2014, the names of several districts have been changed: Allahabad to Prayagraj, Jyotiba Phule Nagar to Amroha and Bhimnagar to Sambhal.

A stable entity

There have been several proposals to divide Uttar Pradesh since its formation. The architect of the Indian Constitution BR Ambedkar had suggested the trifurcation of Uttar Pradesh: a western region with its capital in Meerut, a central portion with a capital in Kanpur and an eastern territory with its capital in Allahabad.

In 2011, Chief Minister Mayawati proposed splitting Uttar Pradesh into four states: Purvanchal, Bundelkhand, Awadh Pradesh, and Paschim Pradesh. But Uttar Pradesh has remained unified, largely due to the vision of its first chief minister, GP Pant, to keep the Hindi heartland intact.

Figure 6: Proposed division of UP into 4 states (Mayawati, 2011) – Purvanchal, Bundelkhand, Awadh Pradesh and Paschim Pradesh. Map created by authors.

It was only in 2000 that the boundaries of Uttar Pradesh were changed after its Himalayan districts demanded a separate state alleging injustice in development and political representation. Uttarakhand was formed out of nine hill districts of the Kumaon and Garhwal regions, altering the boundaries of Uttar Pradesh 50 years after its creation.

Even after the creation of Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh remains the largest state in terms of population. The political debate over redrawing the state’s borders resurfaces periodically. If, indeed, the state’s boundaries are altered, its political landscape could change dramatically, with various parties vying for dominance in the new states.

The state’s influence on national outcomes, coupled with its socio-cultural significance, ensures that Uttar Pradesh will continue to be a critical player in shaping the future of Indian politics.

Mehr Kalra is a former research associate and freelance consultant to the State and District Evolution Project.

Shivakumar Jolad works as an associate professor of public policy and a member of the FLAME Centre for Legislative Education and Research.