Article 1 — Name and Territory of the Union

(1) India, that is Bharat, shall be a Union of States.

(2) The States and the territories thereof shall be as specified in the First Schedule.

(3) The territory of India shall comprise — (a) the territories of the States; (b) the Union territories specified in the First Schedule; and (c) such other territories as may be acquired.

Source: Constitution of India, as published by the Ministry of Law and Justice.

Dr. B. R. Ambedkar explained to the Constituent Assembly that 'Union of States' was chosen over 'Federation of States' because the Indian federation was not the result of an agreement between pre-existing states. States have no independent sovereignty; they are units of the Union. The dual name 'India, that is Bharat' reflects both the English colonial name and the ancient Sanskrit name — a compromise that satisfied both modernists and cultural nationalists in the Constituent Assembly.

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• Article 370

Last reviewed: 1 July 2026