In the Republic of India, a lieutenant governor is the constitutional head of five of the eight union territories. The lieutenant governor is appointed by the President of India for a term of five years, and holds office at the President's pleasure. Since the union territories of Delhi, Jammu and Kashmir and Puducherry have a measure of self-government with an elected legislature and council of ministers, the role of the lieutenant governor there is mostly a ceremonial one, akin to that of a state's governor. In Andaman and Nicobar Islands and Ladakh however, the lieutenant governor holds more power, being both the head of state and head of government.
The other three union territories—Chandigarh; Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu; and Lakshadweep—are governed by an administrator. Unlike the lieutenant governors of other territories, they are usually drawn from the Indian Administrative Service (IAS) or Indian Police Service (IPS). Since 1985 the Governor of Punjab has also been the ex-officio Administrator of Chandigarh.
Praful Khoda Patel, till date, is the only administrator of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu who is not a civil servant (i.e. IAS or IPS), rather a politician. He was also given the additional charge of Lakshadweep after the death of Dineshwar Sharma.
Current Indian lieutenant governors
| Union territory (past lieutenant governors) |
Elected legislature | Name[1] | Portrait | Took office (tenure length) |
Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Andaman and Nicobar Islands (list) |
 |
Admiral Devendra Kumar Joshi |  |
8 October 2017 (6 years, 92 days) |
[2] |
| Delhi (list) |
 (Legislative Assembly) |
Vinai Kumar Saxena |  |
26 May 2022 (1 year, 227 days) |
|
| Jammu and Kashmir (list) |
(Legislative Assembly) |
Manoj Sinha |  |
7 August 2020 (3 years, 154 days) |
[3] |
| Ladakh (list) |
|
B. D. Mishra | %252C_Shri_Alphons_Kannanthanam_meeting_the_Governor_of_Arunachal_Pradesh%252C_Brigadier_(Retd.)_(Dr.)_B.D._Mishra%252C_in_New_Delhi_on_July_31%252C_2018_(cropped).JPG.webp) |
12 February 2023 (330 days) |
[4] |
| Puducherry (list) |
(Legislative Assembly) |
Tamilisai Soundararajan (additional charge) |
 |
18 February 2021 (2 years, 324 days) |
|
Current Indian administrators
| No. | Union territory (List) |
Portrait | Name | Home state | Assumed office (Time in office) |
Appointed by | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Chandigarh (List) |
 |
Banwarilal Purohit | Rajasthan | 31 August 2021 (2 years, 130 days) |
Ram Nath Kovind | [5] |
| 2 | Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu (List) |
 |
Praful Khoda Patel | Gujarat | 26 January 2020 (3 years, 347 days) |
Ram Nath Kovind | [6] |
| 3 | Lakshadweep (List) |
|
Praful Khoda Patel (additional charge) |
Gujarat | 5 December 2020 (3 years, 34 days) |
Ram Nath Kovind | [7] |
See also
References
- ↑ "Lt. Governors & Administrators". India.gov.in. Retrieved on 29 August 2018.
- ↑ "Admiral D K Joshi (Retd.) sworn in as the 13th Lt. Governor of A& N Islands". The Island Reflector. 8 October 2017. Archived from |the original on 22 October 2017.
- ↑ "Manoj Sinha takes oath as Jammu and Kashmir LG, says dialogue with people will start soon". India Today. 7 August 2020.
- ↑ "India Political Updates: Resignation of Ladakh L-G R K Mathur accepted, Brig B D Mishra appointed in his place". Deccan Herald. 12 February 2023. Retrieved 12 February 2023.
- ↑ "V. P. Singh Badnore sworn in as new Punjab Governor". The Indian Express. Retrieved 22 August 2016.
- ↑ Administrator of Daman and Diu Official Website of the Union Territory of Daman and Diu. Retrieved on 21 September 2016.
- ↑ "'Black Day' to be observed in Lakshadweep as Praful Khoda Patel returns to island". Hindustan Times. 13 June 2021. Retrieved 1 August 2021.