India
India is a federal union comprising 29 states and 7 union territories. All states, as well in addition to the union territories of Puducherry and the National Capital Territory of Delhi, have elected legislatures and governments following on the Westminster system of governance. The remaining five union territories are directly ruled by the centre through appointed administrators. In 1956, under the States Reorganisation Act, states were reorganised on a linguistic basis. Since then, their structure has remained largely unchanged. Each state or union territory is further divided into administrative districts. The districts are further divided into tehsils and ultimately into villages.
Insurgency in Northeast India
Northeastern India consists of seven states (also known as the "Seven Sister States"): Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura, Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram, Manipur, and Nagaland. Tensions exist between these states and the central government as well as amongst their native tribal people and migrants from other parts of India. Regional tensions eased off in late 2013, with the Indian and state governments making a concerted effort to raise the living standards of people in these regions. However, in late 2014 tensions again rose as the Indian government launched an offensive, which led to a retaliatory attack on civilians by tribal guerrillas. As of 1 January 2015, major militant activities are being conducted in Assam, Manipur, Nagaland and Tripura.