AP Reorganisation Act 2014 Explained for APPSC & SI

The Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2014 is one of the most frequently tested static topics in AP competitive exams, and one of the most easily muddled. Questions mix legal text, political statements and later implementation, and a single wrong word can change the answer. This guide gives a clean structure for revision, built from the Gazette text of the Act, the two later amendments and the 2026 amendment that named Amaravati. It is based on our Reading Room book AP Reorganisation Act 2014 Explained, which adds maps and practice sets.

The Act is static, but implementation, funding and project status are not. Verify time-sensitive facts against the Gazette, official notifications and dated government replies before your exam. Where this post gives a status, it is labelled "as on October 2026". For the broader exam landscape, see the Andhra Pradesh government exams 2026 guide and the Andhra Pradesh hub.

1. What the Act is, and how it is built

The Act is Act 6 of 2014, titled "An Act to provide for the reorganisation of the existing State of Andhra Pradesh and for matters connected therewith." Parliament passed it and it received the President's assent on 1 March 2014. In the published Gazette text it has 108 sections arranged in twelve Parts, followed by thirteen Schedules. It covers far more than a boundary: legislatures, courts, finance, assets, corporations, public services, river waters, infrastructure, higher education and continuity of law.

A useful habit is to place every fact in its Part before choosing an answer. The Part tells you what kind of rule you are dealing with: a territorial rule, a representation rule, a transition rule, a money rule or a promise to be performed by the Union later.

Part	Sections	Subject
I	1 to 2	Short title and definitions
II	3 to 11	Reorganisation, capital, Governor, police, Constitution's First Schedule
III	12 to 29	Representation in Parliament and State Legislatures, delimitation, SC and ST orders
IV	30 to 43	High Court
V	44 to 46	Expenditure authorisation and distribution of revenues
VI	47 to 67	Apportionment of assets and liabilities
VII	68 to 75	Corporations and institutions
VIII	76 to 83	Services, including Public Service Commissions
IX	84 to 91	Water resources, boards, Polavaram
X	92 to 94	Infrastructure and special economic measures
XI	95	Access to higher education
XII	96 to 108	Legal and miscellaneous provisions

Two definitions in Section 2 matter more than they look. The "appointed day" is not fixed in the Act itself; it is the day the Central Government appoints by notification. The "population ratio" is defined as 58.32 : 41.68 between Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, based on the 2011 Census, and it is the default key for dividing many assets and liabilities.

2. Key dates and the four legal dates

Event	Date
Statement of assurance on Special Category Status in the Rajya Sabha	20 February 2014 (as reported)
President's assent to the 2014 Act	1 March 2014
Appointed day (Telangana formed)	2 June 2014
Assent to Act 12 of 2015 (Legislative Council size)	30 March 2015
Presidential notification for the separate High Court of Andhra Pradesh	26 December 2018
High Court of Andhra Pradesh begins functioning at Amaravati	1 January 2019
End of the ten-year common-capital period	2 June 2024
Assembly resolution requesting the capital amendment	28 March 2026
Assent to the 2026 amendment (Act 7 of 2026)	6 April 2026

Passing, assent, Gazette publication and the appointed day are four different legal dates. The Act was assented to on 1 March 2014, and the appointed day of 2 June 2014 was fixed by a separate Home Ministry notification issued a few days later (reported as S.O. 655(E) of 4 March 2014; confirm in the Gazette if an exam asks for the number). A question that asks "when was the Act passed" and one that asks "when did Telangana come into existence" have different answers.

3. Territory and the definition of Telangana

Section 3 forms the State of Telangana from the territories of the existing State: the districts of Adilabad, Karimnagar, Medak, Nizamabad, Warangal, Rangareddi, Nalgonda, Mahbubnagar, Khammam and Hyderabad. The Khammam entry carries an exclusion: revenue villages in the mandals listed in an irrigation department order of 27 June 2005 (G.O.Ms. No. 111, Irrigation and CAD) and three named villages of Bhurgampadu Mandal are left out, which is the Polavaram submergence background. Section 4 then says the State of Andhra Pradesh comprises the rest of the existing State.

That description explains a frequent counting question. At bifurcation the residual State had 13 districts: Srikakulam, Vizianagaram, Visakhapatnam, East Godavari, West Godavari, Krishna, Guntur, Prakasam, Nellore, Chittoor, Kadapa (now YSR) and Anantapur and Kurnool. Section 11 also saves each State's power to alter district names, areas and boundaries later, which is why the district map has changed since. A 2022 reorganisation took the number to 26, and two further districts, Polavaram and Markapuram, were notified at the end of December 2025, taking the count to 28 (as on October 2026; reported in the State Cabinet decision of 30 December 2025, with the effective date given as 31 December 2025 or 1 January 2026 in different reports, so check the Gazette notification if a date is asked). The district fact sheet lists the current names.

Section 10 amends the First Schedule to the Constitution so that Telangana becomes the 29th entry under "The States", and Section 99 amends the States Reorganisation Act, 1956 accordingly. Questions that ask "which Constitutional Schedule was amended to add Telangana" are answered by the First Schedule.

4. Capital: Sections 5 to 9 and the 2026 amendment

Section 5(1) as enacted made Hyderabad the common capital of both States for a period not exceeding ten years from the appointed day. Section 5(2) said that after the period Hyderabad would be the capital of Telangana "and there shall be a new capital for the State of Andhra Pradesh." An Explanation defined the common capital as the area notified as the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation. Section 6 told the Union to appoint an expert committee to study alternatives for the new capital and report within six months of the Act's enactment. That committee is a planning input and is not itself a statute naming any city.

Sections 7 to 9 are transition rules, and they are examined often:

• Section 7: the Governor of the existing State would be the common Governor of both States for such period as the President determined.
• Section 8: in the common-capital area the Governor had a special responsibility for the security of life, liberty and property of residents, covering law and order, internal security, security of vital installations and the management and allocation of government buildings. He was to consult the Telangana Council of Ministers but act in his individual judgment, assisted by two advisers appointed by the Centre.
• Section 9: the Centre would help both States raise additional police forces, keep the Greyhound Training Centre in Hyderabad as a common training centre for three years, help Andhra Pradesh build a similar centre, and divide the Greyhounds and OCTOPUS personnel by option.

The ten-year period ended on 2 June 2024. The Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation (Amendment) Act, 2026 (Act 7 of 2026), assented to on 6 April 2026 and published in the Gazette of India Extraordinary the same day, then amended Section 5. In sub-section (2) the words "and there shall be a new capital" were replaced by "and Amaravati shall be the new capital." The existing Explanation was numbered Explanation 1, and a new Explanation 2 says that for the purposes of sub-section (2) the expression "Amaravati" includes the capital city areas notified under the Andhra Pradesh Capital Region Development Authority Act, 2014. The amendment is deemed to have come into force on 2 June 2024.

The Statement of Objects and Reasons records the sequence: the State identified and notified Amaravati as its capital, the State Assembly passed a resolution on 28 March 2026 asking for the change, and the Bill was introduced in the Lok Sabha on 1 April 2026 (PRS Legislative Research records introduction and Lok Sabha passage the same day). The retroactive date applies to this capital provision only, not to the whole Act. So the correct answers are: the 2014 Act did not name the capital; the 2026 amendment did; and Hyderabad's common-capital status lapsed on 2 June 2024.

5. Representation: seats in Parliament and the Legislature

Part III is a favourite for number-based questions, and each number sits in its own section.

Body	Andhra Pradesh	Telangana	Section
Rajya Sabha	11	7	12 (Fourth Schedule to the Constitution)
Lok Sabha	25	17	14
Legislative Assembly	175	119	17
Legislative Council (as enacted)	50	40	22 and 23
Legislative Council (after the 2015 Act)	58	40	Act 12 of 2015

Before the split, Andhra Pradesh had 18 Rajya Sabha seats, so Section 12 replaced the figure 18 with 11 and added a Telangana entry of 7. Section 13 deemed the 18 sitting members to fill the new allotments. Section 14 allocated 25 Lok Sabha seats to Andhra Pradesh and 17 to Telangana, and Section 16 kept sitting members in place with their terms unchanged.

The Council needs care. Section 22 says each successor State would have a Legislative Council of not more than 50 and 40 members. Parliament then passed the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation (Amendment) Act, 2015 (Act 12 of 2015, assented to on 30 March 2015), which replaced 50 with 58 members for Andhra Pradesh in Sections 22 and 23. The reason is the Constitution's rule that a Council may not exceed one-third of the Assembly, and one-third of 175 is 58. The Act came into force on a date to be notified by the Centre, so for exam purposes say "50 as enacted, 58 after the 2015 amendment."

Section 26 is a trap. It says that, subject to Article 170, Assembly seats of the successor States would be increased from 175 and 119 to 225 and 153. Article 170 as printed in the Constitution freezes readjustment of the total number of seats until figures for the first census after 2026 are published, so the increase had not taken effect (as on October 2026 to our knowledge; check delimitation news). Treat "225 and 153" as an enacted but unimplemented figure, and 175 and 119 as the working strength. Section 26 also prescribes how the Election Commission is to delimit, with five associate members who cannot vote.

6. High Court: Sections 30 to 43

Part IV begins with a common High Court. Section 30 made the High Court of Judicature at Hyderabad the common High Court for both States until a separate High Court for Andhra Pradesh was constituted under Article 214 read with Section 31. Section 31 then provided for a separate High Court of Andhra Pradesh, with its principal seat at a place the President would notify, and allowed benches or division courts to sit elsewhere in the State with the Chief Justice's decision and the Governor's approval. Section 32 lets the President decide which judges move, and they keep their seniority by the date of appointment as High Court judges.

The separate court was created by a Presidential notification of 26 December 2018 and began functioning on 1 January 2019, with its principal seat at Amaravati. The Hyderabad court became the High Court for Telangana at the same time. A common error is to say that the Act itself placed the High Court in Amaravati; the Act left the place to a notified order. Sections 40 and 41 handle pending cases: the Chief Justice of the old court certifies which proceedings belong to the new court, while appeals against orders already passed before the split stay with Hyderabad. Section 34 gives advocates a one-year option to move to the Telangana Bar Council roll.

7. Finance: Sections 44 to 46 and 94

Part V is short but important. Section 44 lets the Governor authorise expenditure for Telangana from its Consolidated Fund for up to six months pending Assembly sanction. Section 45 deals with Comptroller and Auditor-General reports for the pre-split accounts. Section 46 apportions the award of the Thirteenth Finance Commission between the successor States on the basis of population ratio and other parameters, and directs the President to refer the matter to the Fourteenth Finance Commission to make separate awards. Section 46(2) lets the Centre give appropriate grants and a special development package for the backward areas, and 46(3) singles out Rayalaseema and the north coastal region for incentives.

Section 94 has four sub-sections that are often mixed up:

1. 94(1): fiscal measures including tax incentives to promote industrialisation and growth in both States.
2. 94(2): support for development of backward areas, including physical and social infrastructure.
3. 94(3): special financial support for essential facilities in the new capital of Andhra Pradesh, including the Raj Bhawan, High Court, Government Secretariat, Legislative Assembly, Legislative Council and other essential infrastructure.
4. 94(4): facilitating the new capital, if considered necessary, by denotifying degraded forest land.

The Special Category Status question

The phrase "Special Category Status" does not appear in the Act's text. The five-year assurance that is associated with it was given in a parliamentary statement on 20 February 2014 during the debate on the Bill (as reported; the Act itself contains only the Section 46 and Section 94 provisions). Later Union replies described a Special Assistance mechanism and a Finance Commission revenue-deficit grant instead. When an examiner writes "the Act granted Special Category Status", the sentence is wrong. Keep three layers apart: the promise made in the House, the provisions actually enacted, and the later implementation. For the money side, see the AP economy and budget notes.

8. Assets, liabilities and corporations: Parts VI and VII

Part VI (Sections 47 to 67) sets the rules for dividing the State's property and debt. The general principle in Section 47 is that successor States receive the benefit of earlier decisions and bear the liabilities that came with them, with adjustment to secure a just and equitable apportionment, and with disputes settled by agreement or, failing that, by the Centre on the advice of the Comptroller and Auditor-General. The rest is rule by category:

• Section 48, land and goods: land and goods inside the transferred territory go to Telangana; others stay with Andhra Pradesh; property outside the old State is divided by population ratio; stores of the Secretariat and heads of departments are divided by population ratio.
• Section 49, cash and bank balances: divided by population ratio, adjusted in the books of the Reserve Bank of India without moving cash between treasuries.
• Sections 50 and 51: arrears of property taxes and land revenue go where the property is; loans to local bodies and persons follow the area in which they were made.
• Section 52: investments listed in the Seventh Schedule follow population ratio, but the Calamity Relief Fund investments follow the ratio of areas.
• Section 53: an undertaking confined to a local area follows that area; if it becomes inter-State, operational units follow location and headquarters follow population ratio.
• Sections 58 and 59: provident fund liability follows the State of permanent allotment of the employee, and pension liability follows the Eighth Schedule.

Part VII then handles the institutions. Section 68 says the companies and corporations listed in the Ninth Schedule continue to function in their existing areas, with assets and liabilities apportioned under Section 53. Section 75 requires each State to keep giving the people of the other State facilities in the institutions listed in the Tenth Schedule that are not less favourable than before, on terms agreed within one year or fixed by the Centre. Remember the pair: Ninth Schedule is corporations, Tenth Schedule is facility access in institutions.

9. Services and the Public Service Commission: Part VIII

This Part matters directly to APPSC aspirants. Section 76 creates two separate State cadres for the IAS, IPS and Indian Forest Service, one for Andhra Pradesh and one for Telangana, with allocation of officers by the Centre. Section 77 provides that State employees continue provisionally with Andhra Pradesh unless the Centre orders otherwise, then are finally allotted to a successor State after options are taken. The proviso protects local, district, zonal and multi-zonal cadres: such employees stay in their cadre and are deemed allotted to the State in which the cadre falls. Section 78 protects service conditions from being varied to an employee's disadvantage without Central approval, and Section 80 empowers the Centre to establish advisory committees to help with fair allocation.

Section 83 deals with the Public Service Commission. The existing Public Service Commission of the existing State became the Public Service Commission for the State of Andhra Pradesh, and its chairman and members continued in office on terms not less favourable than before, until their terms ended. Telangana was required to constitute its own commission under Article 315, and until it did the UPSC could serve its needs with the President's approval. The pre-split report of the commission is laid before the Andhra Pradesh Legislature. For the structure of the commission and how recruitment is organised, see the APPSC Group 1, 2, 3 and 4 comparison.

10. Rivers, boards and Polavaram: Part IX and the Eleventh Schedule

Section 84 requires the Centre to constitute an Apex Council to supervise the Godavari River Management Board and the Krishna River Management Board. Its members under the Act are the Union Water Resources Minister as chairperson and the Chief Ministers of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. Its functions include approving proposals for new projects on the Godavari or Krishna after appraisal by the Boards and the Central Water Commission, resolving disputes by negotiation, and referring other disputes to a Tribunal under the Inter-State River Water Disputes Act, 1956.

Section 85 requires the Centre to constitute the two Boards within sixty days of the appointed day. The Godavari board has its headquarters in Telangana and the Krishna board in Andhra Pradesh. Each Board is autonomous under the administrative control of the Centre, has a chairperson not below the rank of Secretary or Additional Secretary to the Government of India, and two members nominated by each State (one technical, not below Chief Engineer, and one administrative), one Central expert and a full-time Member Secretary. Section 89 extends the term of the Krishna Water Disputes Tribunal with two terms of reference: to make project-wise allocations where none have been made, and to set an operational protocol for releases in deficit years. Section 91 makes both States replace the old State on the Tungabhadra Board, which keeps monitoring releases to the High Level Canal, the Low Level Canal and the Rajolibanda Diversion Scheme.

The Eleventh Schedule lists the principles governing the Boards. Learn a few of them because they are direct question material: irrigation takes precedence over power when demands conflict; drinking water takes precedence over irrigation; existing tribunal allocations remain; no new project on the Godavari or Krishna can be taken up without the Apex Council's sanction after Board appraisal; and six listed ongoing projects (Handri Niva, Telugu Ganga, Galeru Nagari, Veligonda, Kalwakurthy and Nettempadu) are to be completed as planned. Note that the printed schedule text spells some of these names differently, so read the Gazette if a spelling is asked.

Section 90 declares the Polavaram Irrigation Project a national project. It has four elements: Union control of regulation and development is declared expedient; Telangana's consent is deemed to have been given; the Central Government shall execute the project; and it shall obtain all requisite clearances, including environmental, forest and rehabilitation and resettlement norms. "National project" is a legal status and a funding framework, not a statement that construction is complete. More on rivers and dams is in the rivers, dams and irrigation notes.

11. Power, institutions and infrastructure: Part X and the Twelfth and Thirteenth Schedules

Section 92 makes the successor States follow Central principles on coal, oil, natural gas and power given in the Twelfth Schedule. In that schedule: 51 per cent of Singareni Collieries equity stays with the Telangana Government and 49 per cent with the Government of India; the APGENCO units are divided by the geographical location of the plants; existing power purchase agreements continue; the State electricity regulator acts jointly for up to six months until separate commissions are formed; the State Load Despatch Centre works for both for up to two years; and for ten years the State with a power deficit has the first right of refusal on the other's surplus.

Section 93 commits the Centre to take the measures in the Thirteenth Schedule within ten years of the appointed day. The words of the schedule are carefully graded, and examiners use that grading:

Item in the Thirteenth Schedule	What the text commits to
IIT, NIT, IIM, IISER, Central University, Petroleum University, Agricultural University, IIIT	Steps to establish them in Andhra Pradesh in the 12th and 13th Plan periods
AIIMS-type super-specialty hospital	The Centre shall establish one in Andhra Pradesh
Tribal University	One each in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana
Horticulture University	Telangana
National Institute of Disaster Management	Andhra Pradesh
Major port at Duggirajupatnam	The Centre shall develop it, Phase I by end-2018
Steel plant in YSR (Kadapa) district; refinery and petrochemical complex; Vizag-Chennai corridor; airport upgrades; railway zone; metro rail	Feasibility to be examined and an expeditious decision taken
Rapid rail and road links from the new capital to Hyderabad and other cities	The Centre shall take measures

The difference between "shall establish" and "shall examine feasibility" is a favourite distinction. These are commitments, not proof that each institution or port exists today. As on October 2026, check official sources for the present status of any individual item before treating it as built.

12. Higher-education admissions: Section 95 and Article 371D

Section 95 continues the existing admission quotas in government and private, aided and unaided institutions of higher, technical and medical education, in so far as provided under Article 371D, for ten years, during which the existing common admission process continues. Section 97 amends Article 371D so that it applies to both States, and lets the President make orders for equitable opportunities for the people of different parts of each State in public employment and education. The ten-year window counted from the appointed day ended in June 2024; check the latest orders for any later arrangement before treating the quota as continuing.

13. Legal continuity and the general clauses: Part XII

The closing Part keeps the legal system running. Section 96 amends Article 168 so that Telangana is added to the States with two-house legislatures. Section 100 says the territorial change does not by itself change the area of laws such as the Andhra Pradesh Land Reforms (Ceiling on Agricultural Holdings) Act, 1973; their reach is read as the pre-split territory until a competent legislature provides otherwise. Section 101 allows the appropriate Government to adapt and modify existing laws within two years of the appointed day; Section 102 allows courts to construe laws to suit the new States; Sections 104 to 106 carry legal proceedings and pleaders across; Section 107 gives the Act overriding effect; and Section 108 lets the President remove difficulties by order, but not after three years from the appointed day.

14. Reading legal claims precisely

The book recommends answering in one of three forms: "as originally enacted", "as amended" or "as implemented on a date". That prevents an old true statement from being presented as current. For example, "the Act did not name AP's new capital in 2014" is historically true, while "the Act names no capital after the 2026 amendment" is false.

A four-box check works for any claim: promise or Act, scheme or order, money, output. A Section 94(3) capital-support obligation is not a sanction order, and a sanction is not a finished building. Worked example: a question says "Polavaram was declared a national project under the Act, therefore it is complete." The first half is correct under Section 90; the second does not follow, because Section 90 contains status and responsibility, not a completion date. Another example: "Telangana got 17 Lok Sabha seats because of its population ratio." Wrong in reasoning; the seats are fixed by Section 14, while the 58.32 : 41.68 ratio is used for dividing assets and liabilities.

Keep a one-page card of sections: 2 definitions; 3 and 4 territory; 5 capital; 6 expert committee; 7 and 8 Governor; 9 police and Greyhounds; 10 First Schedule; 11 district powers; 12 Rajya Sabha; 14 Lok Sabha; 17 Assembly; 22 and 23 Council; 26 delimitation and 225 seats; 30 and 31 High Court; 46 finance; 47 to 59 assets; 68 corporations; 75 facilities; 76 to 83 services; 84 and 85 Apex Council and Boards; 89 Krishna Tribunal; 90 Polavaram; 91 Tungabhadra; 92 power; 93 and 94 development and support; 95 admissions.

15. Common exam traps

• Saying the Act granted Special Category Status.
• Using the original Section 5 as current law after the 2026 amendment.
• Treating Hyderabad as belonging to both States, when it was a common-capital arrangement for up to ten years.
• Calling a Thirteenth Schedule promise a completed institution, or ignoring the "examine feasibility" wording.
• Confusing the Ninth Schedule (corporations, Section 68) with the Tenth (facility access, Section 75).
• Mixing GRMB or KRMB with the Tungabhadra Board or the Krishna Tribunal.
• Saying the Council has 50 seats without noting the 2015 change to 58.
• Treating the Section 26 figure of 225 seats as the Assembly's strength.
• Applying a 2014-era 13-district label to the 28-district map.
• Treating national-project status as engineering completion.
• Assuming the Act placed the High Court at Amaravati.

16. How to revise this in 7 days

1. Day 1: Dates card, the four legal dates, and the structure of Parts I to XII.
2. Day 2: Sections 3 to 11: territory, capital, Governor, police, district powers.
3. Day 3: Part III: Rajya Sabha, Lok Sabha, Assembly, Council, and why 50 became 58.
4. Day 4: Section 46 and Section 94, Special Category Status: promise versus Act versus later mechanism.
5. Day 5: Parts VI to VIII: assets, corporations, the Ninth and Tenth Schedules, services and the Public Service Commission.
6. Day 6: Sections 84 to 91, the Eleventh Schedule and the Godavari and Krishna map, then the Thirteenth Schedule wording.
7. Day 7: Timed questions in a mock test, explaining why each wrong option fails.

Key facts for exams

• Act 6 of 2014; assent 1 March 2014; appointed day 2 June 2014; 108 sections, 12 Parts, 13 Schedules.
• Population ratio 58.32 : 41.68 (Section 2(h)).
• Hyderabad: common capital for up to ten years (Section 5); period ended 2 June 2024.
• Act 7 of 2026: Amaravati named in Section 5(2); Explanation 2 links it to the CRDA Act, 2014; assent 6 April 2026; deemed from 2 June 2024.
• Seats: Rajya Sabha 11 and 7; Lok Sabha 25 and 17; Assembly 175 and 119; Council 50 as enacted, 58 after Act 12 of 2015.
• Separate High Court of Andhra Pradesh: functioning from 1 January 2019, principal seat Amaravati.
• Section 46 finance and Rayalaseema and north coastal incentives; Section 94(1) to (4).
• Section 90: Polavaram national project; Sections 84 and 85: Apex Council and the two River Management Boards.
• Ninth Schedule corporations (Section 68); Tenth Schedule facilities (Section 75); Thirteenth Schedule development measures (Section 93).
• Section 83: the existing Public Service Commission became the AP Public Service Commission.

10 practice MCQs

1. The appointed day for the reorganisation was: a) 1 March 2014 b) 20 February 2014 c) 2 June 2014 d) 2 June 2024 Answer: c. 1 March 2014 is the date of assent.

2. Section 14 allocated Lok Sabha seats to successor Andhra Pradesh as: a) 17 b) 25 c) 42 d) 30 Answer: b. Telangana received 17.

3. Which section declares Polavaram a national project? a) Section 5 b) Section 46 c) Section 90 d) Section 94 Answer: c.

4. The phrase "Special Category Status" in the Act: a) Appears in Section 46 b) Appears in Section 94 c) Does not appear in the Act d) Appears in the Ninth Schedule Answer: c.

5. Which Schedule lists government companies and corporations of the old State? a) Ninth b) Tenth c) Twelfth d) Thirteenth Answer: a. The Tenth Schedule lists institutions where access to facilities continues.

6. Act 7 of 2026 amended which section of the 2014 Act to name Amaravati? a) Section 3 b) Section 5 c) Section 14 d) Section 90 Answer: b. It amended Section 5(2) and inserted Explanation 2.

7. As enacted in 2014, the Legislative Council of Andhra Pradesh was to have not more than: a) 40 members b) 50 members c) 58 members d) 75 members Answer: b. Act 12 of 2015 raised it to 58.

8. Which Part of the Act contains the provisions on the Public Service Commission of the successor States? a) Part IV b) Part VI c) Part VIII d) Part X Answer: c. It is Section 83 in Part VIII.

9. The Godavari River Management Board has its headquarters in: a) Andhra Pradesh b) Telangana c) Delhi d) Hyderabad and Vijayawada by rotation Answer: b. The Krishna board is headquartered in Andhra Pradesh.

10. The Thirteenth Schedule says that the steel plant in YSR district and the refinery are to be: a) Completed by 2018 b) Examined for feasibility with an expeditious decision c) Handed to the State d) Funded by the Finance Commission Answer: b. Only the Duggirajupatnam port carries a phase timeline in the text.

Frequently asked questions

Does the 2014 Act give Special Category Status to Andhra Pradesh? No. The words are absent from the Act. Sections 46 and 94 provide for grants, a special development package, tax incentives and capital support, and the status assurance was a statement made in Parliament.

Which section named Amaravati as the capital? Section 5(2) as amended by Act 7 of 2026, which is deemed to apply from 2 June 2024.

Is Hyderabad still a common capital? No. The ten-year period under Section 5(1) ended on 2 June 2024, and Section 5(2) makes Hyderabad the capital of Telangana.

How many districts did Andhra Pradesh have at bifurcation, and how many now? Thirteen at the appointed day, 26 after the 2022 reorganisation and 28 after the notification of Polavaram and Markapuram (as on October 2026).

Where is the Andhra Pradesh High Court? Its principal seat is at Amaravati; it started functioning on 1 January 2019 under a notified order made under Section 31.

Does Section 26 mean the Assembly has 225 seats? No. Section 17 fixed 175 seats; Section 26 anticipates a rise to 225 subject to Article 170 and has not taken effect.

Which pre-split bodies must I know for rivers? The Apex Council, the Godavari and Krishna River Management Boards, the Krishna Water Disputes Tribunal and the Tungabhadra Board.

How should I answer a question about the status of a Thirteenth Schedule institution? Separate the commitment in the Act from the present status, and write "as on" a date. If you cannot verify the status, treat the item as a commitment.

Related reading

• Formation history: Andhra movement to 1956 and 2014
• AP polity and Panchayati Raj notes
• AP government schemes notes
• AP district-wise fact sheet, 28 districts
• AP rivers, dams and irrigation projects
• Telugu version of this post

Practise on pareeksha.in

For the full section-by-section grid, map plates, case studies and six practice sets, open the Reading Room book AP Reorganisation Act 2014 Explained. Then test yourself with a mock test, where the platform offers 10 Lakh+ MCQs, 100+ Exams and 5,000+ Full-Length Mocks. Confirm any current-status fact with official sources.

Sources and verification

Pages opened for this revision:

• The Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2014 (Act 6 of 2014), Gazette of India Extraordinary text, 1 March 2014 (thc.nic.in copy of the official Gazette).
• The Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation (Amendment) Act, 2015 (Act 12 of 2015), Gazette text, 30 March 2015 (PRS Legislative Research copy).
• The Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation (Amendment) Act, 2026 (Act 7 of 2026), Gazette of India Extraordinary, 6 April 2026 (egazette.gov.in), and the Lok Sabha Bill No. 105 of 2026 with its Statement of Objects and Reasons (PRS copy).
• The Constitution of India, Legislative Department edition as on May 2022 (Articles 168 to 171 context, Part IX and Part XIV used for cross-checks).
• Andhra Pradesh Cabinet decision on the two new districts, 30 December 2025 (ETV Bharat report).
• New Andhra Pradesh High Court notification report, 26 December 2018 (The News Minute).

Not verified and hedged in the text: the S.O. number of the appointed-day notification (seen only in a search summary), the exact effective date of the two new districts (reports differ), the 2022 district reorganisation (carried from our earlier text), the commencement date of Act 12 of 2015, the Rajya Sabha statement of 20 February 2014 and any five-year term associated with it (seen only in news summaries), and the present status of individual Thirteenth Schedule items.