Haryana State Guide: History, Government, Elections, Exams

Overview

Haryana is a landlocked state in north-western India that surrounds the national capital territory of Delhi on three sides. It borders Punjab and Himachal Pradesh to the north, Uttar Pradesh across the Yamuna to the east, and Rajasthan to the south and west. Its recorded area is 44,212 sq km, about 1.4 per cent of India, which makes it about the twentieth largest state. As on October 2026, the state has 23 districts in 6 divisions, after the creation of Hansi district in December 2025. Chandigarh, a Union Territory, is the capital of both Haryana and Punjab.

The state was created on 1 November 1966, when the Punjab Reorganisation Act split the old Punjab on language lines: the Hindi-speaking south and east became Haryana, and some hill areas went to Himachal Pradesh. Before that, the land had been part of the Punjab province since 1858. The Harappan towns of Rakhigarhi and Banawali lie here, tradition places the Mahabharata war at Kurukshetra, and three battles at Panipat (1526, 1556 and 1761) changed who ruled northern India.

Three facts explain much of what the state is known for. First, it has a large farm sector (wheat, rice and mustard) next to an industrial and services belt in the National Capital Region around Gurugram and Faridabad, and its per-capita income is among the highest of the states. Second, it is flat: apart from the Shivalik foothills in the north-east and low Aravalli ridges in the south, almost all of it is Indo-Gangetic plain, and forest cover is thin. Third, it has a low sex ratio: Census 2011 recorded 879 females per 1,000 males.

Hindi is the official language, and Haryanvi is the everyday speech of much of the countryside. The legislature has one house, the Vidhan Sabha, with 90 seats, and the state sends 10 members to the Lok Sabha.

This first part covers history, geography, administration and demography. This guide does not name sitting office-holders; for the current Governor, Chief Minister and others, see Current Affairs.

For exam preparation

• Haryana was formed on 1 November 1966 under the Punjab Reorganisation Act, 1966.
• Chandigarh is a Union Territory and the shared capital of Haryana and Punjab.
• Area is 44,212 sq km; the state borders Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Delhi.
• As on October 2026 the state has 23 districts and 6 divisions; Hansi, notified in December 2025, is the newest district.
• Census 2011 population is 25,351,462 and the sex ratio is 879.
• The Vidhan Sabha has 90 seats and the state has 10 Lok Sabha constituencies.

History

Haryana's history is the history of the land between the Yamuna and the Ghaggar, the old route from the north-west into the Gangetic plain. That position made it a crossing point for traders and a field for the battles that decided who would hold Delhi. The region was a centre of Harappan settlement, a core region of the Vedic Kuru people, and the stage of the battles of Tarain and Panipat. Under the British it was run from Punjab, and it became a state in 1966.

Prehistory and the Indus Valley

Human presence is old. Cave paintings at Mangar Bani in the Aravalli ridge are reported to be about 100,000 years old, though dating of rock art is uncertain, and Neolithic settlements along the dry Ghaggar channels are reported from roughly 7000 to 5500 BCE. Both dates come from one general reference and are approximate.

The better documented story begins with the Indus Valley (Harappan) civilisation. Haryana has several major sites, including Rakhigarhi, Banawali, Bhirrana and Mitathal.

Rakhigarhi is the largest Harappan site in India. It lies in Narnaund tehsil, which was in Hisar district during the main excavations and now falls in the new Hansi district. Its mounds are reported to cover between 300 and 350 hectares, which would put it in the same size range as Mohenjo-daro; the exact extent is debated. Suraj Bhan worked there in 1969, the Archaeological Survey of India dug it in 1997 to 2000 under Amarendra Nath, and Vasant Shinde of Deccan College led digs from 2011 to 2016. The site shows a pre-Harappan phase, an Early Harappan phase (about 3300 to 2600 BCE) and a Mature Harappan phase (about 2600 to 1900 BCE). Reports mention a planned town, a granary, a cemetery, and bronze, gold and terracotta items. In 2019 a team led by Shinde published ancient DNA from the site that showed no steppe ancestry, a finding cited in the continuing debate on Harappan origins.

Banawali, in Fatehabad district, was excavated from 1974 by R.S. Bisht. It shows three periods between about 2500 and 1450 BCE: a pre-Harappan phase with a defensive wall, a Mature Harappan fortified town laid out on a chess-board plan, and a later phase of the Bara culture. The finds include beads of lapis lazuli and carnelian, seals, fire altars and apsidal (horseshoe-shaped) structures.

Vedic age and the Mahabharata tradition

After the Harappan towns declined, the area became part of the Vedic world. In the early Vedic period, between roughly 1500 and 500 BCE, the Kuru janapada (kingdom) covered much of present-day Haryana. Tradition links the name Kurukshetra to King Kuru, an ancestor of the Kauravas and Pandavas.

Kurukshetra is the traditional battlefield of the Mahabharata war and the place where Krishna delivered the Bhagavad Gita to Arjuna; Jyotisar is the site pointed out for that discourse. Historians have not fixed a date for the war; the state portal places it about five thousand years ago, a traditional estimate. Kurukshetra remains a major pilgrimage centre, with Brahma Sarovar and Sannihit Sarovar.

Janapadas, republics and empires

The Maurya Empire held the area in the 3rd century BCE. An Ashokan pillar stood at Topra, near Radaur, and Firuz Shah Tughlaq later moved it to Delhi, where it was raised at Firuz Shah Kotla.

The Yaudheyas were a warrior republic (a ganasangha, ruled by assemblies, not kings) of ancient Haryana. Coins and inscriptions place them from about the 5th century BCE to the 4th century CE, with Rohtak as a capital. They are said to have defeated Kushan forces around 180 CE and later accepted Samudragupta's authority.

In the 7th century CE the Pushyabhuti dynasty under Harsha ruled from Thanesar (near Kurukshetra); the Chinese monk Xuanzang visited the region in that period. Later the area was held by the Gurjara-Pratiharas, the Tomaras and the Chahamanas (Chauhans). The earliest reference to the name "Hariana" is reported in a Sanskrit inscription of 1328 CE.

Tarain, the Sultanate and the Mughals

Two battles at Tarain (Taraori, in the Karnal area) mark the turn to Turkish rule. In 1191 the Chauhan king Prithviraj III defeated Muhammad of Ghor. The next year, in 1192, Muhammad of Ghor returned and won; Prithviraj was captured. The result opened the way to the Delhi Sultanate.

The Sultanate's mark on Haryana is clearest in the work of Firuz Shah Tughlaq. He built a fort and palace complex at Hisar in 1354 and founded Hisar-e-Firoza around 1355. He is credited with digging or restoring canals, the forerunner of the Western Yamuna Canal. In Mewat, the Khanzada rulers held lordship from 1372 until 1527.

First Battle of Panipat (21 April 1526). Babur, with about 12,000 men, matchlocks and a few cannon, met Sultan Ibrahim Lodi, whose army is estimated at 50,000 to 70,000 with about 1,000 elephants. Babur lined up wagons behind breastworks, and gunfire broke the Lodi centre. Ibrahim was killed, and the Mughal Empire began.

Second Battle of Panipat (5 November 1556). Hem Chandra, called Hemu, a native of Rewari who had risen to be chief minister under the Suri ruler Adil Shah, defeated the Mughals at Tughlaqabad on 7 October 1556, took Delhi and crowned himself Vikramaditya. On 5 November he fought the forces of the young Akbar, under the regent Bairam Khan, at Panipat. Hemu was reported to have won 22 battles before this one. A chance arrow struck his eye, his army broke, and he was captured and killed. The battle secured Akbar's throne.

During the Mughal period the region was part of the Delhi province (subah).

Marathas and the eighteenth century

Third Battle of Panipat (14 January 1761). Ahmad Shah Durrani, supported by Najib-ud-Daula and Shuja-ud-Daula, defeated the Maratha army led by Sadashivrao Bhau. Estimates of those killed in the fighting run to 60,000 to 70,000, and counts vary widely by source. The defeat halted Maratha expansion in the north for a time, though they recovered within about a decade.

The Irish adventurer George Thomas ruled from Hansi from 1798 to 1801, and the Asigarh fort there is a protected monument.

The British period and 1857

The Revolt of 1857 reached Haryana early. The 60th Native Infantry rose at Ambala on 10 May 1857, hours before the rising at Meerut. By late May the revolt had spread across Gurgaon, Rohtak, Hisar and Karnal. Hisar, Hansi and Sirsa were important centres, with the merchant Hukam Chand Jain among the organisers named at Hansi. At Rohtak, Ranghar peasants destroyed records and freed prisoners.

In Ahirwal, Rao Tula Ram and his cousin Rao Gopal Dev took over Rewari in May 1857. Rao Tula Ram sent money and supplies to the rebels in Delhi, and on 16 November 1857 forces under his cousin fought the British at Nasibpur near Narnaul, where the British commander Colonel Gerrard was killed. The princely states of Jind, Kalsia and Buria are described as largely untouched by the revolt. After the rising was put down, village forts were dismantled in 1858, and the region was removed from the North-Western Provinces and attached to Punjab, which is generally described as a punishment. Until 1966 it remained the south-eastern part of Punjab.

Statehood in 1966

Partition in 1947 brought riots and large migration. Later the Punjabi Suba movement demanded a Punjabi-speaking state. A 1956 Regional Formula had divided Punjab into a Punjabi region and a Hindi region, and the Hindi-speaking south opposed the Punjabi Suba demand. A separate Hindi-speaking state grew out of that debate.

A commission under Justice J.C. Shah drew the boundaries; its report is dated 31 May 1966. Parliament passed the Punjab Reorganisation Act on 18 September 1966, and it came into force on 1 November 1966. Haryana received the whole districts of Hisar, Rohtak, Gurgaon, Karnal and Mahendragarh and parts of Ambala and Sangrur; the Act put its size at about 44,222 sq km, which is close to the present 44,212 sq km figure. The state began with seven districts: Ambala, Gurgaon, Hisar, Jind, Karnal, Mahendragarh and Rohtak. The Act made Chandigarh a Union Territory and the shared capital, and it created a common High Court.

Chandigarh as shared capital

Chandigarh was originally allotted to Haryana on the basis of its Hindi-speaking majority in the 1961 Census, but it was made a Union Territory because of concerns over Sikh reaction to the city going to Haryana. It serves as the capital of both states. Haryana's Vidhan Sabha sits there, and the Punjab and Haryana High Court sits there as the common court of both states.

The status has been disputed. A 1970 central decision allotted the city to Punjab with compensation for Haryana to build a new capital, and an accord in 1985 spoke of Chandigarh going to Punjab with Haryana getting land in return, but these were not implemented. As on 4 October 2026, according to the sources opened for this guide, Chandigarh remains a Union Territory and the shared capital of both states. Later developments on Chandigarh's status could not be re-checked for this edition, so anyone preparing for an exam should confirm them in Current Affairs.

For exam preparation

• Rakhigarhi (in the area of the new Hansi district) is India's largest Harappan site; Banawali is in Fatehabad district.
• The three battles of Panipat were fought in 1526 (Babur against Ibrahim Lodi), 1556 (Akbar's army against Hemu) and 1761 (Ahmad Shah Durrani against the Marathas).
• Hemu was a native of Rewari; the Second Battle of Tarain (1192) was fought near Taraori between Muhammad of Ghor and Prithviraj III.
• Firuz Shah Tughlaq founded Hisar-e-Firoza around 1354 to 1355.
• The 1857 revolt began in Haryana at Ambala on 10 May 1857; Rao Tula Ram of Rewari was a leading figure.
• After 1858 the region was attached to Punjab; Haryana became a state on 1 November 1966, with seven districts at the start.
• The Punjab Reorganisation Act was passed on 18 September 1966 and came into force on 1 November 1966.

Geography

Haryana lies between the Yamuna and the Ghaggar, in the north-west of the Indo-Gangetic plain. It is a compact, mostly flat state of 44,212 sq km with a hot summer, a cool winter and moderate rainfall. Its main physical features are the Shivalik hills in the north-east, the Yamuna-Ghaggar plain that makes up most of it, the dry Bagar tract in the north-west and the Aravalli outcrops in the south.

Location and boundaries

Haryana borders Punjab and Himachal Pradesh to the north, Uttar Pradesh to the east along the Yamuna, Rajasthan to the south and west, and Delhi, which it wraps on three sides. It has no coast and no international border. Chandigarh, though the capital, is outside the state and is a Union Territory. The state is the main land route between Delhi and Punjab, Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir.

Physiography

Four physical zones are usually described.

Zone	Where	Main features
Yamuna-Ghaggar plain	Most of the state	Part of the Indo-Gangetic plain; the main farm area, crossed by canals
Lower Shivalik Hills	North-east, in the Panchkula and Yamunanagar area	Foothill ridges; Karoh Peak (about 1,467 m) near Morni is the highest point
Bagar tract	North-west (Sirsa, Fatehabad and nearby areas)	Semi-arid, with lower rainfall and sandy ground
Aravalli outcrops	South (Gurugram, Faridabad, Nuh, Mahendragarh, Rewari, Bhiwani, Charkhi Dadri)	Low, broken, rocky ridges; the northern end of the Aravalli range

The Tosham hill range near Bhiwani is described as the northernmost end of the Aravalli range, and it contains quartzite with tin, tungsten and copper deposits that are not commercially viable. A 2025 Supreme Court decision on the legal definition of an Aravalli hill drew wide attention. On 20 November 2025 the Court accepted a definition of landforms rising more than 100 m above the surrounding ground; the order met strong opposition and was stayed on 29 December 2025, and an expert committee was reported to have been set up in 2026 to clarify the matter. This is a developing matter, so check for the final position. The Aravalli region is also the site of the proposed Aravalli Safari Park and of the wider Aravalli "green wall" tree-planting project.

Rivers and canals

Haryana has no large perennial river inside it other than the Yamuna on its boundary. Most of its rivers are rain-fed and seasonal, and irrigation comes mostly from canals.

River or canal	Notes
Yamuna	Forms the eastern boundary with Uttar Pradesh; the Hathnikund barrage near Yamunanagar sends water into the Western Yamuna Canal
Ghaggar (called Hakra in its lower course)	Rises in the Shivalik hills in Himachal Pradesh, flows through Punjab and Haryana into Rajasthan; mainly flows in the monsoon
Markanda, Sarsuti and Kaushalya	Seasonal streams reported as tributaries of the Ghaggar; the Kaushalya dam is in Panchkula district
Tangri	A seasonal stream in the Ambala area, reported as a Ghaggar tributary
Sahibi	Seasonal stream from the Aravalli side; flows through southern Haryana, and the Bhindawas wetland in Jhajjar lies on its corridor
Western Yamuna Canal	Begins at Hathnikund; the original works go back to the 14th century and were rebuilt by the British from 1817; the Sirsa branch was built in 1889 to 1895

The Ghaggar-Hakra is often linked to the Saraswati river of the Vedas. Scholars have argued about this since the 19th century, and recent studies suggest that the Ghaggar-Hakra was largely monsoon-fed and had weakened before the Vedic period. This guide treats the identification as a tradition and a debate, not a settled fact. The Western Yamuna Canal system (about 325 km without branches) serves the districts of Ambala, Karnal, Sonipat, Rohtak, Jind, Hisar and Bhiwani, and also part of Delhi. Other canals, such as the Bhakra system and the Sutlej-Yamuna link, are discussed under irrigation in Part C.

Climate

The climate is semi-arid to sub-humid, with a hot summer, a cool winter and a monsoon season. Summer maximum temperatures hover around 40 degrees Celsius, while winter minimums fall to about 6 degrees. Annual rainfall averages about 593 mm for the state, with rain mainly in the monsoon (July to September) and some in winter; sources differ on the exact monsoon share. The north, close to the Himalayan foothills, is wetter; the north-west Bagar is drier. Rainfall is the main constraint in the dry districts, which is why canal water is so central to farming there. The Sirsa branch of the Western Yamuna Canal carries Yamuna water to the dry west of the state.

Soils

The plains of Haryana are part of the fertile Indo-Gangetic alluvial belt, and the plain around the Ghaggar is often called the Ghaggar plain. The drier Bagar region has lighter, sandier ground. The state's own soil survey categories were not available for this edition, so detailed soil types are left to the agriculture section in Part C.

Forests and minerals

Haryana is among the least forested states. The state Forest Department puts forest and tree cover together at 7.16 per cent of its area; forest cover alone is reported to be much lower, at about 3.6 per cent in one reference. The forest is spread across the Shivalik foothills, the Aravalli ridges and plantations along canals and roads.

Mineral resources are limited. The Tosham hills are known for quartzite and for low-grade tin, tungsten and copper, and the Aravalli ridges have been a source of building stone and other minor minerals; mining there has been subject to repeated court orders. More detail on mining belongs in the economy section.

Wildlife and protected areas

Sources describe two national parks, eight wildlife sanctuaries and several conservation reserves. Blackbuck, nilgai, leopard and a large number of bird species are recorded.

Area	District	Notes
Sultanpur National Park	Gurugram	About 1.43 sq km; a bird sanctuary from 1972, reported as a national park from 1991; Ramsar site since 25 May 2021
Kalesar National Park	Yamunanagar	In the Shivalik foothills beside the Yamuna; the park is reported to cover about 53 sq km with a sanctuary alongside; sal forest, elephants and leopards; the dates given by sources differ (sanctuary 1996, park 2003 in one reference); closed July to September
Bhindawas Wildlife Sanctuary	Jhajjar	About 411.55 hectares; reported as a sanctuary since 1985; Ramsar site since 25 May 2021
Nahar, Saraswati and Asola Bhatti sanctuaries	Various	Named among the eight sanctuaries; details not verified here

Kalesar's 2016 survey recorded 42 leopards, and the park shares a boundary region with Simbalbara National Park in Himachal Pradesh and Rajaji National Park in Uttarakhand, which makes it part of a wider Shivalik habitat. Sultanpur hosts more than 100 migratory bird species each year, among them greater flamingos and, as reported, Siberian cranes; resident birds include painted storks and black-headed ibis. Bhindawas forms part of an ecological corridor along the Sahibi that links the Aravalli hills of Rajasthan with the Yamuna through a chain of wetlands. Mangar Bani in the Faridabad area is listed among the protected areas of the Aravalli belt. The state has also set up mini zoos at Rohtak and Bhiwani and a deer park at Hisar, along with breeding centres for chinkara, crocodile, pheasant and vulture. Sultanpur and Bhindawas are the state's two Ramsar wetlands, both listed on the same day in 2021.

For exam preparation

• Haryana's highest point is Karoh Peak (about 1,467 m) in the Shivalik hills, near Morni.
• The Yamuna forms the eastern boundary with Uttar Pradesh; the Ghaggar is the main seasonal river in the north.
• The Western Yamuna Canal begins at Hathnikund barrage; Firuz Shah Tughlaq and later the British worked on it.
• The state has four physical zones: Yamuna-Ghaggar plain, Shivalik hills, Bagar tract and Aravalli outcrops.
• Sultanpur (Gurugram) and Bhindawas (Jhajjar) are the state's Ramsar sites, designated on 25 May 2021.
• Kalesar National Park in Yamunanagar has the state's main sal forest.
• Forest and tree cover together are 7.16 per cent, according to the state Forest Department.

Administration and districts

As on October 2026, Haryana has 23 districts in 6 divisions. The 23rd district, Hansi, was carved out of Hisar in December 2025. Each division is headed by a divisional commissioner and each district by a deputy commissioner of the Indian Administrative Service. Below the districts come sub-divisions, tehsils, community development blocks, and then villages and towns.

Divisions

The six divisions are Ambala, Faridabad, Gurugram, Hisar, Karnal and Rohtak. The Ambala division includes Ambala, Kurukshetra, Panchkula and Yamunanagar. Faridabad covers Faridabad, Nuh and Palwal. Gurugram covers Gurugram, Mahendragarh and Rewari. Hisar covers Fatehabad, Hisar, Jind, Sirsa and, as reported, the new district of Hansi. Karnal covers Karnal, Kaithal and Panipat. Rohtak covers Bhiwani, Charkhi Dadri, Jhajjar, Rohtak and Sonipat.

District table

District	Headquarters	Division	Formed	Note
Ambala	Ambala	Ambala	1966	One of the seven original districts; large cantonment; revolt of 1857 began here
Kurukshetra	Kurukshetra	Ambala	1973	Mahabharata pilgrimage centre; Thanesar
Panchkula	Panchkula	Ambala	1995	Adjoins Chandigarh; Karoh Peak and the Shivalik foothills lie in this area
Yamunanagar	Yamunanagar	Ambala	1989	Hathnikund barrage; Kalesar National Park
Faridabad	Faridabad	Faridabad	1979	Most populous city in the state (Census 2011)
Nuh	Nuh	Faridabad	2005	Formerly Mewat; Meo community
Palwal	Palwal	Faridabad	2008	Eastern edge on the Yamuna
Gurugram	Gurugram	Gurugram	1966	National Capital Region business hub; Sultanpur
Mahendragarh	Narnaul	Gurugram	1966	District name differs from headquarters; Nasibpur battle site near Narnaul
Rewari	Rewari	Gurugram	1989	Hemu's home town
Hisar	Hisar	Hisar	1966	Hisar-e-Firoza, founded by Firuz Shah Tughlaq
Fatehabad	Fatehabad	Hisar	1997	Banawali Harappan site
Jind	Jind	Hisar	1966	One of the seven original districts
Sirsa	Sirsa	Hisar	1975	Largest district by area (about 4,277 sq km, reported); Ottu barrage on the Ghaggar
Hansi	Hansi	Hisar	2025	Newest district; carved from Hisar; Rakhigarhi falls in this area
Karnal	Karnal	Karnal	1966	Taraori (Tarain) battle area
Kaithal	Kaithal	Karnal	1989	Rice and wheat belt
Panipat	Panipat	Karnal	1989	Site of the three battles of Panipat
Rohtak	Rohtak	Rohtak	1966	Reported as a Yaudheya capital
Bhiwani	Bhiwani	Rohtak	1972	Tosham hills; large area in the Aravalli and Bagar edge
Charkhi Dadri	Charkhi Dadri	Rohtak	2016	Carved from Bhiwani on 1 December 2016
Jhajjar	Jhajjar	Rohtak	1997	Bhindawas wildlife sanctuary
Sonipat	Sonipat	Rohtak	1972	On the Delhi border

Years of formation come mainly from one reference compilation, which is cross-checked here only for Charkhi Dadri (1 December 2016) and Hansi (December 2025). Treat the other years as reported.

Formation of new districts

The state began with seven districts in 1966: Ambala, Gurugram (then Gurgaon), Hisar, Jind, Karnal, Mahendragarh and Rohtak. New districts were added in several rounds, mostly by splitting large ones: Bhiwani and Sonipat (1972), Kurukshetra (1973), Sirsa (1975), Faridabad (1979), Kaithal, Panipat, Rewari and Yamunanagar (1989), Panchkula (1995), Fatehabad and Jhajjar (1997), Nuh then called Mewat (2005), Palwal (2008) and Charkhi Dadri (2016). Several of these changes took effect on 1 November, the state's formation day, or on 15 August.

Hansi (2025). Hansi became the 23rd district after the state Cabinet approved it in mid-December 2025 (reports date the Cabinet decision and announcement to 16 or 17 December). The notification followed within days; sources give 19 December (a Reserve Bank of India circular citing the gazette number) and 22 December 2025 for it. Treat the notification as issued in the third week of December 2025. The district has two sub-divisions, Hansi and Narnaund, and three tehsils (Hansi, Narnaund and Bass) with the sub-tehsil of Kheri Jalab. It covers about 110 villages, an area of about 1,350 sq km and an estimated population of about 541,000. News reports say the district was formed under the Haryana Land Revenue Act, 1887. The state portal still listed 22 districts when this guide was written, as will older books.

Other proposals. Press reports speak of possible districts such as Manesar and Pataudi (from Gurugram) and Narwana and Safidon (from Jind). Only a single reference was found, and none of these has been notified in the sources opened here, so they should not be treated as districts. Before an exam, check whether the count has gone beyond 23.

Sub-divisions, tehsils and blocks

One reference gives 80 sub-divisions, 94 revenue tehsils, 50 sub-tehsils and 142 community development blocks, with 7,030 villages and 6,234 village panchayats. The state portal lists about 140 blocks and 7,356 villages, so counts vary by source and by date. This guide uses "about 140 blocks" and does not give a single village figure as settled.

Local government

The state follows the three-tier Panchayati Raj system under the 73rd Constitutional Amendment, with gram panchayats at village level, panchayat samitis at block level and zila parishads at district level. The Haryana Panchayati Raj Act, 1994 governs it. Urban areas are under the 74th Amendment framework. The Directorate of Urban Local Bodies reports 87 municipalities, including 10 municipal corporations such as Gurugram, Faridabad and Panipat. It reports a total urban population of about 1.10 crore across 2,829.65 sq km, which is the department's own figure and not a census count. The Municipal Corporation Act, 1994 and the Municipal Committee Act, 1973 are the main laws. The size of the reserved quotas in panchayats and municipalities is covered in Part B.

Scheduled and tribal areas

No Fifth or Sixth Schedule area exists in Haryana. The state has no communities notified as Scheduled Tribes, so the tribal-area provisions that apply in states such as Chhattisgarh do not apply here. Scheduled Castes are the main reserved group.

Representation

The state has 90 Vidhan Sabha constituencies, of which 17 are reserved for Scheduled Castes, and 10 Lok Sabha constituencies. Chandigarh, the capital, is a Union Territory administered separately.

For exam preparation

• As on October 2026, Haryana has 23 districts and 6 divisions; Hansi (December 2025) is the newest district.
• The divisions are Ambala, Faridabad, Gurugram, Hisar, Karnal and Rohtak.
• The state began with seven districts in 1966; Charkhi Dadri became a district on 1 December 2016.
• Hansi district has two sub-divisions: Hansi and Narnaund.
• Mahendragarh district has its headquarters at Narnaul; Nuh was earlier called Mewat.
• Haryana has no Scheduled Tribes and no Fifth or Sixth Schedule area.
• The state has 90 assembly seats, 17 of them reserved for Scheduled Castes, and 10 Lok Sabha seats.

Demography

Census 2011 is still the latest published census, and Census 2027 results are not out. It counted 25,351,462 people in Haryana, a decadal growth of 19.90 per cent. The state is about two-thirds rural, and its sex ratio, at 879 females per 1,000 males, is a longstanding concern.

Census 2011 at a glance

Indicator (Census 2011)	Value
Population	25,351,462
Males	13,494,734
Females	11,856,728
Decadal growth, 2001 to 2011	19.90 per cent
Density	573 per sq km
Rank by population	18th among states and Union Territories
Sex ratio (females per 1,000 males)	879
Child sex ratio (age 0 to 6)	834
Literacy (age 7 and above)	75.55 per cent (male 84.06, female 65.94)
Urban population	8,842,103 (34.88 per cent)
Rural population	16,509,359 (65.12 per cent)

Some websites quote other sex-ratio figures (for example 892) or urban shares; these are not Census 2011 values. District boundaries have changed since 2011, so district figures use 2011 boundaries.

Sex ratio

Haryana's sex ratio of 879 is below the national figure of 940 in the same census, and its child sex ratio of 834 is lower again. One aggregator reports Gurugram with the lowest district sex ratio (854) and Nuh (then Mewat) with the highest (907); treat these as reported.

The state has responded with enforcement of the PCPNDT Act, 1994, cash support for girls and awareness campaigns, and the national Beti Bachao Beti Padhao campaign was launched at Panipat in 2015. State health data, as repeated in news reports, show the sex ratio at birth rising from 871 in 2014 to 910 in 2024. Figures for 2025 are inconsistent between reports (906 for January to June and 923 for the full year are both quoted). The census sex ratio (879 in 2011) is a different measure from the sex ratio at birth and the two should not be mixed.

Literacy

Overall literacy was 75.55 per cent in 2011, with a gap of about 18 points between men (84.06) and women (65.94). Urban literacy (83.14) was higher than rural (71.42). One aggregator reports Gurugram highest by district (84.70) and Nuh lowest (54.08). A figure of 84.8 per cent quoted for 2024 comes from a different survey and cannot be compared with the census.

Urbanisation and cities

About 35 per cent of the people lived in towns in 2011, and the urban population grew by 44.59 per cent in the decade. The largest cities were:

City	Population (Census 2011)	Type
Faridabad	1,404,653	City
Gurugram (Gurgaon)	1,153,000	Urban agglomeration
Rohtak	373,133	City
Hisar	301,249	City
Panipat	294,150	Urban agglomeration
Karnal	286,974	Urban agglomeration
Sonipat	277,053	Urban agglomeration
Yamunanagar	216,628	Urban agglomeration
Panchkula	210,175	City
Sirsa	200,034	City

Faridabad was the most populous district in 2011 and Panchkula the least, and Gurugram showed the highest district growth of the decade, reported at 73.96 per cent.

Languages

Hindi is the official language of the state. Punjabi has been given the status of an additional official language (reported). In the 2011 mother-tongue returns as summarised in one reference, Hindi accounts for about 48.0 per cent and Haryanvi for about 37.2 per cent, followed by Punjabi (7.36), Bagri (2.11) and Mewati (1.66), plus Urdu. The Census normally groups Haryanvi under Hindi, so these shares depend on how dialects are counted. Haryanvi belongs to the Western Hindi group and is written in Devanagari.

Religion

Religion (Census 2011)	Share
Hindu	87.46 per cent
Muslim	7.03 per cent
Sikh	4.91 per cent
Jain	0.21 per cent
Christian	0.20 per cent
Buddhist	0.03 per cent

Castes and tribes

Haryana has no Scheduled Tribes. Scheduled Castes are about one-fifth of the population (one source gives about 21 per cent). Major agricultural communities include Jats, Ahirs, Sainis, Gurjars and Rajputs; the census does not count caste beyond SC and ST, so any community share is a rough estimate.

For exam preparation

• Census 2011 population of Haryana is 25,351,462 (13,494,734 males and 11,856,728 females).
• Sex ratio is 879 and child sex ratio 834; density is 573 per sq km.
• Literacy is 75.55 per cent: male 84.06 and female 65.94.
• Urban share is 34.88 per cent; Faridabad is the most populous city.
• Hindu 87.46, Muslim 7.03 and Sikh 4.91 per cent make up nearly all of the population.
• Hindi is the official language, with Punjabi as an additional official language (reported).
• Beti Bachao Beti Padhao was launched at Panipat in 2015.

How the state is governed

Haryana has a parliamentary system under the Constitution of India: a Governor as constitutional head, a Chief Minister who leads an elected government, and a single-chamber (unicameral) legislature of 90 members. This section describes structure, which stays the same from one government to the next. Names of sitting office-holders change, so this guide does not list them; for the current Governor, Chief Minister, ministers, Chief Secretary, DGP and Chief Justice, use the official state portal and our current affairs pages. Past office-holders with completed tenures are listed later in this part. The state was created on 1 November 1966, and its capital, Chandigarh, is shared with Punjab.

The executive

Office	Role	How filled
Governor	Constitutional head; summons, prorogues and dissolves the Assembly, gives assent to bills, appoints the Chief Minister; Chancellor of the state universities	Appointed by the President for five years, serving at the President's pleasure; 18 people have completed a tenure as Governor since 1966, counting acting and additional-charge spells (the incumbent is the 19th, per Wikipedia)
Chief Minister	Head of the government; leads the council of ministers	Leader of the party or alliance that commands a majority in the Assembly, appointed by the Governor
Council of ministers	Runs the departments; collectively responsible to the Assembly	Ceiling of 15 per cent of the House under Article 164(1A), which is 13.5 for 90 seats; the same article sets a floor of 12 for small states. We did not confirm the working cap the state follows
Chief Secretary	Head of the civil service and the secretariat	Senior IAS officer chosen by the government
Director General of Police	Head of the state police	IPS officer, selected under the Supreme Court's Prakash Singh guidelines
Advocate General	Chief legal adviser to the government	Appointed by the Governor under Article 165

Chandigarh, a Union Territory and the joint capital of Haryana and Punjab, is the seat of the secretariat, the Governor's residence, the Vidhan Sabha and the High Court. The Le Corbusier-designed Capitol Complex became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in July 2016 (Wikipedia).

Departments and bodies

The government works through departments headed by ministers and run by secretaries. Constitutional and statutory bodies include:

• the Haryana Public Service Commission (HPSC, Articles 315 to 316), headquartered at Panchkula and made up of a chairman and five members (per Wikipedia; check the commission's own page for the current strength);
• the Haryana State Election Commission (Article 243K), which conducts panchayat and municipal elections;
• the Haryana Staff Selection Commission, which recruits for many non-gazetted posts (see our exam guides);
• the State Finance Commission, the State Information Commission and the State Human Rights Commission; and
• the Lokayukta, covered in the next section.

The Chief Electoral Officer, a senior officer appointed with the approval of the Election Commission of India, runs elections to the Assembly and Parliament.

For administration on the ground, the Wikipedia page on Haryana's divisions lists 6 divisions (Ambala, Faridabad, Gurugram, Hisar, Karnal and Rohtak), 80 sub-divisions, 94 tehsils, 50 sub-tehsils and 142 blocks. The official state portal gives 22 districts, 140 blocks and 7,356 villages, while Wikipedia gives 23 districts (counting Hansi as the newest); the two differ because new districts are notified from time to time, and Part A carries the district list. Local government is covered under Elections below.

For exam preparation

• The Governor is appointed by the President; the Chief Minister is appointed by the Governor.
• The council of ministers is capped at 15 per cent of the House under Article 164(1A), inserted by the 91st Amendment (2003).
• The Advocate General is covered by Article 165; the Governor's powers by Articles 153 to 167.
• HPSC is a constitutional body under Articles 315 to 316, based at Panchkula; the State Election Commission comes under Article 243K.
• Chandigarh is a Union Territory and the joint capital of Haryana and Punjab.
• The Punjab Reorganisation Act, 1966, passed on 18 September 1966, created Haryana from 1 November 1966.

Legislature, Parliament and judiciary

Haryana has a single-chamber legislature, the Vidhan Sabha (Legislative Assembly), of 90 members. There is no Vidhan Parishad. The state sends 5 members to the Rajya Sabha and 10 to the Lok Sabha. The 15th Assembly was elected in October 2024; its first sitting was in October 2024.

Vidhan Sabha

The Assembly meets in the Capitol Complex at Chandigarh and has a normal term of five years. According to Wikipedia, the first Assembly began on 1 November 1966 with 54 members, 10 of them reserved for Scheduled Castes, and held its first sitting on 6 December 1966; the strength rose to 81 in March 1967 and to 90 in 1977. Of the 90 seats today, 17 are reserved for Scheduled Castes and none for Scheduled Tribes, as fixed by the 2008 Delimitation Commission order. The majority mark is 46.

The result of the October 2024 election, which is the latest, is below. Strength can change through by-elections, resignations and defections, so we give the election result and not the live position. For the live position, see the Assembly website.

Party	Seats, 2024 election
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)	48
Indian National Congress (INC)	37
Indian National Lok Dal (INLD)	2
Independents	3
Total	90

Women made up 13 of the 90 members elected in 2024, about 14 per cent (Wikipedia, reported); the 2019 House had 9 (Wikipedia).

Speakers and officers

The Speaker presides over the House and is elected by members. Shanno Devi, the first Speaker, served from 6 December 1966 to 17 March 1967 and is described as the first woman Speaker of any state Assembly in India (Wikipedia and the Assembly's own list of former Speakers). Past Speakers are listed later in this part. The incumbent Speaker and Deputy Speaker are not named here.

Rajya Sabha

Haryana elects 5 members, who serve six-year terms and are chosen by MLAs through the single transferable vote. Terms are staggered so that seats fall due in batches rather than all at once. The state has had 5 Rajya Sabha seats since 1966, according to Wikipedia. We have not listed members.

Lok Sabha

The state has 10 constituencies, 2 reserved for Scheduled Castes (Ambala and Sirsa) and 8 General, with none reserved for Scheduled Tribes. The map was last redrawn by the 2008 delimitation order.

Constituency	Category	Constituency	Category
Ambala	SC	Rohtak	General
Kurukshetra	General	Bhiwani-Mahendragarh	General
Sirsa	SC	Gurgaon	General
Hisar	General	Faridabad	General
Karnal	General	Sonipat	General

High Court

Haryana does not have a High Court of its own. The Punjab and Haryana High Court at Chandigarh serves Punjab, Haryana and the Union Territory of Chandigarh. Its history, per Wikipedia:

• The Lahore High Court was established on 21 March 1919 for undivided Punjab.
• After Partition, the East Punjab High Court began at Shimla on 15 August 1947 (at Peterhoff).
• On 26 January 1950 it was renamed the Punjab High Court, and it moved to Chandigarh on 17 January 1955.
• On 1 November 1966, under the Punjab Reorganisation Act, 1966, it became the Punjab and Haryana High Court.

The Palace of Justice was designed by Le Corbusier. The sanctioned strength is 85 judges, made up of 64 permanent judges (including the Chief Justice) and 21 additional judges (Wikipedia; sanctioned strength can be revised by the Centre). Below it are district and sessions courts in each district, family courts and special courts. Chief Justices with completed tenures are listed later in this part.

Lokayukta, Election Commission and other bodies

The Haryana Lokayukta works under the Haryana Lokayukta and Deputy Lokayukta Act, 2002, according to Wikipedia. The Lokayukta inquires into complaints of corruption and maladministration against public servants, including ministers and legislators. The Governor appoints the Lokayukta for a five-year term after consulting a committee that includes the Chief Minister, the Speaker and the Leader of the Opposition. The state Election Commission, set up under Article 243K, conducts panchayat and municipal elections and prepares the electoral rolls for them; the Governor appoints the State Election Commissioner.

For exam preparation

• The Assembly has 90 seats: 73 General and 17 SC; there are no ST seats.
• Haryana has a unicameral legislature; it has no Legislative Council.
• Haryana has 10 Lok Sabha seats (Ambala and Sirsa are SC) and 5 Rajya Sabha seats.
• The first Assembly sat on 6 December 1966; the strength was 54, then 81 from 1967 and 90 from 1977.
• The Punjab and Haryana High Court is a shared High Court; its seat is Chandigarh, and it moved there on 17 January 1955.
• The High Court has a sanctioned strength of 85 judges (Wikipedia).
• The Capitol Complex at Chandigarh became a UNESCO site in July 2016.

Elections

Haryana has held 14 Assembly elections since formation. The first, in February 1967, was for 81 seats; a second, mid-term election followed in May 1968 after the first Assembly was dissolved amid defections. The Indian National Congress won the first, second and third elections. The Janata Party swept the state in 1977. The Lok Dal, led by Devi Lal, won in 1987 with 60 seats. After that, power alternated among the Congress, the Haryana Vikas Party (1996), the Indian National Lok Dal (2000) and the Congress (2005 and 2009). The BJP won the 2014, 2019 and 2024 elections, the third of them to give it a third consecutive term. The Congress and BJP led in Lok Sabha polls alternately.

Where "Aaya Ram, Gaya Ram" comes from

The phrase is Haryana's contribution to political language. In 1967, an independent MLA called Gaya Lal, from the Hasanpur seat (now part of Hodal), changed his party three times in about a fortnight, according to Wikipedia. When he came back to the Congress, the Congress leader Rao Birender Singh told the press that Gaya Ram was now Aya Ram. The phrase stuck as a name for opportunistic floor-crossing. The 1967 turmoil is linked to the dissolution of the Assembly and President's rule from 20 November 1967. The anti-defection law came in 1985 and is now the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution; the Speaker decides disqualification petitions, and a merger is protected only if two-thirds of a legislature party agree.

Vidhan Sabha elections, 1967 to 2024

Party names are those used at the time. "Lok Dal" is the party Devi Lal led in 1982 and 1987, which later became the Janata Dal and then, under Om Prakash Chautala, the Indian National Lok Dal (INLD). Seat counts are from Wikipedia's constituency-level articles. Turnout is shown where Wikipedia's article gave a statewide figure; "n/c" means not confirmed.

Year	Polling	Seats	Turnout	Largest parties (seats)	Government
1967	21 Feb	81	72.65%	INC 48, Jana Sangh 12, Independents 16, Swatantra 3, RPI 2	INC, then a coalition under Rao Birender Singh
1968	12 May	81	57.26%	INC 48, VHP 16, Jana Sangh 7, Independents 6	INC
1972	11 Mar	81	70.46%	INC 52, INC(O) 12, Independents 11, VHP 3, Jana Sangh 2	INC
1977	6 Oct	90	64.46%	Janata Party 75, VHP 5, INC 3, Independents 7	Janata Party
1982	19 May	90	n/c	INC 36, Lok Dal 31, Independents 16, BJP 6, JP 1	INC (with independents)
1987	17 Jun	90	n/c	Lok Dal 60, BJP 16, Independents 7, INC 5	Lok Dal-BJP
1991	May-Jun	90	n/c	INC 51, JP 16, HVP 12, Independents 5, JD 3, BJP 2	INC
1996	15 May	90	70.5%	HVP 33, Samata Party 24, BJP 11, Independents 10, INC 9	HVP-BJP
2000	22 Feb	90	n/c	INLD 47, INC 21, BJP 6, Independents 11	INLD (NDA)
2005	3 Feb	90	n/c	INC 67, INLD 9, BJP 2, others 12	INC
2009	13 Oct	90	72.37%	INC 40, INLD 31, HJC(BL) 6, BJP 4, Independents 7	INC
2014	15 Oct	90	76.54%	BJP 47, INLD 19, INC 15, Independents 5, HJC(BL) 2	BJP
2019	21 Oct	90	68.20%	BJP 40, INC 31, JJP 10, Independents 7, INLD 1	BJP with JJP and Independents
2024	5 Oct	90	67.90%	BJP 48, INC 37, INLD 2, Independents 3	BJP

Notes: the first Chief Minister continued until 24 March 1967, when a coalition under Rao Birender Singh took over. The 1982 Congress government relied on Independents; Wikipedia says the Governor first invited Devi Lal (reported, order not confirmed). The 1991 polling date is not confirmed (Wikipedia gives 20 May; the Chief Minister was sworn in on 23 June). The 2005 "others" figure is our subtraction.

Year	Vote share of the leading parties
1967	INC 41.33%, Jana Sangh 14.39%, Independents 32.97%
1968	INC 43.83%, VHP 14.86%, Jana Sangh 10.45%, Independents 17.11%
1972	INC 46.91%, INC(O) 10.80%, VHP 6.94%
1977	Janata Party 46.70%, INC 17.15%, VHP 5.96%, Independents 28.64%
1982	INC 37.58%, Lok Dal 23.87%, Independents 26.54%, BJP 7.67%
1987	Lok Dal 38.58%, INC 29.18%, Independents 18.54%, BJP 10.08%
1991	INC 33.73%, JP 22.03%, HVP 12.54%, BJP 9.43%
1996	HVP 22.7%, INC 20.8%, Samata Party 20.6%, BJP 8.9%
2000	INC 31.22%, INLD 29.61%, BJP 8.94%
2005	INC 42.46%, INLD 26.77%, BJP 10.36%
2009	INC 35.08%, INLD 25.79%, HJC(BL) 7.40%, BSP 6.73%, BJP 9.04%
2014	BJP 33.2%, INLD 24.1%, INC 20.6%, BSP 4.4%
2019	BJP 36.49%, INC 28.08%, JJP 14.80%, BSP 4.21%
2024	BJP 39.94%, INC 39.09%, INLD 4.14%, JJP 0.90%

Vote shares are from Wikipedia's election articles citing the Election Commission; use them for comparison, not exact answers. In 2000 the Congress led in votes (31.22 against 29.61 per cent) but won 21 seats to the INLD's 47; in 2024 BJP and Congress were less than one point apart in vote share and 11 seats apart.

Earlier elections in brief

In 1967 the Congress won 48 of 81 seats but defections split it within weeks; a coalition held office until President's rule began on 20 November 1967, and the May 1968 poll (turnout 57.26 per cent) again gave the Congress 48 seats. The 1977 Janata Party wave brought 75 of 90 seats and left the Congress with 3. In 1987 the Lok Dal, allied with the BJP, won 60 seats with 38.58 per cent of the votes and the Congress fell to 5.

The three most recent elections

2014. The BJP won 47 of 90 seats on its own, the first time it had a majority in the state, with 33.2 per cent of the vote. The INLD won 19 and the Congress 15, which was the Congress's lowest total since 1987. Turnout was 76.54 per cent, up 4.17 points on 2009. A record 1,351 candidates stood, including 116 women (Wikipedia). The government was sworn in on 26 October 2014.

2019. The BJP's campaign target of 75 seats was missed; it won 40, six short of a majority, and the Congress rose from 15 to 31. The new Jannayak Janta Party (JJP), which had split from the INLD in late 2018, won 10 seats and 14.80 per cent. The BJP formed the government with the JJP and seven Independents. Turnout was 68.20 per cent (about 1.25 crore votes from 1.84 crore electors). Nine women were elected, 10 per cent of the House (Wikipedia).

2024. Polling was in a single phase on 5 October and the count was on 8 October. The BJP won 48 seats, the Congress 37, the INLD 2 and Independents 3. The JJP, which had been in government with the BJP until March 2024, won no seat and 0.90 per cent of the vote. Wikipedia reports that this was the first time any party had won three consecutive Assembly elections in the state. Turnout was 67.90 per cent according to the Election Commission as reported by the media, and the roll had about 2.01 crore electors, of whom 1.06 crore were men and 0.95 crore women. The result defied most exit polls, which had predicted a Congress win.

Lok Sabha elections

Haryana has had 10 Lok Sabha seats since 1977. Parties are shown by seats won.

Year	BJP	INC	INLD	Others	BJP vote share	INC vote share	Turnout
1998	1	3	4	HVP 1, BSP 1	n/c	n/c	n/c
1999	5	0	5	none	n/c	n/c	n/c
2004	1	9	0	none	17.21%	42.13%	n/c
2009	0	9	0	HJC(BL) 1	12.09%	41.77%	67.51%
2014	7	1	2	none	34.74%	22.92%	71.45%
2019	10	0	0	none	58.02%	28.42%	70.34%
2024	5	5	0	none	46.10%	43.68%	64.77%

Other vote shares: INLD 22.43 per cent in 2004, 15.77 in 2009 and 24.36 in 2014; HJC(BL) 10.01 per cent in 2009; JJP 4.89 per cent in 2019. In 2024 the Congress and AAP fought as part of the INDIA bloc, with the Congress contesting nine seats and AAP one (reported to be Kurukshetra); the Congress won Ambala, Sirsa, Hisar, Sonipat and Rohtak, and the BJP won Kurukshetra, Karnal, Bhiwani-Mahendragarh, Gurgaon and Faridabad. In 2019 the BJP's 58 per cent was the highest vote share in our table, and the Congress won no seat with 28 per cent.

By-elections

Wikipedia lists four Assembly by-elections in the 14th Assembly (2019 to 2024): Baroda (2020, after a death, won by the Congress); Ellenabad (2021, after a resignation, won by the INLD); Adampur (2022, after a resignation, won by the BJP); and Karnal (2024, after a resignation on 13 March 2024, won by the BJP). Karnal was held in the same cycle as the Lok Sabha poll (the date on our source is not clear, and we have left it out). In the 13th Assembly, the Jind by-election of 31 January 2019 was won by the BJP, which Wikipedia calls the party's first win in that seat in 52 years; the runner-up was the JJP. The article for the 13th Assembly does not list other by-elections, so the record is not complete. Other seats fell vacant in 2024 after resignations, with dates not confirmed.

Panchayat and municipal elections

Panchayat elections, 2022. Panchayat polls are run by the State Election Commission and are held without party symbols. The latest general election was held in three phases in October and November 2022. According to news reports, phase one polled zila parishads and panchayat samitis on 30 October and sarpanches and panches on 2 November; phase two on 9 and 12 November; and phase three on 22 and 25 November, in Hisar, Palwal, Faridabad and Fatehabad. The reports describe 6,220 gram panchayats (each with a directly elected sarpanch), 143 panchayat samitis and 22 zila parishads, and 61,993 panches. Turnout in the last phase was reported at 83.2 per cent. The Haryana Panchayati Raj (Amendment) Bill, 2022 provided reservation for Backward Classes (A) in panchayats, following a cabinet decision on 31 August 2022: 8 per cent of sarpanch posts in a block, and panch seats in proportion to the Backward Classes (A) population of the village, rounded. Seats are also reserved for women at 50 per cent, assigned by an even-odd rotation across coded villages (reported). In 2015, the Supreme Court in Rajbala v. State of Haryana (10 December 2015) upheld the Haryana Panchayati Raj (Amendment) Act, 2015, which set educational qualifications for candidates.

Municipal elections, 2025. Polling in 2025 was on 2 March for most bodies and 9 March for Panipat, with counting on 12 March, covering 36 urban local bodies (Wikipedia). Overall turnout was reported at 46.5 per cent. The BJP won 9 of the 10 mayoral seats; an independent won the Manesar seat and later joined the BJP, and the Congress won none. In Panipat, the BJP won 23 of 26 wards and 3 Independents the rest (Wikipedia). Earlier municipal cycles, including those of 2018 and 2020, were not confirmed in this pass and we have left them out.

Reservation, delimitation and voters

The Assembly has 17 SC seats and no ST seats, and the Lok Sabha has two SC seats, Ambala and Sirsa. These were fixed by the Delimitation Commission order of 2008, which applied Census 2001 population; the total number of Assembly seats has been 90 since 1977. Under the 84th Amendment, the number of seats in each state is frozen until the first census after 2026, so the 90 and 10 are unlikely to change until then. SC people were 20.2 per cent of the population in Census 2011 (Wikipedia, as quoted on the constituency page). At the 2019 poll, 1.84 crore electors were on the roll; at 2024, about 2.01 crore (Election Commission figures as reported). Women's reservation of one-third of seats in Parliament and state Assemblies, passed by Parliament in 2023, applies only after a fresh delimitation; we have not confirmed dates for Haryana.

Firsts and records

• The 2014 turnout of 76.54 per cent is the highest in our table where turnout is confirmed; 1968 (57.26 per cent) is the lowest.
• The Congress won only 3 seats in 1977 and 5 in 1987.
• The BJP's win in 2024 is described as the first third consecutive win by any party (Wikipedia).

For exam preparation

• The first Assembly election was held on 21 February 1967 on 81 seats; the Congress won 48.
• "Aaya Ram, Gaya Ram" comes from 1967 and an independent MLA from Hasanpur, Gaya Lal.
• The strength of the Assembly became 90 in 1977; the Janata Party won 75 of 90 seats.
• In 1987 the Lok Dal won 60 seats, and in 1996 the Haryana Vikas Party won 33.
• The Congress won 67 seats in 2005 and 40 in 2009; the BJP won 47 in 2014, 40 in 2019 and 48 in 2024.
• In 2024, polling was on 5 October, the count was on 8 October and turnout was 67.90 per cent.
• In 2019 the BJP won all 10 Lok Sabha seats with about 58 per cent of the vote; in 2024 BJP and Congress won five each.
• The 2025 municipal elections were held on 2 March (Panipat 9 March) and counted on 12 March; the BJP won 9 of the 10 mayoral posts.
• A 2022 amendment gave Backward Classes (A) reservation in panchayats; 50 per cent of panchayat seats are for women.

Past Chief Ministers, Governors and office-holders

This section lists only completed tenures, which do not change. Ten people have completed tenures as Chief Minister since 1966, and the incumbent is the 11th; eighteen have completed tenures as Governor (counting acting and additional-charge spells) and the incumbent is the 19th; and the Assembly's list of former Speakers has 20 entries, some of them repeat terms (the incumbent is not named). Lists follow Wikipedia and the Assembly's official list; dates for short or acting appointments can differ by a few days between sources.

Chief Ministers

Several Chief Ministers served more than one stint, so some rows list several periods.

No.	Chief Minister	Tenure
1	Bhagwat Dayal Sharma (INC)	1 Nov 1966 to 24 Mar 1967; first Chief Minister
2	Rao Birender Singh (Vishal Haryana Party)	24 Mar to 20 Nov 1967
3	Bansi Lal (INC, later HVP)	21 May 1968 to 1 Dec 1975; 5 Jun 1986 to 20 Jun 1987; 11 May 1996 to 24 Jul 1999
4	Banarsi Das Gupta	1 Dec 1975 to 30 Apr 1977; 22 May to 12 Jul 1990
5	Devi Lal (Janata Party, Lok Dal, JD)	21 Jun 1977 to 28 Jun 1979; 20 Jun 1987 to 2 Dec 1989
6	Bhajan Lal (INC)	28 Jun 1979 to 5 Jun 1986; 23 Jun 1991 to 11 May 1996
7	Om Prakash Chautala	2 Dec 1989 to 22 May 1990; 12 to 17 Jul 1990; 22 Mar to 6 Apr 1991; 24 Jul 1999 to 5 Mar 2005
8	Hukam Singh (JD)	17 Jul 1990 to 22 Mar 1991
9	Bhupinder Singh Hooda (INC)	5 Mar 2005 to 26 Oct 2014
10	Manohar Lal Khattar (BJP)	26 Oct 2014 to 12 Mar 2024
11	Incumbent	From 12 Mar 2024

Note: the 2005 to 2014 tenure of the ninth Chief Minister, about nine and a half years, is the longest unbroken spell in the table (our own calculation). Counts of "terms" vary if a resignation followed by re-swearing is counted as a new term.

President's rule

The tracker in the list of Chief Ministers shows three periods of President's rule: 20 November 1967 to 21 May 1968, 30 April to 21 June 1977, and 6 April to 23 June 1991. The reasons for the 1977 and 1991 episodes are not confirmed in the sources we opened; the 1967 episode followed the collapse of the coalition after the defections described above.

Governors

No.	Governor	Tenure
1	Dharma Vira	1 Nov 1966 to 14 Sep 1967
2	Birendra Narayan Chakraborty	15 Sep 1967 to 26 Mar 1976 (died in office)
3	Ranjit Singh Narula (additional charge)	27 Mar to 13 Aug 1976
4	Jaisukh Lal Hathi	14 Aug 1976 to 23 Sep 1977
5	Harcharan Singh Brar	24 Sep 1977 to 9 Dec 1979
6	Surjit Singh Sandhawalia (additional charge)	10 Dec 1979 to 27 Feb 1980
7	Ganpatrao Devji Tapase	28 Feb 1980 to 13 Jun 1984
8	S. M. H. Burney	14 Jun 1984 to 21 Feb 1988
9	Hari Anand Barari	22 Feb 1988 to 6 Feb 1990
10	Dhanik Lal Mandal	7 Feb 1990 to 13 Jun 1995
11	Mahabir Prasad	14 Jun 1995 to 18 Jun 2000
12	Babu Parmanand	19 Jun 2000 to 1 Jul 2004
13	Om Prakash Verma (additional charge)	2 to 7 Jul 2004
14	Akhlaqur Rahman Kidwai	7 Jul 2004 to 27 Jul 2009
15	Jagannath Pahadia	27 Jul 2009 to 26 Jul 2014
16	Kaptan Singh Solanki	27 Jul 2014 to 25 Aug 2018
17	Satyadev Narayan Arya	25 Aug 2018 to 6 Jul 2021
18	Bandaru Dattatreya	7 Jul 2021 to 20 Jul 2025
19	Incumbent	From 21 Jul 2025

Speakers of the Vidhan Sabha

From the Assembly's own list of former Speakers, with party and constituency from Wikipedia where available.

No.	Speaker	Tenure
1	Shanno Devi	6 Dec 1966 to 17 Mar 1967
2	Rao Birender Singh	17 to 23 Mar 1967
3	Sri Chand (Ohlan)	30 Mar to 19 Jul 1967
4	Manphool Singh Chahar (Wikipedia only; not on the Assembly's list)	21 Jul 1967 to 10 Jul 1968
5	Ran Singh (Brigadier)	15 Jul 1968 to 3 Apr 1972; 4 Jul 1977 to 8 May 1978
6	Banarsi Das Gupta	3 Apr 1972 to 15 Nov 1973
7	Sarup Singh	16 Nov 1973 to 4 Jul 1977
8	Ram Singh (Colonel)	15 May 1978 to 24 Jun 1982
9	Tara Singh	24 Jun 1982 to 9 Jul 1987
10	Harmohinder Singh Chatha	9 Jul 1987 to 9 Jul 1991; 21 Mar 2005 to 12 Jan 2006; 28 Oct 2009 to 28 Jan 2011
11	Ishwar Singh	9 Jul 1991 to 22 May 1996
12	Chhattar Singh Chauhan	22 May 1996 to 27 Jul 1999
13	Ashok Arora (listed as Ashok Kumar on the Assembly's page)	28 Jul 1999 to 1 Mar 2000
14	Satbir Singh Kadian	9 Mar 2000 to 21 Mar 2005
15	Raghuvir Singh Kadian	13 Jan 2006 to 27 Oct 2009
16	Kuldeep Sharma	4 Mar 2011 to 2 Nov 2014
17	Kanwar Pal	3 Nov 2014 to 2 Nov 2019
18	Gian Chand Gupta	4 Nov 2019 to 24 Oct 2024 (Wikipedia says 25 Oct)
19	Incumbent	From late Oct 2024

Chief Justices of the Punjab and Haryana High Court

Substantive Chief Justices since 1997 with completed tenures, from Wikipedia (earlier ones, from Ram Lall in 1947, are omitted for length); acting and short interim spells are left out, and the incumbent is not named. Dates on this page were not cross-checked with the High Court's own site.

Chief Justice	Tenure
A. B. Saharya	7 Nov 1997 to 14 Sep 2002
Binod Kumar Roy	14 Oct 2002 to 21 Feb 2005
D. K. Jain	11 Mar 2005 to 9 Apr 2006
Vijender Jain	28 Nov 2006 to 1 Aug 2008
Tirath Singh Thakur	11 Aug 2008 to 16 Nov 2009
Mukul Mudgal	5 Dec 2009 to 3 Jan 2011
Ranjan Gogoi	4 Jan 2011 to 22 Apr 2012
A. K. Sikri	23 Sep 2012 to 11 Apr 2013
Sanjay Kishan Kaul	1 Jun 2013 to 25 Jul 2014
Shiavax Jal Vazifdar	15 Dec 2014 to 3 May 2018
Krishna Murari	2 Jun 2018 to 22 Sep 2019
Ravi Shankar Jha	6 Oct 2019 to 13 Oct 2023
Sheel Nagu	9 Jul 2024 to 1 Jun 2026

Wikipedia's list also shows Ritu Bahri (14 Oct 2023 to 3 Feb 2024) and Gurmeet Singh Sandhawalia (4 Feb to 8 Jul 2024); we did not confirm whether these were acting spells and left them out.

For exam preparation

• The first Chief Minister of Haryana was Bhagwat Dayal Sharma (1 November 1966).
• Bansi Lal, Devi Lal, Bhajan Lal and Om Prakash Chautala each held the office more than once; the fifth and third names in the table above are the ones with the most stints.
• Ten people have completed tenure as Chief Minister; President's rule has been imposed three times.
• The first Governor was Dharma Vira; Birendra Narayan Chakraborty held the post from 1967 until he died in 1976.
• The first Speaker was Shanno Devi, the first woman Speaker of a state Assembly in India.
• The Punjab and Haryana High Court's first Chief Justice after Independence was Ram Lall.

Political history and movements

Haryana's politics were shaped by three things: the Punjabi Suba movement that created the state, a farm-based society in which rural and Jat influence is strong, and a history of rapid party changes. This section tells what happened without judging parties.

Statehood

Before 1966, the Haryana region was the Hindi-speaking south-east of Punjab. The Punjabi Suba movement, which asked for a state based on the Punjabi language, led Parliament to pass the Punjab Reorganisation Act, 1966 on 18 September 1966. Haryana came into being on 1 November 1966 from about 44,222 sq km, taking in districts such as Hisar, Rohtak and Gurgaon and parts of others; Himachal Pradesh was enlarged with about 27,277 sq km of hill territory; and Chandigarh was made a Union Territory and the shared capital (all Wikipedia). The claim to Chandigarh has been disputed since; we state only that it remains shared.

Coalitions and defections, 1967 to 1980

The Congress won the first two elections but fell into disarray in 1967, as described above. A coalition led by Rao Birender Singh held office for about eight months, then the Assembly was dissolved and President's rule followed until the May 1968 poll. The Congress then governed under Bansi Lal until the end of 1975 and under his successor until April 1977. The 1977 Janata Party wave brought Devi Lal to power. Bhajan Lal took over in June 1979 and led the state until 1986, by which time he headed a Congress government; how that change of party took place is not confirmed in our sources.

Water and the SYL canal

The Sutlej-Yamuna Link (SYL) canal, meant to carry Punjab's share of river water to Haryana, is the state's longest-running inter-state dispute (Wikipedia). The Centre allocated water shares in 1976; the Congress governments of Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan agreed revised shares in 1981; construction was launched at Kapoori village in Punjab on 8 April 1982; and the Akali Dal-led Punjab government repudiated the 1981 agreement on 5 November 1985. Work stopped in 1990 after a chief engineer was shot dead. The Supreme Court directed completion in 2002 and 2004; the Central Public Works Department took over the works on 2 July 2004, and the Punjab Assembly passed the Termination of Agreements Act on 12 July 2004. In 2016 the Supreme Court heard a Presidential reference and held Punjab's 2004 Act unconstitutional (10 November). Haryana has finished its 92-km section; Punjab's remains unfinished.

The Lal families and regional parties

Regional parties have shaped the state: the Vishal Haryana Party (1967 to 1972), the Lok Dal and INLD (Devi Lal and then Om Prakash Chautala), the Haryana Vikas Party (founded 1996 by Bansi Lal after leaving the Congress, which won 33 seats in 1996 and merged with the Congress on 14 October 2004) and the Haryana Janhit Congress (BL), founded on 2 December 2007 by Bhajan Lal after leaving the Congress, which won 6 seats in 2009 (five of its MLAs later joined the Congress) and 2 in 2014, and merged with the Congress on 28 April 2016. The JJP was launched at Jind in December 2018 after the INLD expelled members of the Chautala family; it won 10 seats in 2019 and none in 2024, and almost all its candidates lost their deposits (Wikipedia). Wikipedia describes the state's politics as long dominated by about five families over three generations (a characterisation, not verified by us).

Reservation agitation, 2016

A Jat agitation for reservation began on 12 February 2016 and paralysed the state for about ten days, with the worst violence between 18 and 21 February. The reported toll was about 30 deaths by 26 February, and the damage was reported in the tens of thousands of crores of rupees (Wikipedia; estimates differ). On 29 March 2016 the cabinet approved the Backward Classes reservation bill, and on 13 May it was notified, giving Jats and allied communities 10 per cent in Class 3 and 4 posts and 6 per cent in Class 1 and 2. The Punjab and Haryana High Court stayed the law on 26 May 2016. The later history of the law is not confirmed in our sources.

For exam preparation

• The Punjab Reorganisation Act, 1966 was passed on 18 September 1966; Haryana was created on 1 November 1966.
• The SYL canal was launched at Kapoori on 8 April 1982 and halted in 1990; the Supreme Court held Punjab's 2004 Termination Act unconstitutional on 10 November 2016.
• Bansi Lal founded the Haryana Vikas Party in 1996; Bhajan Lal founded the Haryana Janhit Congress in 2007.
• The JJP was launched at Jind in December 2018 after the INLD split.
• The Jat agitation began on 12 February 2016; the High Court stayed the 2016 reservation law on 26 May 2016.

Budget and governance

The latest budget is for 2026-27, presented on 2 March 2026 (PRS Legislative Research, opened for this guide). The figures below are as on October 2026 and are budget estimates; check the state's finance department for revisions.

Item	2026-27 (Budget Estimate)
GSDP (projected)	Rs 15,18,223 crore, growth of 11 per cent
Per capita GSDP	Rs 4,41,216
Total expenditure (excluding debt repayment)	Rs 1,87,556 crore, up 12 per cent on 2025-26
Revenue receipts	Rs 1,46,163 crore, up 15 per cent
Own tax revenue	Rs 1,04,640 crore, 6.9 per cent of GSDP
Revenue deficit	Rs 13,188 crore, 0.9 per cent of GSDP (1.3 per cent the year before)
Fiscal deficit	Rs 40,293 crore, 2.7 per cent of GSDP
Outstanding liabilities	25.8 per cent of GSDP

The fiscal deficit is within the 3 per cent ceiling that PRS attributes to the 16th Finance Commission. Headline sector allocations are education Rs 22,736 crore, social welfare Rs 20,110 crore, health Rs 12,840 crore (up 21 per cent) and agriculture Rs 9,790 crore. The budget also announced a separate Agri DISCOM for farmers' power connections, employment-linked industrial incentives of up to Rs 1 lakh per employee per year, and a higher bonus of Rs 2,000 per acre for pulses and oilseeds. The ministry that presented the budget is not named here, in line with our policy on office-holders.

For governance, the state portal lists SARAL Haryana for online citizen services, CM Window for grievances, and e-Mausam Krishi Sewa for farm weather advisories, and says that websites of all districts and 33 departments are accessible. We could not verify the launch dates or coverage of other well-known schemes such as the Parivar Pehchan Patra (family identity card), the Antyodaya Saral centres or the Right to Service Act, so they are not described here; check the state portal. Local bodies are run under the Haryana Panchayati Raj Act and the Haryana municipal laws; the 2022 panchayat amendment and the 2025 municipal elections are covered under Elections.

For exam preparation

• The 2026-27 budget was presented on 2 March 2026; its GSDP is projected at Rs 15,18,223 crore.
• Fiscal deficit is 2.7 per cent of GSDP and revenue deficit 0.9 per cent (budget estimates).
• Total expenditure excluding debt repayment is Rs 1,87,556 crore.
• Education has the largest sector allocation at Rs 22,736 crore, followed by social welfare at Rs 20,110 crore.
• The budget proposes an Agri DISCOM for agricultural power supply.

Economy

Haryana is a small state by area and population but one of the richest in India by income per person. Its economy sits next to Delhi and uses that position: Gurugram and Faridabad in the National Capital Region (NCR) carry services and heavy industry, the Manesar belt builds cars and motorcycles, and the flat, canal-fed plains in the rest of the state grow wheat, rice, mustard and milk for the national food system. As on October 2026, the state's Planning Department put gross state domestic product (GSDP) for 2025-26 at ₹13,67,769 crore on advance estimates, up 12.67% from ₹12,13,951 crore in 2024-25, as reported in a press account of the figures released on 29 January 2026. GSDP is the total value of goods and services produced inside a state in a year.

Size, growth and income

Indicator	Value	Source / note
GSDP, current prices, 2024-25	₹12,13,951 crore	Planning Department, as reported
GSDP, current prices, 2025-26 (advance estimate)	₹13,67,769 crore, growth 12.67%	Planning Department, as reported
GSDP, current prices, 2026-27 (budget projection)	₹15,18,223 crore, growth 11%	PRS analysis of the 2026-27 budget
Per capita income, 2024-25	₹3,58,171	State government figure, reported; the same account gives the national average as ₹2,19,575
Per capita GSDP, 2026-27 (projection)	₹4,41,216	PRS analysis of the budget
Gross value added by sector, 2024-25	Services 51.2%, industry 32.9%, agriculture 15.9%	Reported on a reference page; not checked against the Economic Survey

"Current prices" means the value in that year's rupees, so part of any rise is inflation. "Per capita income" divides the state's income by its population; it is an average and says nothing about how evenly income is spread. Per capita GSDP is a slightly different measure and is not directly comparable with per capita income, which is why the 2026-27 projection above is larger than the 2024-25 income figure.

The headline reading is that Haryana's per capita income is well above the national average and places the state among the top handful of larger states, according to the state's own account. We did not open the Economic Survey of Haryana itself, so the exact rank is not stated here. Services now produce more than half of value added, which is unusual for a state with such a large farming base, and it is explained mostly by Gurugram.

What drives the economy

• Services and IT. Gurugram is one of India's leading corporate and IT/business-process hubs. A reference page describes it as among the top three IT hubs in the country and the base of a very large number of Fortune 500 offices; we have not verified the count. Its growth took off after Maruti began manufacturing in the area in the 1980s and after multinational call-centre and software firms arrived from the late 1990s.
• Automobiles and manufacturing. A reference page reports that Haryana makes about 67% of India's passenger cars, 60% of motorcycles and 50% of tractors and refrigerators. These shares move with production cycles and are reported, not official; treat them as order-of-magnitude. The main clusters are Gurugram-Manesar-Bawal-Dharuhera in the south and Faridabad-Ballabhgarh in the east.
• Agriculture. Farming provides about 16% of value added but employs a larger share of people and supplies grain to the central pool, which is the national stock the government buys for the public distribution system.
• Exports. The state's account gives merchandise exports of US$19.10 billion for April 2024 to March 2025, a figure reported in a state press account.
• Start-ups. The same reference page reports 19 of India's 119 unicorns (start-ups valued above one billion US dollars) and nearly 10,000 registered start-ups in FY 2025. These are reported counts, not government statistics we have checked.

Public finances

The 2026-27 budget was presented on 2 March 2026. The figures below are PRS Legislative Research's analysis of the budget documents.

Item (2026-27 budget estimate)	Value
Fiscal deficit	2.7% of GSDP (₹40,293 crore)
Revenue deficit	0.9% of GSDP (₹13,188 crore)
Outstanding liabilities	25.8% of GSDP at the end of 2026-27
Own tax revenue	₹1,04,640 crore, up 11%
Share in central taxes	₹20,772 crore, up 36%
Grants from the Centre	₹9,881 crore, up 11%
Salaries / pensions / interest	₹34,989 crore / ₹17,430 crore / ₹29,267 crore

Fiscal deficit is the gap between total spending and income that does not create debt. Revenue deficit is the gap on day-to-day accounts alone. Haryana's fiscal deficit for 2024-25 was reported at 2.83% of GSDP, inside the 3% ceiling commonly applied under the state's Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management (FRBM) law; we did not open the state Act, so the exact current limits are not given here. Own taxes pay for most of the budget, unlike in many states that depend heavily on transfers: own tax revenue is roughly five times the state's share in central taxes. The largest taxes are GST (shared with the Centre), stamp duty and registration, excise and motor-vehicle tax; we did not obtain a source breakdown, so the order is not given.

Committed spending is large. Salaries, pensions and interest together come to about ₹81,700 crore in the budget estimate, adding the three lines above. Sector allocations in the same budget were education, sports and arts ₹22,736 crore; social welfare and nutrition ₹20,110 crore; health ₹12,840 crore; agriculture ₹9,790 crore; rural development ₹8,785 crore; transport ₹8,366 crore; and energy ₹6,860 crore.

Jobs and poverty

A state press account reports total employment of about 1.10 crore in 2023-24 and claims 27 lakh jobs created since 2014; both are government claims we could not cross-check. We did not confirm the state's latest unemployment rate (Periodic Labour Force Survey) or NITI Aayog's multidimensional poverty headcount, so neither is quoted. Check the latest releases before using them.

For exam preparation

• Haryana's GSDP for 2025-26 was put at about ₹13.68 lakh crore on advance estimates, growth 12.67%.
• Per capita income for 2024-25 was reported at ₹3,58,171, far above the national average of ₹2,19,575.
• Services contribute about 51% of value added, industry about 33% and agriculture about 16% (2024-25, reported).
• The 2026-27 budget projects GSDP at ₹15.18 lakh crore and a fiscal deficit of 2.7% of GSDP.
• Gurugram is the state's IT and corporate hub; Manesar and Faridabad are the main industrial clusters.

Agriculture, forests, minerals, industry and energy

Haryana feeds the nation out of proportion to its size. It has almost no forest and no large mines, but it has some of the most intensively irrigated farmland in India, a famous buffalo breed, and an industrial belt that circles Delhi. The state lies in the Indo-Gangetic plain, between the Himalayan foothills of the Shivaliks in the north-east and the last low ridges of the Aravalli range in the south.

Agriculture

Two crop seasons matter. Kharif crops are sown with the monsoon and harvested in autumn: rice, bajra (pearl millet), jowar, maize, cotton, sugarcane and groundnut. Rabi crops are sown in winter and harvested in spring: wheat, mustard (rapeseed), gram and barley. Wheat and rice dominate by area. Haryana is one of the main suppliers to the central pool; a reference account puts its contribution at about 14% (a figure from 2015-16, when foodgrain production was reported at 163.33 lakh tonnes), so use it only as a historical marker.

Basmati. The northern and eastern districts, especially Karnal, Kurukshetra, Kaithal and Yamunanagar, grow aromatic basmati rice. A reference page reports that Haryana supplies about 60% of India's basmati exports and about 7% of the country's agricultural exports. Basmati area and production were reported to have drifted down slightly over 2009-10 to 2018-19, even as yields improved, in an agricultural-economics study.

Green Revolution. The Green Revolution of the late 1960s used high-yielding wheat and rice varieties, fertiliser, assured irrigation and public procurement at fixed prices to raise grain output sharply. It began in Punjab around 1966-67 and spread to Haryana, which had been created from Punjab in 1966. In Hisar the state's agricultural university, Chaudhary Charan Singh Haryana Agricultural University (CCS HAU), began as a campus of Punjab Agricultural University and became a university under the Haryana and Punjab Agricultural Universities Act, which took effect on 2 February 1970. It reports about 250 released crop varieties and is listed as the largest agricultural university in Asia by area. The National Dairy Research Institute at Karnal is the country's main dairy research centre; the Central Institute for Research on Buffaloes is at Hisar. We opened no primary page for the Karnal and Hisar institutes, so use the names, not details.

Milk and the Murrah buffalo. Haryana calls itself the "milk pail" of the country and is the home tract of the Murrah buffalo, one of the world's leading dairy breeds. Roughly 80% of the state's milk comes from buffaloes. A Murrah can give about 4,000 litres of milk per lactation, against 2,000 to 2,200 litres for mixed-breed buffaloes (state reports). The state's agriculture department has reported annual milk output of about 116.29 lakh tonnes and per capita availability of 1,083 grams a day, with Haryana ranking second among states on the latter; the year of that report was not stated, so check the latest Basic Animal Husbandry Statistics before quoting.

Irrigation. Canals and tubewells irrigate nearly all cropped land. The older canal systems are the Western Yamuna Canal and the Sutlej-based systems from the Bhakra complex; the Indira Gandhi Canal and the Sutlej Yamuna Link (SYL) are also named in state geography accounts, and the SYL's completion remains a long-running inter-state dispute. Groundwater is over-used, especially in the paddy belt, so the state pays farmers to move away from paddy: the 2025-26 budget raised the subsidy for abandoning paddy under Mera Pani, Meri Viraasat from ₹7,000 to ₹8,000 an acre, and for direct-seeded rice from ₹4,000 to ₹4,500 an acre. The same budget set a target of one lakh acres under natural farming.

Forests and wildlife

Haryana has one of the smallest forest covers among Indian states. The India State of Forest Report 2023 shows forest cover of about 1,614 sq km, around 3.65% to 4% of the state's geographical area of 44,212 sq km (sources round it differently), up by about 12 sq km from 2019. Very dense and moderately dense forests shrank slightly between 2021 and 2023 while open forest grew. The state Forest Department reports a legal forest area of 2,06,697.56 hectares (2022-23), mostly Protected Forest, and about 68 million trees under agroforestry, meaning trees planted on farms and along roads.

Protected areas: two national parks (Kalesar in Yamunanagar, about 11,570 acres, and Sultanpur in Gurugram, about 352 acres); eight wildlife sanctuaries, including Khol-Hi-Raitan and Bir Shikargah in Panchkula, Bhindawas and Kaparwas in Jhajjar, Chilchilla in Kurukshetra and Nahar in Rewari; two conservation reserves; and eight community reserves. Sultanpur National Park and Bhindawas Wildlife Sanctuary were designated Ramsar sites in 2021. A Ramsar site is a wetland of international importance under a 1971 treaty.

Minerals

The mineral base is thin. Southern districts, mainly Mahendragarh, have limestone, slate, dolomite, silica and clay. Haryana has no coal, iron ore or oil. The state's heavy industry therefore depends on inputs brought in from other states. We did not find a reliable source for mining revenue or output, so none is quoted.

Industry

• Gurugram-Manesar-Bawal-Dharuhera. Cars (Maruti began here), motorcycles and auto components. Hero MotoCorp is among the manufacturers named in a reference account of the Manesar area.
• Faridabad. Engineering, tractors and consumer durables. JCB India, Yamaha Motor India and Whirlpool are named in that account.
• Yamunanagar. Paper (BILT) and plywood, alongside sugar mills.
• Panipat, Sonipat, Rohtak, Hisar. Textiles, handlooms, steel and agricultural machinery; we did not verify sector details district by district.
• Industrial planning bodies. Industrial estates are developed by the Haryana State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation (HSIIDC), which also maintains the Kundli-Manesar-Palwal expressway.

Energy

Power is bought and supplied by state utilities, and generation includes thermal plants, hydro shares from the Bhakra-Beas system, and solar. The largest project under way is the Gorakhpur Haryana Anu Vidyut Pariyojana in Fatehabad district, built by the Nuclear Power Corporation of India (NPCIL). It will have 2,800 MW in two phases of two 700 MW units each; the foundation stone was laid on 13 January 2014, construction began in 2022, and the first Phase I units were reported as planned for commercial operation in 2028 and 2029. It draws cooling water from the Bhakra Main Line canal. We did not obtain verified figures for installed capacity, plant names or solar capacity, so those are omitted.

For exam preparation

• Haryana was carved out of Punjab on 1 November 1966.
• The Murrah buffalo is the state's signature breed; about 80% of its milk comes from buffaloes.
• CCS Haryana Agricultural University, Hisar, was established on 2 February 1970.
• Haryana has two national parks, Kalesar and Sultanpur, and eight wildlife sanctuaries.
• Sultanpur National Park and Bhindawas Sanctuary became Ramsar sites in 2021.
• Forest cover was about 1,614 sq km in ISFR 2023, roughly 3.65% to 4% of the state.
• Gorakhpur (Fatehabad) is the site of the state's nuclear plant, under construction.

Transport and infrastructure

Haryana is a corridor state. The main roads and railways from Delhi to Punjab, Rajasthan and the hills pass through it, and Delhi's airport, ring roads and metro now extend into it. Its transport story is therefore mostly about roads and rail built to link the national capital region.

Roads and expressways

The Kundli-Manesar-Palwal (KMP) Expressway, also called the Western Peripheral Expressway, is a six-lane, access-controlled road of about 135.6 km that opened on 19 November 2018. It forms a semicircle around Delhi's west, linking NH-44 at Kundli in the north, NH-9 at Bahadurgarh, NH-48 at Manesar and NH-19 at Palwal in the south. With the Eastern Peripheral Expressway (about 135 km, also opened in 2018) it completes a ring of about 270 km around Delhi, intended to divert heavy through-traffic away from the city. The KMP is maintained by HSIIDC. We did not confirm the state's total national-highway length or the status of other expressway projects, so they are left out.

Railways

A parliamentary reply cited in a rail-transport reference puts the broad-gauge network at 1,701 route kilometres, fully electrified (this is an older figure; check the latest). Three railway zones serve the state: Northern Railway in the Ambala-Yamunanagar-Kalka belt, North Western Railway in the Loharu-Hisar-Fatehabad-Sirsa belt, and North Central Railway in the Delhi-side belt (as reported; zone boundaries were reorganised in the past, so verify before quoting). Major junctions include Ambala, Panipat, Kurukshetra, Rohtak, Hisar, Rewari and Bhiwani.

The Haryana Orbital Rail Corridor is a 121 km line from Palwal to Sonipat (Harsana Kalan on the Delhi-Ambala line) planned as a rail bypass for Delhi; the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs approved it at ₹5,617 crore. About 20,000 passengers a day and 50 million tonnes of goods a year are projected. We did not confirm the construction status.

Metro

Haryana's metro links are extensions of the Delhi system and a private line: the Delhi border to HUDA City Centre in Gurugram (about 7 km), Badarpur to Faridabad (about 13.9 km), Mundka to Bahadurgarh (about 4.9 km) and the Ballabhgarh extension (about 3.2 km). The Rapid Metro in Gurugram, which began running in 2013, covers about 11.7 km. Lengths are as listed in a state assembly reply and reference page; extensions may have changed them.

Air

Maharaja Agrasen Airport at Hisar began commercial flights in April 2025 under the UDAN regional connectivity scheme, first to Ayodhya (the date is given as 13 or 14 April 2025 in different accounts), with Jaipur and Chandigarh services added later. A foundation stone was laid in April 2025 for a new terminal, cargo terminal and air-traffic-control building worth over ₹410 crore (about ₹4.1 billion), expected to take about two years. Gurugram and most of the NCR depend on Delhi's airport; this guide does not give other airports as we did not verify them.

Water and power supply

The Western Yamuna Canal (originally cut by Firoz Shah Tughlaq in the fourteenth century, silted by about 1750, and restored by the British from 1817, with a barrage at Tajewala in 1832-33 and a new one at Hathnikund in 1999) is the water backbone of northern Haryana. Its main canal is listed as 86 km, with about 325 km including branches, and it feeds branches in Hansi, Sirsa, Rohtak and Delhi; the Munak Canal carries water to Delhi. The Bhakra system supplies the south-western districts and also cools the Gorakhpur nuclear plant.

For exam preparation

• The KMP Expressway is about 135.6 km long and opened on 19 November 2018.
• The Haryana Orbital Rail Corridor runs 121 km from Palwal to Sonipat.
• Hisar's Maharaja Agrasen Airport started commercial flights in April 2025.
• Gurugram's Rapid Metro began operating in 2013.
• The Western Yamuna Canal was first built in the Tughlaq period and restored under British rule.

Culture, tribes and heritage

Haryana's culture is rural, martial and agricultural. It is the land associated with the Mahabharata war at Kurukshetra and the Harappan town at Rakhigarhi, and its everyday culture is Jat, Ahir, Gujjar, Rajput, Brahmin, Bania and many other communities speaking Haryanvi, a dialect continuum related to Hindi. This section covers language, social groups, performing arts, festivals, food and crafts.

Languages and literature

Hindi is the official language, and Punjabi was made a second official language in 2010. A reference page reports Hindi speakers at about 48%, Haryanvi at about 37.2% and Punjabi at about 7.36%; these shares come from census-based tabulations and depend on how the census groups mother tongues, so use them as indicative. Haryanvi has regional forms (Bangru in the centre, with Ahirwati, Bagri and Mewati toward the south and west; we did not verify the classification and treat it as general knowledge). Its literary life is largely oral: the Saang plays and Ragini songs described below, along with folk tales and devotional verse, are the major forms. The state's cultural body, the Haryana Sahitya Akademi, runs awards; we did not open its page.

Social groups and tribes

Haryana has no Scheduled Tribes notified under the Constitution; Census 2011 reports tribal people as effectively zero per cent of the population. Scheduled Castes are about 20.17% of the population (Census 2011, from a data aggregator quoting census tables). The cultural identity of the state is therefore built on caste-based farming communities and artisans rather than tribes. Nomadic and denotified groups exist in the state, but we did not verify details, so none is listed.

Social identity	What to know
Scheduled Tribes	None notified in Haryana
Scheduled Castes	About 20.17% of the population (Census 2011, reported)
Dominant rural communities	Jat, Ahir (Yadav), Gujjar, Rajput and others; not quantified here
Religion (Census 2011)	Hindu 87.46%, Muslim 7.03%, Sikh 4.91%

Folk theatre: Saang

Saang (also Swang, "imitation") is the signature performing art. It is a dialogue-led folk theatre in which a group of ten or twelve performers tell religious stories and folk tales in an open space with audiences around them, often through the night. Performances can last five or six hours, use little staging and no amplification in the traditional form, and end with the victory of good over evil. Men have traditionally played female roles, a convention linked in the sources to the Mughal-era ban on women performing in public, though all-women troupes are reported from the late nineteenth century in western Uttar Pradesh and Haryana. Tradition credits Kishan Lal Bhaat with fixing the present style about two hundred years ago, though accounts of the date differ.

The stories come from several sources: tales of King Vikramaditya, the love story of Heer and Ranjha, and episodes from the Indian epics are all staple plots, and later troupes added social themes such as health, literacy and women's empowerment. One account says the form was already active in the era of Kabir and Guru Nanak, which would make it far older than the style credited to Kishan Lal Bhaat. Present-day practitioners keep living troupes (mandalis) going and have performed at venues such as the National School of Drama in Delhi; the form is therefore regularly cited as a case of folk theatre being revived rather than lost.

Historic masters of the form, with their dates: Deep Chand Bahman (1884 to 1940), called the "Shakespeare" of Haryana; Pandit Lakhmi Chand (1903 to 1945), called "Surya Kavi" (sun poet) of Haryanvi Ragini; Baje Bhagat (1898 to 1936); Jat Mehar Singh (1918 to 1944); Mange Ram (1906 to 1967); Pandit Nathu Ram (1902 to 1990); and Dayachand Mayna (1915 to 1993). Pandit Lakhmi Chand's stagings of classical tales such as Nal Damyanti and Meera Bai are often cited.

Ragini

Ragini (Raagni) is the folk-poetic and musical form that carries Saang. It is narrative verse set to simple melodies on love, separation, heroism, morality, philosophy and social life. It is performed inside Saang but also on its own at fairs and weddings. Ragini competitions are a common feature of Haryanvi cultural festivals.

Folk dance

Dance	Who and when	Notes
Phag	Men and women; the month of Phalguna, in spring, at harvest	Joy after months of farm work; clapping, song
Ghoomar	Women and girls; Holi, Teej, Gangaur; popular in western Haryana	Circular, twirling; songs with humour and satire
Loor	Girls; Phalguna, around Holi	Question-and-answer songs; spring and rabi sowing
Khoria	Women; weddings when the men are in the baraat	Based on the Jhumar style; starts slowly, speeds up
Jhumar	Young married women	Named for an ornament; dholak and thali; also called "Haryanvi Gidda" in some areas
Dhamal	Men; after harvest; popular in the Gurugram area among Ahirs	Semi-circle, loud singing and drums
Daph	Men and women; spring	Danced to the single-sided daph drum
Gugga	Men; religious processions	Devotional, for the saint Gugga Pir
Chhathi	Women; sixth night after a son's birth	Ritual dance, with wheat and gram distributed
Ras Leela	Faridabad (Braj border)	Krishna drama

Music and the village calendar

Haryanvi folk music is closely tied to the farming year. Songs are sung at weddings, at the birth of a child, in the spring festival season and at harvest, often with a dholak (two-headed hand drum), a thali (metal plate used as percussion) or the single-sided daph. The Phag and Loor dances belong to the month of Phalguna, when the winter crop ripens; Ghoomar and Jhumar are linked to Teej and wedding celebrations; and Gugga, which honours the saint Gugga Pir, is danced in processions. A reference account links the Dhamal dance of the Ahir community to the Mahabharata age and says it is performed after a good harvest, with prayers first offered to Ganesha, Bhavani and the Trinity; this is a traditional association, not a documented history. Women's songs at birth and marriage rites form a large part of the oral tradition and are less visible in print than Saang and Ragini.

Festivals and fairs

Festival or fair	When and where	Notes
International Gita Mahotsav	Kurukshetra, around Gita Jayanti in late November to December; the 2024 edition began on 28 November	Organised by the Kurukshetra Development Board, Haryana Tourism and the district administration with the North Zone Cultural Centre, Patiala; includes verse recitation, lamps at Brahma Sarovar, exhibitions
Surajkund International Crafts Mela	Surajkund, Faridabad, 1 to 15 February each year	First held in 1987 on about 3 acres; a 40-acre ground with about 1,000 huts; became "International" in 2012 with Thailand as the first partner nation
Teej	Monsoon; Ghoomar and swings	Women's festival
Holi and Phalguna festivals	Spring	Phag, Loor and Daph dances
Gugga Navami	Late monsoon	Honours Gugga Pir

Surajkund Mela is held by Haryana Tourism and the Surajkund Mela Authority together with the Union ministries of Textiles, Culture, Tourism and External Affairs, and about 1.2 million visitors, including 200,000 foreigners, are reported in a tourism-department description.

Food, crafts and heritage

The Haryanvi diet is vegetarian and dairy-rich: milk, butter, ghee, curd and lassi, with bajra and wheat rotis and kadhi. We did not obtain a verified source on specific dishes or on Geographical Indication (GI) tags for Haryana, so no list is given. Rewari was historically known for brassworks and turbans, and The Surajkund Mela displays crafts from all states, including textiles, wood, stone, terracotta, cane and lacquerware.

Heritage is dominated by Rakhigarhi in Hisar district, a large Harappan site reported to cover about 550 hectares. The 2025-26 excavation season uncovered eight burials at Mound No. 7, and the remains were transferred to the Anthropological Survey of India for DNA, isotope and other study under an agreement announced on 22 June 2026. The Mughal-era Pinjore Gardens and Sheikh Chilli's tomb at Thanesar also belong here and are covered under Tourism below.

For exam preparation

• Saang (Swang) is Haryana's traditional folk theatre; Ragini is its musical verse form.
• Pandit Lakhmi Chand (1903 to 1945) is called "Surya Kavi" of Haryanvi Ragini; Deep Chand Bahman is called the "Shakespeare" of Haryana.
• Haryana has no notified Scheduled Tribes; Scheduled Castes are about 20.17% (Census 2011).
• Ghoomar, Phag, Loor, Khoria, Jhumar and Dhamal are among the main folk dances.
• Surajkund Mela began in 1987 and is held from 1 to 15 February; it became "International" in 2012.
• The International Gita Mahotsav is held at Kurukshetra.
• Punjabi became Haryana's second official language in 2010.

Tourism and places of interest

Haryana's tourism is built around pilgrimage, archaeology and day-trip leisure for Delhi and Chandigarh residents. The best-known places are Kurukshetra, the Harappan site at Rakhigarhi, the Surajkund fair, Sultanpur bird sanctuary and the Shivalik hill settlements.

Key sites

Place	District	Why it matters
Brahma Sarovar	Kurukshetra	Large sacred tank, tradition says created by Brahma; lamps float at Gita Jayanti; Kurukshetra University lies on its western bank
Jyotisar	Kurukshetra	Spot where, by tradition, Krishna delivered the Bhagavad Gita; marked by a banyan tree
Sheikh Chilli's tomb	Thanesar (Kurukshetra)	Mughal-era tomb with gardens, associated with a Sufi saint
Rakhigarhi	Hisar	Among the largest known Harappan settlements; about 550 hectares (reported); museum and interpretation centre under development
Sultanpur National Park	Gurugram	Bird sanctuary; Ramsar site since 2021
Surajkund	Faridabad	Site of the annual crafts mela; ground near an ancient reservoir
Pinjore Gardens	Panchkula	Terraced Mughal-style garden with Sheesh Mahal, Rang Mahal and Jal Mahal; attributed to Fidai Khan of Aurangzeb's court
Morni Hills	Panchkula	Haryana's only hill station, with pine, oak and eucalyptus
Kalesar National Park	Yamunanagar	Shivalik forest; about 11,570 acres
Bhindawas Sanctuary	Jhajjar	Wetland bird sanctuary; Ramsar site since 2021

Kurukshetra

Kurukshetra is the main pilgrimage centre. Tradition places the Mahabharata war here, and the International Gita Mahotsav celebrates the Bhagavad Gita each winter. A reference page lists the Mahotsav as a multi-week event with recitations, dramas, book exhibitions and free health camps. Sheikh Chilli's tomb at Thanesar and Brahma Sarovar are the two sights most visitors take in together.

Sultanpur and wetlands

Sultanpur is one of the oldest bird sanctuaries in the north. It was declared a bird sanctuary in the early 1970s (sources give April 1971 and 1972), raised to a national park in July 1991, and recognised as a Ramsar site on 25 May 2021. It covers only about 1.43 sq km. Visitors see over 250 resident and migratory species, with about 200 migratory species arriving between October and March from Europe, Siberia and Central Asia. Greater flamingo and demoiselle crane are named among the visitors.

Archaeology

Rakhigarhi is the most important archaeological site. The Archaeological Survey of India continues to dig there. The Chief Secretary visited in January 2025 and issued directions to relocate families and remove encroachments around the site, according to a state-affairs summary. The Indus-Saraswati Civilisation, in this site's context, means the Harappan culture linked to the dried-up Ghaggar-Hakra river system. We have no verified details on other protected monuments such as Agroha, Hansi or Tosham, so they are not described.

Pinjore and the Shivalik belt

Pinjore Gardens in Panchkula are terraced in the Mughal manner, with fountains, a Sheesh Mahal (mirror palace), a Rang Mahal and a Jal Mahal; a tourism account attributes the design to Fidai Khan, a courtier of Aurangzeb. The garden lies at the foot of the Shivalik hills, close to Chandigarh, and Morni Hills, the state's only hill station, is a short drive away. Kalesar National Park in Yamunanagar, with about 11,570 acres of Shivalik forest, is the largest protected area in the state by the figures we found. Bir Shikargah and Khol-Hi-Raitan sanctuaries in Panchkula are the other Shivalik reserves.

Festival tourism

Two annual events dominate the calendar. The International Gita Mahotsav in Kurukshetra, held around Gita Jayanti in late November and December, is organised jointly by the Kurukshetra Development Board, Haryana Tourism, the district administration, the North Zone Cultural Centre in Patiala and the information department. Reports of the 2024 edition give it a start date of 28 November. The Surajkund International Crafts Mela runs from 1 to 15 February in Faridabad. Both draw visitors from outside the state and are the best times for a first visit.

Adventure and leisure

A hot-air balloon safari was inaugurated at Pinjore in November 2023, one of several new tourism offerings near Chandigarh.

For exam preparation

• Brahma Sarovar and Jyotisar are in Kurukshetra, the Mahabharata and Bhagavad Gita centre.
• Sultanpur National Park (Gurugram) is a Ramsar site since 2021.
• Rakhigarhi (Hisar) is among the largest known Harappan settlements.
• Morni is Haryana's only hill station.
• Pinjore Gardens are in Panchkula.
• The Surajkund Mela runs 1 to 15 February; the Gita Mahotsav is in November and December.

Education, health, sports and personalities

Haryana's education system is centred on a few older universities in Kurukshetra, Rohtak and Hisar and a growing set of national institutions. Its sports story is much more distinctive: a small state that regularly produces a large share of India's Olympic medallists, especially in wrestling, boxing, athletics and shooting.

Education

Haryana's literacy rate was 84.8% in 2024 (a reference-page figure, 18th among states); the last census reading is from 2011, so any comparison should use the same source and year. Women's literacy lags men's. Key institutions:

Institution	Place	What to know
Kurukshetra University	Kurukshetra	Founded 1956 as a residential university, inaugurated by India's first President; 473 acres beside Brahma Sarovar; reported A++ NAAC grade in 2024
National Institute of Technology, Kurukshetra	Kurukshetra	Founded in 1963 as Regional Engineering College (a joint venture of the Centre and Punjab); renamed an NIT in 2002
Maharshi Dayanand University (MDU)	Rohtak	Set up as Rohtak University by an Act of 1975 and begun in 1976; renamed in 1977 after Dayananda Saraswati; an affiliating state university
CCS Haryana Agricultural University	Hisar	University from 2 February 1970; started as a campus of Punjab Agricultural University
Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Rohtak	Rohtak	Set up in 2010 with IIM Lucknow as the first mentor; permanent campus at Sunaria, about 200 acres; has the country's first IIM law programme (integrated BBA-LLB)
National Dairy Research Institute	Karnal	National dairy research centre

The state also has two AIIMS projects: AIIMS Rewari (Majra) and the National Cancer Institute at Jhajjar. We could not verify their current operating status, so check the latest notification before treating either as running. IIM Rohtak's recent rank is given as 12th (NIRF 2023) in one source and 16th in another, so no rank is given here.

Health

We did not open NFHS or Sample Registration System tables for Haryana, so no health-indicator figures are given. The 2025-26 budget announced advanced diagnostic equipment (CT, MRI, ultrasound, digital X-ray) and 50-bed critical-care blocks in district hospitals and medical colleges. Haryana's low child sex ratio is the best-known social indicator: the Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao campaign was launched at Panipat on 22 January 2015 to address it. A sex ratio of 892 females per 1,000 males is reported for 2025 on a reference page (29th among states); Census 2011 recorded 879, which is a decade-old figure we did not reopen. Use Census 2011 for exam questions on the sex ratio.

Sports

Haryana's wrestling tradition rests on village akharas (training pits), and boxing is strong in Bhiwani district. Olympic medallists born in the state, each linked to a Haryana village or district:

Athlete	Sport	Olympic medal	Village / district
Vijender Singh	Boxing	Bronze, Beijing 2008, middleweight (75 kg); first Indian boxer to win an Olympic medal	Kaluwas, Bhiwani
Yogeshwar Dutt	Wrestling	Bronze, London 2012, 60 kg freestyle	Bhainswal Kalan, Sonipat
Sakshi Malik	Wrestling	Bronze, Rio 2016, 58 kg; first Indian woman wrestler to win an Olympic medal	Mokhra, Rohtak
Bajrang Punia	Wrestling	Bronze, Tokyo 2020, 65 kg	Khudan, Jhajjar
Ravi Kumar Dahiya	Wrestling	Silver, Tokyo 2020, 57 kg	Nahri, Sonipat
Neeraj Chopra	Athletics (javelin)	Gold, Tokyo 2020 (87.58 m); silver, Paris 2024 (89.45 m)	Khandra, Panipat
Manu Bhaker	Shooting	Two bronzes at Paris 2024 (10 m air pistol, and mixed team); first Indian to win two medals at one Games since independence	Goria, Jhajjar
Aman Sehrawat	Wrestling	Bronze, Paris 2024, 57 kg; youngest Indian individual Olympic medallist (21 years)	Birohar, Jhajjar

Neeraj Chopra also won gold at the 2023 World Athletics Championships, the first Asian javelin world champion in a reference account, and at the Asian Games of 2018 and 2022 and the 2018 Commonwealth Games. Yogeshwar Dutt won Commonwealth Games gold in 2010 and 2014 and Asian Games gold in 2014.

We have not verified the state's sports policy, cash awards, stadium list or medal-share statistics, so none are quoted here.

Notable people

Person	Field	Note
Pandit Lakhmi Chand (1903 to 1945)	Saang and Ragini	Called "Surya Kavi"
Deep Chand Bahman (1884 to 1940)	Saang	Called the "Shakespeare" of Haryana
Dayachand Mayna (1915 to 1993)	Saang	Folk artist
Vijender Singh, Sakshi Malik, Yogeshwar Dutt, Neeraj Chopra, Manu Bhaker	Sport	See the table above

We have not verified entries for scientists, politicians or writers beyond these, so the list is intentionally short.

For exam preparation

• Kurukshetra University was founded in 1956; MDU Rohtak began in 1976.
• NIT Kurukshetra started as Regional Engineering College in 1963 and became an NIT in 2002.
• IIM Rohtak was set up in 2010 and offers a law programme (IPL).
• CCS HAU Hisar is the state agricultural university (1970).
• Vijender Singh won India's first Olympic boxing medal (bronze, 2008).
• Sakshi Malik (Rohtak) won India's first Olympic wrestling medal by a woman (bronze, 2016).
• Neeraj Chopra won Olympic gold in the javelin at Tokyo 2020 and silver at Paris 2024.
• Manu Bhaker won two shooting bronzes at Paris 2024.

Government schemes

Haryana's schemes fall into three groups: women and youth, farmers and water, and health and administration. Amounts below are as reported in the PRS analysis of the 2025-26 budget (as on October 2026) and may have changed; confirm each from the latest government order.

Scheme	What it does	Notes
Lado Laxmi Yojana	Monthly cash transfer of ₹2,100 to eligible women	2025-26 allocation ₹5,000 crore; eligibility rules (age, income, domicile) are set by the state, and we did not verify them
Mukhyamantri Yuva Kaushal Samman Yojana	Internship for final-year students with a monthly honorarium of ₹10,000	Targeted at 2,000 students in the 2025-26 budget
Haryana AI Mission	Two AI hubs (Gurugram and Panchkula); training for more than 50,000 professionals	Announced in the 2025-26 budget
Mera Pani, Meri Viraasat	Pays farmers to leave paddy for other crops: ₹8,000 an acre (up from ₹7,000); direct-seeded rice ₹4,500 an acre (up from ₹4,000)	Water conservation in over-used areas
Natural farming programme	Expansion toward one lakh acres in 2025-26	Budget target
District hospital upgrade	Advanced diagnostics and 50-bed critical care in each district hospital and medical college	Health infrastructure
Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao	National campaign to improve the child sex ratio and girls' education	Launched in Panipat on 22 January 2015; now national

How to read scheme figures

State schemes are announced in the budget speech, then put into effect by a department notification that sets eligibility, the documents needed and the payment route. The budget figure is therefore an intent, not a promise of what an individual will receive. The 2025-26 allocations above are the only amounts we could confirm from an opened source. For the 2026-27 budget, the PRS summary lists the main sector allocations rather than scheme-level amounts; the education, social welfare and nutrition, health and agriculture figures are in the Economy section above. For competitive exams, questions on schemes usually ask the launch year, the target group and the department, so note those three details when you revise.

Beyond these, we did not verify other widely mentioned state schemes (family-identity records, crop-registration portals, pensions, health insurance), so they are not described. Check the state portals and notifications for current eligibility and amounts, and treat any figure on this page as of October 2026 only.

For exam preparation

• Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao was launched at Panipat on 22 January 2015.
• The Lado Laxmi Yojana offers ₹2,100 a month to eligible women (budget 2025-26).
• Mera Pani, Meri Viraasat pays farmers to move away from paddy.
• The Haryana AI Mission plans hubs at Gurugram and Panchkula.

Government exams in Haryana

Most government jobs in Haryana come through two commissions in Panchkula. The Haryana Public Service Commission (HPSC) selects the Haryana Civil Services (Executive Branch) and the allied officer services. The Haryana Staff Selection Commission (HSSC) recruits Group C and Group D staff, including police constables, through a two-stage system built around the Common Eligibility Test (CET). Teacher eligibility sits with the Board of School Education Haryana through the Haryana Teacher Eligibility Test (HTET), and the Punjab and Haryana High Court has its own court-staff recruitment. Notification dates, vacancy counts, fees and age limits change with every advertisement, so treat every figure below as a pointer and read the latest notice before applying. Where a figure comes from an exam-prep or news site rather than an official document, we write "reported".

For a list of live openings, see Haryana government jobs. Group C and D recruitment is a ranked pool: you write the CET once, the score stays valid for three years, and you then apply to individual advertisements.

Haryana Public Service Commission (HPSC)

The HPSC works from Bays 1-10, Block B, Sector 4, Panchkula. Wikipedia gives its founding as 1 November 1966, the day Haryana was formed, and a strength of one chairperson and five members, appointed by the Governor. We do not name any member or chairman because they change; see current affairs for the latest. When we opened the commission's homepage on 4 October 2026, it carried notices for the "HCS (Ex. Br.) & Other Allied Services Examination - 2025" (mains result, interview schedule and a physical measurement test) and an open advertisement for Food Safety Officer (Group B), Advertisement No. 25 of 2026.

HCS (Executive Branch) and allied services

This is the flagship combined exam. In the last official notice we could open in full (Advertisement No. 3/2021), the services on offer were HCS (Executive Branch), Deputy Superintendent of Police, Excise and Taxation Officer, District Food and Supplies Controller, Tehsildar, Assistant Registrar Cooperative Societies, Assistant Excise and Taxation Officer, Block Development and Panchayat Officer, Traffic Manager, District Food and Supplies Officer and Assistant Employment Officer. That notice says HCS (Executive Branch) is Group A and the rest are Group B. The list of services changes between advertisements, so read the current one.

The exam has three stages: Preliminary, Main and Personality Test. The pattern below is from the 2021 notice; a 2025 amendment to the HCS rules reportedly changed the Mains, as the next paragraph explains.

Stage	Pattern (2021 official notice)
Prelims	Two objective papers, 100 marks each, two hours each, bilingual. One-fourth mark deducted per wrong answer. Paper II (Civil Services Aptitude Test) is qualifying at 33%. Ranking uses Paper I only, and prelims marks do not count in the final result.
Mains	Four papers, 600 marks: English with essay (100), Hindi with essay (100), General Studies (200), one optional subject (200). Qualifying rule: 45% in aggregate and 33% in each of Hindi and English.
Personality Test	75 marks. Final merit is out of 675 (Mains plus interview).

In 2021, candidates equal to twelve times the posts were admitted to the Mains. Reported by Drishti IAS and other prep sites, the revised Mains drops the optional subject for six compulsory papers of 100 marks each (English, Hindi, General Studies I to IV, with Ethics as the fourth), still 600 marks, with the same 75-mark interview. We did not open the amendment rules, so confirm the scheme in the current notice. Unacademy reports, for the latest cycle, a notification on 30 January 2026, 102 posts, a prelims on 26 April 2026 (48,087 appeared, 1,899 qualified) and a Mains on 27 to 29 June 2026; we could not match these to an official notice.

Eligibility in the 2021 notice was a bachelor's degree and an age of 18 to 42 on 1 January of the year (DSP 18 to 27). Two prep sites give a lower age of 21; check the current notice.

Haryana Staff Selection Commission (HSSC)

The HSSC is at Bays 67-70, Sector 2, Panchkula. Wikipedia says it was created on 28 January 1970 as the Subordinate Services Selection Board; the Haryana Staff Selection Commission (Process of Recruitment of Group C and D Posts) Rules, 2025, notified on 27 May 2025, now govern how it works. When we opened its homepage on 4 October 2026, it showed "Apply for CET Group D-05/2026" and "Advt no. 06/2026", along with notices on Primary Teacher posts, physical screening tests and answer keys.

The CET: what it is and how it works

The CET policy was notified by the General Administration Department on 31 December 2024, replacing the 2022 version, and applies to direct recruitment to Group C posts (including police, prisons and home guards, but excluding teaching posts and ex-Agniveers) and to Group D posts other than those needing less than a Matric qualification. The key rules, from the policy text we read:

• Two separate tests. There is one CET for Group C (Class 12 level) and one for Group D (Matric level), though Hindi and English are at Matric level in both.
• Syllabus split. 75% is general awareness, reasoning, quantitative ability, English, Hindi (plus computer knowledge for Group C), and 25% is the history, current affairs, literature, geography, environment and culture of Haryana.
• Qualifying marks. 50% for general category and 40% for reserved categories (vertical and horizontal).
• Validity. CET marks stay valid for three years from the date of the result; you can re-appear to improve them, with no limit on attempts, and the higher score replaces the lower. The bonus marks for "socio-economic criteria" are gone. Careers360 reports that the Punjab and Haryana High Court struck down the 5% bonus on 31 May 2024, that the Supreme Court dismissed the state's appeal in June 2024, and that the policy was amended in December 2024. The 2024 policy text we read has no bonus. One prep site mentions a further change dated 12 February 2026 for Group D, which we could not confirm.

CET Group C pattern (official, from HSSC Advertisement No. 02/2026). There are 100 multiple-choice questions for 100 marks in 1 hour 45 minutes, in Hindi and English, on an OMR sheet. There is no negative mark for a wrong answer, but there is a catch: each question has a fifth circle for "not attempting", and if you leave a question blank without filling that circle, one mark is deducted. In other words, never leave a question without marking something. Prep sites report this subject-wise split: General Awareness 15, Reasoning 15, Quantitative Aptitude 15, English 10, Hindi 10, Computer 10 and Haryana General Knowledge 25. The 75/25 split is official but the individual subject numbers are reported; they can change.

CET Group D pattern (reported). 100 questions, 100 marks, 105 minutes, the same fifth-bubble rule, 50% or 40% to qualify, Hindi or Sanskrit at Matric; the same page gives a notification of 18 June 2026 and applications from 19 June to 3 July 2026. We ignore its unofficial vacancy estimate. Under the 2025 Rules, Group D is shortlisted on CET marks alone, followed by a willingness application.

Group C: Phase II (the post-wise exam)

For Group C, the CET is only the first gate. The HSSC then advertises posts, and CET-qualified candidates apply for each post. In the notices we read (Advt. 02/2026 published on 9 January 2026, with applications from 2 to 15 February 2026; Advt. 03/2026 for Steno posts; Advt. 04/2026 published on 6 February 2026, with applications from 9 to 23 February 2026), no application fee was charged, and the Commission invites only the top candidates on CET score, up to ten times the number of advertised posts. Candidates then appear for a skill test and/or a written exam, and the final result uses those marks, not the CET. The pass mark is 50% for general and 40% for reserved candidates. If marks are tied, the older candidate gets precedence.

The Phase II syllabus depends on the post. For one common higher-secondary group, the official syllabus shows about 20% general awareness, reasoning, mathematics, science and Haryana history and geography, 10% computer fundamentals and 70% subject knowledge, flagged as tentative. Advertisements of 2024 were withdrawn by a notice of 2 July 2025 and candidates were asked to apply afresh, so read each advertisement in full.

Haryana Police constable and Sub-Inspector

Police posts are Group C posts of the Home Department, so they use the CET. Under the 2025 Rules, the Commission calls candidates by CET merit for a Physical Measurement Test and a Physical Screening Test, both of which are qualifying only, and then holds the written test; NCC marks, where given, are added to the written score.

For the latest constable cycle, Careers360 reports registration from 11 to 25 January 2026, 5,500 posts (4,500 male and 600 female general duty, and 400 male Government Railway Police), a CET Group C pass as the entry condition, Class 12 with Hindi or Sanskrit at Matric, and an age of 18 to 25 years on 1 January 2026. Prep sites report a 100-mark written test of 90 minutes with no negative marking, with about 20% on Haryana GK and 3 bonus marks for NCC. Reported physical standards, which differ between sites, include a minimum male height of 170 cm and a chest of 83 to 87 cm; we could not confirm any number from an official notice, so use the advertisement. Haryana also announced in July 2024, as reported by Careers360, a 10% reservation for ex-Agniveers in constable and similar uniformed posts and 5% in directly recruited Group C civil posts.

Sub-Inspector recruitment also runs through the HSSC. Search summaries from prep sites mention a graduate degree and a 100-question, 80-mark written test of 90 minutes; we did not open an official SI notice, so we give no age, height or vacancy figures.

Teacher eligibility: HTET

The Haryana Teacher Eligibility Test (HTET) is conducted by the Board of School Education Haryana (BSEH). Under the 2025 Rules, "teaching posts" are those for which passing the HTET is an essential qualification, and these are outside the CET system; the HTET score is not used for the merit list of the later written exam. A prep site reports the following, which we could not check on the board's site, because it showed a maintenance message when we opened it on 4 October 2026:

• Three levels: Level 1 (PRT) for classes 1 to 5, Level 2 (TGT) for classes 6 to 8 and Level 3 (PGT) for classes 9 and above.
• 150 multiple-choice questions of one mark each, 150 minutes, no negative marking, offline.
• Qualifying marks of 60% (90 of 150) for general candidates and 55% (82) for reserved categories of Haryana.
• The certificate is reported to be permanent now (earlier seven years), and the 2025 test was reported on 30 and 31 July 2025.

Punjab and Haryana High Court

The Punjab and Haryana High Court sits in Chandigarh and serves Punjab, Haryana and the Union Territory of Chandigarh. According to Wikipedia, it was established on 15 August 1947 as the East Punjab High Court, moved from Shimla to Chandigarh in 1955 and took its present name in 1966 under the Punjab Reorganisation Act. A search summary from a prep site says clerk and similar staff for the subordinate courts are recruited through the Society for Centralized Recruitment of Staff in Subordinate Courts (SSSC), with a computer-based test of 100 questions and a computer proficiency test as qualifying; we did not open the society's site or a notice, so no pattern or vacancy numbers are given here. See the Haryana judiciary pages on the High Court's own site for current openings.

For practice, use our online test series. The same two-stage idea appears in neighbouring states; compare Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh.

Domicile, reservation and recruitment rules

Haryana does not bar outsiders from applying for most Group C and D posts, but it limits reservation benefits to its own residents. The CET policy and the HSSC rules say that a reserved-category candidate gets the benefit only if he or she is a domicile of Haryana and uploads a fresh, valid certificate by the closing date of the application. A reserved-category candidate from another state can apply, but competes only for general-category posts.

Domicile and who can apply

From the HSSC advertisements we read in October 2026:

• Group C and D applicants must be Indian citizens (or Nepal or Bhutan subjects with a certificate of eligibility), and must have studied Hindi or Sanskrit at Matric level or in higher education.
• A "Haryana bonafide resident" certificate is listed as a mandatory upload for the reserved categories (DSC, OSC, BC-A, BC-B, EWS and others) but not in the general-category document list.
• The HPSC 2021 notice likewise gave reservation only to Haryana domiciles.

We could not confirm any rule that gives general-category Haryana residents extra marks in the CET, because the bonus was struck down as explained above. Check the notice of each post for any residence condition specific to it.

Reservation percentages

Haryana uses the following vertical categories in advertisements: Deprived Scheduled Castes (DSC), Other Scheduled Castes (OSC), Backward Classes A (BC-A), Backward Classes B (BC-B) and Economically Weaker Sections (EWS). Horizontal categories (ex-servicemen, persons with benchmark disabilities, eligible sports persons, freedom fighters' descendants) cut across them.

• Scheduled Castes: 20%, split equally. In August 2024 the state accepted sub-classification of SC reservation after a Supreme Court ruling, with 36 castes including Balmiki, Dhanak, Mazhabi Sikh and Khatik in DSC and others such as Chamar, Jatav and Ravidasi in OSC. Drishti IAS confirms the two categories, but does not give the percentages. A reservation-policy site reports that the existing 20% is divided equally, 10% each, under instructions dated 13 November 2024. We treat the 10/10 split as reported.
• Backward Classes. The Tribune reported on 23 June 2024 that the quota in Group A and B posts was raised from 15% to 27%, and the creamy-layer income limit from Rs 6 lakh to Rs 8 lakh. A news analysis reports that the 27% is divided into 16% for BC-A and 11% for BC-B. We did not find an official source for what applies to Group C and D today, so do not assume it.
• EWS: 10%. The Tribune reported, on 13 February 2019, that Haryana approved a 10% quota for families with income under Rs 6 lakh a year, with exclusions for those with five or more acres, a flat of 1,000 sq ft or more or property worth over Rs 1 crore. The current income limit and rules may differ; check the certificate rules in each advertisement.
• Ex-Agniveers. Reported 10% in constables and similar posts, 5% in direct Group C civil posts (July 2024).

We did not verify the percentages for ex-servicemen, disabled persons or sports persons; each advertisement gives posts per category. In the 2026 Group C notices, BC-A, BC-B and EWS certificates had to be issued on or after 1 April 2025 and DSC/OSC certificates after 13 November 2024; certificates meant for panchayat elections or central-government jobs were not accepted. A creamy-layer BC candidate is treated as general.

Merit still counts: a reserved-category candidate who is selected on own merit is treated as an open-competition candidate and does not use up the reserved seat.

Age limits and relaxation

The Haryana government's age instruction of 25 March 2022 sets a lower age of 18 and an upper age of 42 for entry to government service, unless a service's own rules say otherwise. Where it applies, the maximum with relaxations is 52 years (ex-servicemen are calculated differently). The relaxations in that instruction:

Category	Relaxation
Scheduled Castes	5 years
Backward Classes	5 years
Persons with disabilities	10 years, plus 5 more for SC, ST, BC or EWS, up to 52 (for Group C and D)
Women: widowed, legally divorced, judicially separated, or unmarried	5 years
Wives of disabled military personnel	5 years
Police and prison Group C posts with an upper limit below 42	5 years, to SC, BC and EWS only
Ex-servicemen	Length of service plus 3 years, under the rules of the instruction
Contract, ad hoc or daily-wage staff of Haryana government	Years already worked on an equivalent post, up to 52

Ex-Agniveers reportedly get 3 years (5 for the first batch) in Group C and D. Because the police upper age limit is much lower, as in the reported 18 to 25 for constables, the post-specific rules apply there, not the general 42.

Selection stages

Group C: CET, then an application per post, then a skill and/or written test, then document checks. Police posts add measurement and screening tests. Group D: CET merit list, then a willingness application, no further exam. HCS: Prelims, Mains, interview. Everything you claim must be uploaded with the application; later additions are not accepted. Departments, not the Commission, send requisitions and keep the reservation roster, so we do not predict dates.

How to use this guide for exam preparation

This page is built for the Haryana-specific quarter of the CET and for the Haryana General Knowledge sections that appear in HSSC papers. The rest of the paper (reasoning, maths, English, Hindi and general awareness) needs separate practice, and our online test series is the place for that. For Haryana facts you need the other sections of this guide.

Which sections give the most marks

• Geography and administration: districts, divisions, rivers, protected areas.
• History: the three battles of Panipat, Kurukshetra, the 1966 formation.
• Culture: folk forms, festivals, fairs, literature, all named in the official 25% share.
• Economy, government and the High Court: crops, industry, assembly strength, parliamentary seats.
• Exam rules: know the CET pattern before you apply.

A four-week revision plan

Week	Focus
1	Read the Overview, History and Geography sections once. Make one-page notes on rivers, districts and divisions. Attempt a Haryana GK topic test.
2	Read Administration, Demography, Legislature and Elections. Learn the numbers (seats, formation date, districts, census figures). Take a timed mock with 25 Haryana questions.
3	Read Economy, Agriculture, Culture, Tourism and Schemes. List fairs, festivals, folk forms and crops in one table. Re-attempt your wrong answers from week 2.
4	Revise only the Rapid-fire table below and your own notes, then take two full-length mocks. In each, practise marking an option on every question, because of the fifth-bubble rule.

Common traps

• Number of districts. Pages disagree: Wikipedia's state article lists 22, while its list of districts reports 23 after Hansi was created on 16 December 2025. Check the date and the official site before you answer.
• Resident versus domicile. Reservation needs Haryana domicile; being a citizen is not enough.
• CET marks versus Phase II marks. For Group C, the final result uses the Phase II exam, not the CET; for Group D, it uses the CET only.
• Blank answers. In the CET, an unattempted question without the fifth bubble costs one mark, while a wrong answer costs nothing.
• Old patterns. Many sites still show the 2021 HCS Mains with an optional subject and old CET bonus marks. Both are out of date.
• Teaching posts. These are outside the CET, and HTET is the entry gate.

Rapid-fire facts

Facts are as on 4 October 2026 and come from the sources listed at the end. Items marked "reported" come from exam-prep or news sites.

Fact	Answer
Date Haryana was formed	1 November 1966
Act that created Haryana	Punjab Reorganisation Act, 1966
State capital	Chandigarh (shared with Punjab)
Largest city	Faridabad
Area	44,212 sq km
Highest point	Karoh Peak, 1,467 m
Census 2011 population	25,351,462
Sex ratio, Census 2011	877 females per 1,000 males
Administrative divisions	6 (Ambala, Faridabad, Gurgaon, Hisar, Karnal, Rohtak)
Number of districts	23 on Wikipedia's district list; 22 on its state page
Newest district	Hansi, 16 December 2025 (reported on Wikipedia)
Previous newest district	Charkhi Dadri, formed 1 December 2016
Vidhan Sabha seats	90
Seats needed for majority	46
Assembly seats at formation	54
Seats after 1967	81
Seats since 1977	90
Lok Sabha seats	10
Rajya Sabha seats	5
Most seats won by one party in an assembly	Janata Party, 75 of 90 in 1977
Famous phrase for floor-crossing, after a legislator in 1967	"Aaya Ram, Gaya Ram"
2024 assembly result	BJP 48, INC 37, INLD 2, Independents 3
Official languages	Hindi, with Punjabi as an additional official language (2010) and English
State animal	Blackbuck
State bird	Black francolin
State tree	Bodhi (peepal)
State flower	Lotus
National parks	2
Wildlife sanctuaries	8
First Battle of Panipat	1526
Second Battle of Panipat	1556
Third Battle of Panipat	1761
Eastern boundary river	Yamuna
River considered a palaeo-channel of Saraswati	Ghaggar
Hindu share, Census 2011	87.46%
Muslim share, Census 2011	7.03%
Sikh share, Census 2011	4.91%
High Court for Haryana	Punjab and Haryana High Court, Chandigarh
High Court established	15 August 1947 as East Punjab High Court
High Court moved from Shimla to Chandigarh	1955
High Court present name since	1966
High Court sanctioned strength (Wikipedia)	85 (64 permanent and 21 additional)
HPSC headquarters	Panchkula (Sector 4)
HPSC established (Wikipedia)	1 November 1966
HPSC members, per Wikipedia	1 chairperson and 5 members
HSSC headquarters	Panchkula (Sector 2)
HSSC created as the Subordinate Services Selection Board	28 January 1970
HSSC rules for Group C and D recruitment	Notified 27 May 2025
CET policy notified	31 December 2024
CET marks validity	3 years
CET qualifying marks, general	50%
CET qualifying marks, reserved	40%
CET Group C questions and marks	100 questions, 100 marks
CET Group C duration	1 hour 45 minutes
CET negative marking	None for a wrong answer; 1 mark deducted if a blank question has no fifth bubble
CET syllabus split	75% general subjects, 25% Haryana
CET Group C subject mix (reported)	15 GA, 15 reasoning, 15 maths, 10 English, 10 Hindi, 10 computer, 25 Haryana GK
Group D selection basis	CET marks only
Group C candidates shortlisted for Phase II	Up to 10 times the posts
Language condition for CET	Hindi or Sanskrit at Matric
CET Group C level	Class 12 (Hindi and English at Matric level)
CET Group D level	Matric
Standard CET fee	Rs 1,000 or as fixed by the government
Bonus marks for socio-economic criteria	Removed in the 2024 policy
Court that struck the bonus marks (reported)	Punjab and Haryana High Court, 31 May 2024
Tie-break in Group C final result	Older candidate preferred
Fee per answer-key objection (Group C, 2026)	Rs 250
Extra time for PwBD candidates in CET Group C	20 minutes per hour (35 minutes in total)
Sub-categories of SC in services	Deprived SC (DSC) and Other SC (OSC)
Date of DSC/OSC instruction	13 November 2024
SC quota (reported)	20%, split 10% DSC and 10% OSC
Backward Classes in Group A and B (reported)	27% from 2024, up from 15%
BC split (reported)	16% BC-A, 11% BC-B
EWS quota	10% (2019)
Creamy-layer limit for BC (reported, June 2024)	Rs 8 lakh
Ex-Agniveer reservation (reported)	10% in constables, 5% in Group C civil posts
General upper age for state jobs	42 years
Lower age for state jobs	18 years
Maximum age with relaxation	52 years
Age relaxation for SC and BC	5 years
Age relaxation for PwD	10 years (plus 5 for reserved), up to 52
HCS Group A post	HCS (Executive Branch)
HCS prelims papers	2, of 100 marks each
HCS prelims negative mark	0.25 per wrong answer
HCS CSAT qualifying mark	33%
HCS 2021 Mains total	600 marks, four papers with an optional
HCS reported Mains now	6 papers of 100 marks, no optional
HCS interview	75 marks
HCS final merit (2021 notice)	675 marks
HCS Mains aggregate qualifying (2021)	45%
HTET conducted by	Board of School Education Haryana
HTET levels	PRT, TGT, PGT
HTET marks (reported)	150 questions, 150 minutes
HTET qualifying marks (reported)	90 general; 82 reserved of Haryana
HTET certificate validity (reported)	Permanent
Teaching posts under CET?	No
Police physical tests after CET	PMT and PST, qualifying only
Constable posts, 2026 cycle (reported)	5,500
Constable age (reported)	18 to 25 on 1 January 2026
Court-staff recruiter (reported)	SSSC, for the subordinate courts

Frequently asked questions

Who conducts the HCS exam?

The Haryana Public Service Commission, with its office in Panchkula.

What is the exam pattern of the HCS Prelims?

Two objective papers of 100 marks each, with the second (CSAT) qualifying at 33%. Only Paper I decides who goes to the Mains. Wrong answers lose one-fourth of a mark.

Is there an optional subject in the HCS Mains?

The 2021 notice had one. Prep sites report that it was removed in 2025 in favour of six compulsory papers. Read the notice of the cycle you apply for.

What is the Haryana CET?

It is the Common Eligibility Test for Group C and Group D government jobs, run by the HSSC. It is a screening exam whose score is valid for three years.

What is the CET pattern?

For Group C, 100 questions for 100 marks in 1 hour 45 minutes. A wrong answer carries no penalty, but a blank without the fifth bubble loses a mark.

Are there bonus marks for Haryana residents in the CET?

No. The socio-economic bonus was struck down by the High Court in May 2024 (reported) and removed in the 2024 policy.

How long is the CET score valid?

Three years from the result date, and you can re-appear to improve it.

What is the CET qualifying mark?

50% for general and 40% for reserved categories.

Is Haryana domicile compulsory for Group C and D jobs?

Not for applying in the general category. Reservation, though, needs Haryana domicile.

What is the age limit for Haryana government jobs?

18 to 42 years in general, with 5 years for SC and BC and other relaxations up to 52. Police posts have lower limits. Check the post.

What are DSC and OSC?

Deprived Scheduled Castes and Other Scheduled Castes, the two sub-categories of SC in Haryana services since the instruction of 13 November 2024.

What are BC-A and BC-B?

Two Backward Classes groups used in recruitment, with separate seats. The percentages given in news reports are 16% and 11%.

Who conducts HTET?

The Board of School Education Haryana. The levels are PRT, TGT and PGT.

How are Haryana Police constables selected?

By CET Group C, then physical measurement and screening tests (qualifying), then a written test, followed by document checks and a medical. See the latest advertisement for the order.

Where is the High Court for Haryana?

The Punjab and Haryana High Court sits in Chandigarh.

How many districts does Haryana have?

Wikipedia's district list shows 23 after Hansi was created on 16 December 2025, while its state page still says 22. Check the official site.

Sources and verification

Time-sensitive facts (budget, exam rules, district count) were checked on 4 October 2026. Where sources disagreed or a figure came from a single secondary source, the text says so. Election figures are Wikipedia reproductions of Election Commission data, with the 2026-27 budget from PRS Legislative Research; cross-check Election Commission results before quoting a number in an answer. Census 2011 is the latest published census.

Facts verified on 4 October 2026. The official HSSC notices were read in full; HPSC pages were read for notice headings and for the 2021 advertisement. Several current-year figures come from prep and news sites, and are marked "reported" in the text.

• Haryana Staff Selection Commission official site (hssc.gov.in), homepage on 4 October 2026.
• HSSC Advertisement No. 02/2026 (CET Phase II for Group C), including the CET Policy notification of 31 December 2024, its amendment of 11 July 2025, the HSSC Rules 2025 of 27 May 2025 and the Haryana age-relaxation instruction of 25 March 2022.
• HSSC Advertisement No. 04/2026 and No. 12/2024 (first pages and contents only).
• Haryana Public Service Commission official site (hpsc.gov.in), homepage on 4 October 2026.
• HPSC Advertisement No. 3/2021 (HCS and allied services), a copy hosted by a jobs site.
• Board of School Education Haryana (bseh.org.in), which showed a maintenance page.
• Drishti IAS, HPSC exam pattern page and the SC sub-classification news page.
• Unacademy, HPSC HCS exam page.
• Careers360, pages on the CET policy amendment, the Haryana Police constable 2025 recruitment, the HTET 2025 result and Agniveer reservation.
• The Tribune, pages on the 2019 EWS quota and the 2024 Backward Classes quota.
• Physics Wallah, pages on the HSSC CET Group D exam pattern and HTET levels; Notification24 on CET Group D 2026.
• A reservation-policy site (reservationhataoandolan.co.in), for the DSC and OSC split only.
• Wikipedia, as a cross-check only: Haryana, List of districts of Haryana, Haryana Legislative Assembly, Haryana Public Service Commission, Haryana Staff Selection Commission and Punjab and Haryana High Court.
• Search-result summaries (not full pages) for the CET Group C subject split, the HSSC Sub-Inspector pattern, the Punjab and Haryana High Court staff recruitment and the HCS 2025 amendment.