| Lieutenant Governors and Administrators | |
|---|---|
| Appointer | President of India |
In the Republic of India, a lieutenant governor is the constitutional head of five of the eight union territories. They rank 11th in the order of precedence in India. The lieutenant governor is appointed by the President of India for a term of five years, and holds office at the President's pleasure. Like the way the governors of Indian states may not have 5 years term and is seen very rarely the same thing happens with them. Since the union territories of Delhi, Jammu and Kashmir and Puducherry have a measure of self-government with an elected legislature and council of ministers, the role of the lieutenant governor there is mostly a ceremonial one, akin to that of a state's governor. In Andaman and Nicobar Islands and Ladakh however, the lieutenant governor holds more power, being both the head of state and head of government.
The other three union territories—Chandigarh; Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu; and Lakshadweep—are governed by an administrator. Unlike the lieutenant governors of other territories, they are usually drawn from the retired officer from Indian Armed Forces, Indian Administrative Service (IAS) or Indian Police Service (IPS). Since 1985 the Governor of Punjab has also been the ex-officio Administrator of Chandigarh.
Praful Khoda Patel, till date, is the only administrator of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu who is not an armed forces officer or a civil servant (i.e. IAS or IPS), rather a politician. He was also given the additional charge of Lakshadweep after the death of Dineshwar Sharma.
The following lists contain the current lieutenant governors and administrators of the eight union territories of India. [1]
| Union territory (past lieutenant governors) | Elected legislature | Name | Portrait | Took office (tenure length) | Appointed by | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Andaman and Nicobar Islands (list) | Devendra Kumar Joshi | | 8 October 2017 (8 years, 17 days) | Ram Nath Kovind | [2] | |
| Delhi (list) | (Legislative Assembly) | Vinai Kumar Saxena | | 26 May 2022 (3 years, 152 days) | Ram Nath Kovind | [3] |
| Jammu and Kashmir (list) | (Legislative Assembly) | Manoj Sinha | | 7 August 2020 (5 years, 79 days) | Ram Nath Kovind | [4] |
| Ladakh (list) | Kavinder Gupta | | 18 July 2025 (99 days) | Droupadi Murmu | [5] | |
| Puducherry (list) | (Legislative Assembly) | Kuniyil Kailashnathan | | 7 August 2024 (1 year, 79 days) | Droupadi Murmu | [6] |
| Union territory (list) | Name | Portrait | Assumed office (Time in office) | Appointed by | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chandigarh (list) | Gulab Chand Kataria | | 31 July 2024 (1 year, 86 days) | Droupadi Murmu | |
| Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu (list) | Praful Khoda Patel | | 26 January 2020 (5 years, 272 days) | Ram Nath Kovind | [7] |
| Lakshadweep (list) | Praful Khoda Patel (additional charge) | | 5 December 2020 (4 years, 324 days) | Ram Nath Kovind | [8] |