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Union territory | India, Definition, History, & Facts | Britannica

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class="font-serif font-weight-bold text-black link-blue" href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/union-territory">union territory</a> </div> <button aria-label="Close" class="js-sections-close-button btn-link btn-sm btn d-lg-none position-absolute top-0 p-10 right-0" > <em class="material-icons font-26" data-icon="close"></em> </button> </div> <div class="section-content pl-10 pr-20 pl-sm-50 pr-sm-60 pl-lg-5 pr-lg-10 pt-10 pt-lg-0 bg-gray-50 clear-catfish-ad"> <div class="toc mb-20"> <div class="font-serif font-14 font-weight-bold mx-15 mb-15 mt-20"> Table of Contents </div> <ul class="list-unstyled my-0" data-level="h1"><li data-target="#ref1"><div class="pl-25"><a class="link-gray-900 w-100" href="/topic/union-territory">Introduction</a></div><div class="ml-40 toc-drawer sub-toc-drawer"></div></li><li data-target="#ref352658"><div class="d-flex align-items-center"><div class="ml-25"></div><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/topic/union-territory#ref352658">Government and administration</a></div><div class="ml-40 toc-drawer sub-toc-drawer"></div></li><li data-target="#ref352659"><div class="d-flex align-items-center"><div class="ml-25"></div><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/topic/union-territory#ref352659">History and current union territories</a></div><div class="ml-40 toc-drawer sub-toc-drawer"></div></li></ul> <a class="toc-extra-link link-gray-900" href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/union-territory/additional-info">References &amp; Edit History</a> <a class="toc-extra-link link-gray-900" href="/facts/union-territory">Related Topics</a> </div> <div class="tlr-media-slider pb-10 mb-30"> <a class="section-header link-gray-900 font-serif font-14 font-weight-bold mb-10 mx-10" href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/union-territory/images-videos">Images</a> <div class="slider js-slider position-relative d-inline-flex align-items-center mw-100 "> <div class="slider-container js-slider-container overflow-hidden d-flex overflow-hidden text-nowrap 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His first quiz book, <em>Three's A Quiz</em>, was written from memory. Sanat has cofounded Quizarre, which provides quiz, crossword,...</div> </a> <div data-popper-arrow></div> </div> <span class="btn btn-link editor-link p-0 qa-byline-link gtm-byline font-12 byline-contributor text-decoration-underline"> Sanat Pai Raikar</span></div> <div class="font-serif font-12 text-gray-700"> <span class="qa-fact-checked-by">Fact-checked by</span> <div class="editor-popover popover p-0"> <a class="d-block p-20 font-12" href="/editor/The-Editors-of-Encyclopaedia-Britannica/4419" > <div class="editor-title font-16 font-weight-bold">The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica</div> <div class="editor-description font-12 font-serif mt-5 text-black">Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors.</div> </a> <div data-popper-arrow></div> </div> <span class="btn btn-link editor-link p-0 qa-byline-link font-12 "> The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica</span></div> <div class="last-updated font-12 font-serif"> <span class="text-gray-700"> Last Updated: <time datetime="2024-10-24T00:00:00CDT" >Oct 24, 2024</time> •</span> <a class="byline-edit-history" href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/union-territory/additional-info#history" rel="nofollow">Article History</a> </div></div> </div> <button class="d-flex d-lg-none btn btn-outline-blue border rounded-sm shadow-sm mobile-toc-button gtm-mobile-toc-inline-button d-none d-sm-block js-sections-inline-button module-spacing btn d-lg-none"> <em class="material-icons mr-5 ml-n10 my-n5 md-icon" data-icon="toc"></em> Table of Contents </button> <div class="d-flex d-sm-none flex-row"> <button class="d-flex d-lg-none btn btn-outline-blue border rounded-sm shadow-sm mobile-toc-button gtm-mobile-toc-inline-button js-sections-inline-button module-spacing"> <em class="material-icons mr-5 ml-n10 my-n5 md-icon" data-icon="toc"></em> Table of Contents </button> <button class="ai-ask-button btn border-2 ai-ask-button btn border-2 module-spacing btn-sm js-inline-ai-ask-button btn-outline-red-400 border-red-400 p-10 ml-5"> Ask the Chatbot a Question </button> </div> <div class="js-qf-module qf-module px-40 px-sm-20 py-15 mx-auto module-spacing font-14 bg-gray-50 rounded"> <div class="facts-list mt-10"> <div class=""> <div class="js-fact mb-10 line-clamp clamp-3"> <dl> <dt>Related Topics: </dt> <dd><a href="/place/India" topicid="285248">India</a></dd> <dd><a href="/topic/territory-political-unit" topicid="673767">territory</a></dd> </dl> <button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-gray-50" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"> <em class="js-content link-blue">(Show&nbsp;more)</em> </button> </div> <div class="text-center"> <a class="btn btn-sm btn-link p-0" href="/facts/union-territory"> See all related content </a> </div> </div> </div> </div><!--[BEFORE-ARTICLE]--><span class="marker before-article"></span><section data-level="1" id="ref1"><!--[PREMOD1]--><span class="marker PREMOD1 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph"><strong><span id="ref1306333"></span>union territory</strong>, one of the first-order administrative units in the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/India" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Republic of India</a>. Union territories are governed, in part or wholly, by the union government of India. There are eight union territories in India:</p><!--[MOD1]--><span class="marker MOD1 mod-inline"></span><ul><li><div><a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Andaman-and-Nicobar-Islands" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Andaman and Nicobar Islands</a></div></li><li><div><a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Chandigarh-India" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Chandigarh</a></div></li><li><div><a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Dadra-and-Nagar-Haveli-and-Daman-and-Diu" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu</a></div></li><li><div><a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Delhi" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Delhi</a> (also called National Capital Territory)</div></li><li><div><a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Jammu-and-Kashmir" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Jammu and Kashmir</a></div></li><li><div><a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Ladakh-union-territory" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Ladakh</a></div></li><li><div><a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Lakshadweep" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Lakshadweep</a></div></li><li><div><a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Puducherry-union-territory-India" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Puducherry</a></div></li></ul></section> <!--[H2]--><span class="marker h2"></span><section data-level="1" id="ref352658"> <h2 class="h1">Government and administration</h2> <!--[PREMOD2]--><span class="marker PREMOD2 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">The Republic of India is made up of eight union territories and 28 states. These two first-order subdivisions have significantly different governments. Each state has its own directly elected government under a chief minister, and the union government is represented by the state’s governor, who is the <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="constitutional" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/constitutional" data-type="MW">constitutional</a> head of the state and is appointed by the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/president-of-India" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">president of India</a>. Union territories, on the other hand, are governed, partly or wholly, by the union government of India. According to the Constitution of India, union territories are to be administered directly by the president of India, acting through an administrator (typically called a lieutenant governor) appointed by the president. Articles 239–241 of the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/constitution-politics-and-law" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">constitution</a> pertain to the administration of union territories.</p><!--[MOD2]--><span class="marker MOD2 mod-inline"></span> <!--[PREMOD3]--><span class="marker PREMOD3 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">The union government has the power to create new states, combine states, change state boundaries, and terminate a state’s existence. The union government may also create and <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off eb" data-term="dissolve" href="https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/dissolve" data-type="EB">dissolve</a> a union territory, whose powers are more limited than those of the states. The union government also has the power to pass a law to provide a union territory with a legislature consisting of elected members as well as a chief minister, as has been done in the cases of Delhi, Jammu and Kashmir, and Puducherry. The lieutenant governors of Delhi, Jammu and Kashmir, and Puducherry play only a ceremonial role because these territories have elected governments. In union territories without an elected governor, the lieutenant governor holds power and can pass ordinances with the approval of the president of India.</p><div class="module-spacing"> </div><!--[MOD3]--><span class="marker MOD3 mod-inline"></span> <!--[PREMOD4]--><span class="marker PREMOD4 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">In the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Lok-Sabha" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Lok Sabha</a>, the lower chamber of the union government, union territories have 19 out of 543 total seats. All union territories have representation in the Lok Sabha. In the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Rajya-Sabha" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Rajya Sabha</a>, the upper chamber of the union government, union territories have 8 seats out of 239. Only Jammu and Kashmir, Delhi, and Puducherry are represented in the Rajya Sabha because they are the only union territories with elected legislatures.</p><!--[MOD4]--><span class="marker MOD4 mod-inline"></span> </section> <!--[H3]--><span class="marker h3"></span><section data-level="1" id="ref352659"> <h2 class="h1">History and current union territories</h2> <!--[PREMOD5]--><span class="marker PREMOD5 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">When the Constitution of India was adopted in November 1949, Indian states were divided into four categories. Part A states were former governor-ruled provinces of British India, and they continued with governors and elected legislatures. Part B states were former princely states, or groups of princely states, with appointed governors (called rajpramukhs) and elected legislatures. Part C states included some former princely states and former chief commissioners’ provinces. The only Part D state was Andaman and Nicobar Islands, which was <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off eb" data-term="administered" href="https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/administered" data-type="EB">administered</a> by a lieutenant governor appointed by the union government.</p><!--[MOD5]--><span class="marker MOD5 mod-inline"></span> <!--[PREMOD6]--><span class="marker PREMOD6 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">During the reorganization of Indian states that was carried out through the States Reorganisation Act in 1956, all Part C and Part D states were either merged into other states or combined into a single category called “union territory.” Six union territories were thus created: Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Lakshadweep (called the Laccadive, Minicoy and Amindivi Islands until 1973), Delhi, Manipur, Tripura, and Himachal Pradesh.</p><!--[MOD6]--><span class="marker MOD6 mod-inline"></span> <!--[PREMOD7]--><span class="marker PREMOD7 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph"><a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Himachal-Pradesh" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Himachal Pradesh</a> is no longer a union territory; it was conferred statehood in 1971. <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Manipur" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Manipur</a> and <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Tripura-state-India" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Tripura</a> followed suit in 1972. Three regions—<a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Nagaland" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Nagaland</a>, <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Mizoram" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Mizoram</a>, and <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Arunachal-Pradesh" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Arunachal Pradesh</a>—were all previously part of the Indian state of <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Assam" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Assam</a> and were carved out into union territories. Subsequently all of them became states of the Republic of India. Only Delhi, Lakshadweep, and Andaman and Nicobar Islands have maintained their union territory status from the original list. Delhi was granted a legislature in 1952.</p><div class="module-spacing"> <DIV class="marketing-INLINE_SUBSCRIPTION marketing-content" data-marketing-id="INLINE_SUBSCRIPTION"><style> .student-promo-banner-wrapper { container-type: inline-size; margin-bottom: 15px; } @container (min-width: 475px) { .student-promo-banner { flex-direction: row; } .student-promo-banner-img-wrapper { margin-bottom: 0; margin-right: 10px; justify-content: flex-start; } .student-promo-banner-text-wrapper { text-align: left; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 10px; } .student-promo-banner-button-wrapper { margin-right: 0; } }</style> <div class="student-promo-banner-wrapper"> <div class="student-promo-banner d-flex flex-column align-items-center bg-blue rounded p-20"> <div class="student-promo-banner-img-wrapper mb-20 mr-0 d-flex justify-content-center"> <img class="rounded" style="max-width: 100px; min-width: 80px" src="https://cdn.britannica.com/marketing/BlueThistle.webp" /> </div> <div class="student-promo-banner-text-wrapper ml-0 mb-10 text-center text-white"> <div class="h2 mb-10">Get Unlimited Access</div> <div class="h4 font-weight-semi-bold">Try Britannica Premium for free and discover more.</div> </div> <div class="student-promo-banner-button-wrapper d-flex justify-content-center align-items-center ml-auto mr-auto"> <a class="btn btn-m btn-orange" href="https://premium.britannica.com/premium-membership/?utm_source=premium&utm_medium=inline-cta&utm_campaign=black-friday-2024">Subscribe</a> </div> </div> </div> </DIV></div><!--[MOD7]--><span class="marker MOD7 mod-inline"></span> <!--[PREMOD8]--><span class="marker PREMOD8 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">Puducherry <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="comprises" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/comprises" data-type="MW">comprises</a> four distinct locations and was formed out of four former colonies of French India. It includes <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Puducherry-India" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Puducherry</a> (then called Pondicherry) and <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Karaikal" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Karaikal</a> along India’s <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Coromandel-Coast" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Coromandel Coast</a>, surrounded by <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Tamil-Nadu" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Tamil Nadu</a> state; <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Yanam-India" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Yanam</a>, farther north along the eastern coast in the delta region of the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Godavari-River" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Godavari River</a>, surrounded by <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Andhra-Pradesh" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Andhra Pradesh</a> state; and <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Mahe-India" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Mahe</a>, lying on the western <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Malabar-Coast" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Malabar Coast</a>, surrounded by <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Kerala" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Kerala</a> state. Transfer of these French possessions to the union of India took place on November 1, 1954. In 1962 <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Puducherry-union-territory-India" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">Pondicherry</a> became a union territory of India. The Government of Union Territories Act of 1963 granted Pondicherry a state legislature. The territory formally took the name Puducherry in 2006.</p><!--[MOD8]--><span class="marker MOD8 mod-inline"></span> <!--[PREMOD9]--><span class="marker PREMOD9 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">Dadra and Nagar Haveli, situated between <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Gujarat" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Gujarat</a> state to the north and <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Maharashtra" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Maharashtra</a> state to the south, was under Portuguese rule. In 1954 local supporters of the Indian union took over the territory from the Portuguese. From 1954 to 1961 Dadra and Nagar Haveli existed as a <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/de-facto" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">de facto</a> state, with outside support from the Republic of India. In 1961 it was merged into India and became a union territory.</p><!--[MOD9]--><span class="marker MOD9 mod-inline"></span> <!--[PREMOD10]--><span class="marker PREMOD10 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">The Portuguese-controlled region of <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Goa" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Goa</a> (bordered by Maharashtra and <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Karnataka-state-India" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Karnataka</a>), together with <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Daman" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Daman</a> and <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Diu" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Diu</a> (both <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off eb" data-term="enclaves" href="https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/enclaves" data-type="EB">enclaves</a> within Gujarat state), were annexed by the Indian army in 1961. A union territory called Goa, Daman and Diu was formed in 1961 and was granted a legislature in 1963. In 1987 the union territory was split: Goa became a state while <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Daman-and-Diu" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Daman and Diu</a> became a union territory. In 2020 the two union territories of <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Dadra-and-Nagar-Haveli" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Dadra and Nagar Haveli</a> and Daman and Diu were merged into a single territory called Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu.</p><!--[MOD10]--><span class="marker MOD10 mod-inline"></span> <!--[PREMOD11]--><span class="marker PREMOD11 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">The pre-independence Indian region of Punjab was divided after partition into West Punjab (in Pakistan) and East Punjab (in India). <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Lahore" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Lahore</a>, the capital of the united Punjab, became part of Pakistan, so the Indian government created a new planned <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/city" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">city</a> called <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Chandigarh-India" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Chandigarh</a> to serve as the capital of the new <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Punjab-state-India" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Punjab</a> state in India. In 1966 Punjab was split into Punjab and <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Haryana" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Haryana</a>. Straddling the border between Haryana and Punjab, the city of Chandigarh was made the shared capital of the two states and a union territory in its own right as well.</p><div class="one-good-fact-module"> </div><!--[MOD11]--><span class="marker MOD11 mod-inline"></span> <!--[PREMOD12]--><span class="marker PREMOD12 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">Jammu and Kashmir was formerly a state with a legislature. In 2019, after an outbreak of violence in the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Kashmir-region-Indian-subcontinent" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">region of Kashmir</a>, India’s union government passed the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganization Act, splitting the state into two union territories, one called Jammu and Kashmir and the other called Ladakh. The act followed a presidential order <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="amending" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/amending" data-type="MW">amending</a> Article 370 of the Indian constitution, which in 1954 had conferred on the state of Jammu and Kashmir the power to have a separate constitution, a state flag, and <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="autonomy" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/autonomy" data-type="MW">autonomy</a> of internal administration.</p><!--[MOD12]--><span class="marker MOD12 mod-inline"></span> </section> <span class="md-signature"><a href="/contributor/Sanat-Pai-Raikar/12616791">Sanat Pai Raikar</a></span><!--[END-OF-CONTENT]--><span class="marker end-of-content"></span><!--[AFTER-ARTICLE]--><span class="marker after-article"></span></div> <div id="chatbot-root"></div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="ai-dialog-placeholder"></div> </div> </div> <aside class="col-md-da-320"></aside> </div> </div> </div> </div> </article></div> </div></div> </div> </main> <div id="md-footer"></div> <noscript><iframe src="//www.googletagmanager.com/ns.html?id=GTM-5W6NC8" height="0" width="0" style="display:none;visibility:hidden"></iframe></noscript> <script type="text/javascript" id="_informizely_script_tag"> var IzWidget = IzWidget || {}; (function (d) { var scriptElement = d.createElement('script'); scriptElement.type = 'text/javascript'; scriptElement.async = true; scriptElement.src = "https://insitez.blob.core.windows.net/site/f780f33e-a610-4ac2-af81-3eb184037547.js"; var node = d.getElementById('_informizely_script_tag'); node.parentNode.insertBefore(scriptElement, node); } )(document); </script> <!-- Ortto ebmwprod capture code --> <script> window.ap3c = window.ap3c || {}; var ap3c = window.ap3c; ap3c.cmd = ap3c.cmd || []; ap3c.cmd.push(function() { ap3c.init('ZO4siT4cLwnykPnzZWJtd3Byb2Q', 'https://engage.email.britannica.com/'); ap3c.track({v: 0}); }); ap3c.activity = function(act) { ap3c.act = (ap3c.act || []); ap3c.act.push(act); }; var s, t; s = document.createElement('script'); s.type = 'text/javascript'; s.src = "https://engage.email.britannica.com/app.js"; t = document.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; t.parentNode.insertBefore(s, t); </script> <script class="marketing-page-info" type="application/json"> {"pageType":"Topic","templateName":"DESKTOP","pageNumber":1,"pagesTotal":1,"pageId":615195,"pageLength":1048,"initialLoad":true,"lastPageOfScroll":false} </script> <script class="marketing-content-info" type="application/json"> [] </script> <script src="https://cdn.britannica.com/mendel-resources/3-130/js/libs/jquery-3.5.0.min.js?v=3.130.14"></script> <script type="text/javascript" data-type="Init Mendel Code Splitting"> (function() { $.ajax({ dataType: 'script', cache: true, url: 'https://cdn.britannica.com/mendel-resources/3-130/dist/topic-page.js?v=3.130.14' }); })(); </script> <script class="analytics-metadata" type="application/json"> {"leg":"A","adLeg":"A","userType":"ANONYMOUS","pageType":"Topic","pageSubtype":null,"articleTemplateType":"LARGE","gisted":false,"pageNumber":1,"hasSummarizeButton":false,"hasAskButton":false} </script> <script type="text/javascript"> EBStat={accountId:-1,hostnameOverride:'webstats.eb.com',domain:'www.britannica.com', json:''}; </script> <script type="text/javascript"> ( function() { $.ajax( { dataType: 'script', cache: true, url: '//www.britannica.com/webstats/mendelstats.js?v=1' } ) .done( function() { try {writeStat(null,EBStat);} catch(err){} } ); })(); </script> <div id="bc-fixed-dialogue"></div> </body> </html>

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