Lok Sabha Debates
Need To Divide The Country Into Two Different Standard Time Zones. on 1 August, 2002
Title: Need to divide the country into two different standard time zones.
SHRI K.A. SANGTAM (NAGALAND): Sir, in India, sun rises nearly two hours earlier in the east than on the westernmost tip of the country which stretches between 80 degrees East longitude and 97.5 degree East Longitude that is, from Arunachal Pradesh to Gujarat with a gap of nearly 20 degrees of longitude which is two hours of difference in time.
The city of Allahabad which stands at 82 degrees East longitude is taken as the Standard Time of the whole country.
Our human body starts working actively early in the east compared to the west and it is a sheer waste of the prime time when the sun rises at 4.30 a.m. and the people generally go to office at 10.00 a.m. The people in the western sector enjoy more natural light and leisure time in the evenings while in the east, people do not have enough day light in the evening and the night falls much earlier than those living in the west of the country. Specially for people in the eastern zone, a great lot of manhours are simply wasted.
I, therefore, demand to the Government of India that the country be divided into two time zones. One zone should be in the East from Arunachal Pradesh to Bihar to be one hour ahead called Eastern Indian Time and the other half in the West from Uttar Pradesh to Gujarat to be one hour behind that, which could be called as Western Indian Time.
MR. DEPUTY-SPEAKER: It is a very good suggestion.