Introduction :- 

Council of Scientific & Industrial Research’s National Physical Laboratory (CSIR-NPL), which maintains Indian Standard Time (IST), has published a research article describing the necessity of two time zones.

Since independence in 1947, the IST has been the official time for the whole country. India’s time zones were first established in 1884. Pre-independence India had two time zones. In the East, Calcutta Time was 5:30:21 hours ahead of GMT, while Bombay Time in the West was 4:51:00 hours ahead of GMT. Calcutta Time was abandoned in 1948 and Bombay Time in 1955. Assam already has a Bagaan (tea garden) Time, set an hour ahead of Indian Standard Time (IST)

Need for two time zones :- 

• At present, the country observes a single time zone based on the longitude passing through 82°30′E.
• India extends from 68°7’E to 97°25’E, with the spread of 29° representing almost two hours from the geographic perspective. Early sunrise in the easternmost parts- (as early as 4AM in June) in the Northeast - causes the loss of many daylight hours by the time offices or educational institutions open, and that early sunset (4PM in winters), for its part, leads to higher consumption of electricity.
• The researchers estimated energy savings at 20 million kWh if we follow two time zones. This will have ecological and environmental benefits too.
• More use of sunlight would lead to more agricultural production.
• It will have an impact on circadian rhythm of the body and thus would have health benefits due to better leisure time and sleep. This, in turn, would enhance the productivity of people.

Proposal for new time zone :-

• The research paper proposes to call the two time zones IST-I (UTC + 5.30 h) and IST-II (UTC + 6.30 h).
• The proposed line of demarcation is at 89°52’E, the narrow border between Assam and West Bengal. States west of the line would continue to follow IST (to be called IST-I). States east of the line — Assam, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Arunanchal Pradesh, Manipur, Mizoram, Tripura, Andaman & Nicobar Islands —would follow IST-II.
• Location of the line is explained as: “As the railway signals have not yet been fully automated in the country, the border between the two time zones should have a very narrow spatial-width with minimum number of train stations so that the train timings while crossing the border can be managed manually without any untoward incidents.”

Legal/Govt Position on Time Zones :- 

• In 2002, based on a suggestion by then governor of Tripura, the Department of Science and Technology (DST) formed a high-level committee to explore the feasibility of two time zones. The committee rejected the idea of separate time zones.
• In 2006, the Planning Commission recommended the introduction of two time zones in the country, saying it would save “a lot of energy”.
• The Gauhati High Court, last year dismissed a PIL seeking a direction to the Centre to have a separate time zone for the Northeast.

Problems with multiple Time zones :-

• Having more than one time zone will create confusion and different timings would have to be framed for airlines, railways and communications services. For example; our railway schedules, signaling and track utilization will be a nightmare to manage. It might lead to accidents at the zone of crossing.
• There is also a strong political implication that comes with having multiple time zones. Awarding the north-east a separate time zone, given the region's long history of self-determination movements, would indicate an unstated support towards their spatial independence.
• Different time zones can be potentially problematic in India. Government offices in those states will close at different times and would be accessible only 75% of the time which can cause a potential loss of productivity.
• The lack of time coordination w.r.t essential services such as banking etc. might further alienate the NE region from the rest of the India.
• There is also a strong political implication that comes with having multiple time zones. Awarding the north-east a separate

Alternative to Multiple Time Zones :- 

• Given the energy saving benefits, a 2012 research paper commissioned by the Union Ministry of Power recommends to advance IST by half-an-hour. Also the National Institute of Advanced Studies (NIAS) in Bangalore recommended advancing IST by half-an-hour so that it is six hours ahead of GMT.
• All states will save electricity with amounts of savings varying in different states from 0.2% to 0.7% of daily consumption. As a percentage of peaking energy consumption, however, the savings are very significant, about 17-18%.
• This also keeps us away from the complicated process of Daylight Saving's Time (DST) followed in western countries.
• As per NIAS research, advancing the IST by half an hour will- Save energy 2.7 billion units every year. The energy demand in the evenings due to domestic lighting will be reduced by about 16 per cent. Result in estimated saving of about Rs 1,500 crore per annum for the nation. Increase the productivity of the general population. India is primarily an agrarian economy and utilising sunlight is essential for maximum productivity. It will optimally accommodate benefits of a separate time zones without creating a chaos.