Claims that the number of provinces will be increased to 106: Criteria for 25 districts and license plate debate on the agenda

A new administrative regulation claim that could increase the number of provinces in Turkey is being discussed once again. According to the study being discussed in political circles, if certain districts that meet specific criteria attain provincial status, the current number of 81 provinces could rise to 106.

It is stated that the final decision regarding the regulation in question may become clear following the parliamentary process. For this reason, there is no finalized official decision regarding the list and the timeline yet.

CRITERIA AND DISTRICTS MENTIONED IN THE LIST

It is stated that factors such as population, distance to the current provincial center, economic development, and transportation infrastructure are coming to the fore for districts to be evaluated for provincial status. According to the claims, a population of at least 100,000 and a distance of at least 30 kilometers from the provincial center are among the basic criteria.

Districts mentioned in political circles include Alanya, Tarsus, Çorlu, İnegöl, Siverek, Manavgat, İskenderun, Fethiye, Akhisar, Edremit, Ereğli (Zonguldak), Erciş, Bandırma, Cizre, Nazilli, Ereğli (Konya), Lüleburgaz, Ergani, Kahta, Ünye, Kozan, Elbistan, and Polatlı.

The inclusion of both Zonguldak Ereğli and Konya Ereğli in the list has also raised the question of whether there will be name confusion in a possible regulation. It is being discussed that if both districts gain provincial status, some formulas, including name changes, could be evaluated to prevent administrative confusion.

Another topic of the debate is how new license plate codes will be determined. If the number of provinces increases, a separate distribution will need to be made for the license plate numbers to be given to the new provinces. In this context, it is claimed that the 100 license plate code is not viewed favorably in some places.

The last major changes regarding making districts into provinces in Turkey took place between 1989 and 1999. During this period, settlements such as Aksaray, Karaman, Batman, Şırnak, Bartın, Ardahan, Iğdır, Karabük, Kilis, Osmaniye, and Düzce gained provincial status, and the number of provinces rose from 67 to 81.

News Source: 12punto