Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami on Thursday announced that Vellore district would be trifurcated, and promised that his administration would pursue the two-language formula, PTI reported. The chief minister said two new districts – Ranipet and Tirupattur – would be carved out of Vellore while KV Kuppam would be turned into a new taluka.

Vellore will continue to be a separate district, Palaniswamy said in his Independence Day address after hoisting the Tricolour at Fort St George in Chennai. The decision was taken for administrative reasons and was pushed by ministers, MLAs and the public, The Hindu quoted the chief minister as saying.

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After the trifurcation, the state will have 37 districts. Vellore is one of the largest districts in Tamil Nadu. It has 13 Assembly constituencies, and is divided between Vellore, Arakkonam and Tiruvannamalai Lok Sabha constituencies, according to The News Minute.

The government’s move will benefit the residents of Ranipet and Tirupattur, who now don’t need to trave long distancest to the district collector’s office. At the moment, residents of Tirupattur have to travel 92 km to visit the collector’s office while those living in Ranipet need to travel 26 km.

A number of new districts have been created since January. Kallakurchi, carved out of Villupuram, was declared the state’s 33rd district. In July, the government had announced the creation of Chengalpattu from Kancheepuram district, and Tenkasi from Tirunelveli district.

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On Thursday, Palaniswami also announced an increase in freedom fighters’ pension from Rs 15,000 to Rs 16,000. He declared an increase in the special pension for the heirs of freedom fighters from Rs 7,500 to Rs 8,000, The Hindu reported.

The chief minister also announced more buses would be added to the existing fleet, and the implementation of measures to recycle water, The New Indian Express reported. He added that any attempt to impose Hindi would be opposed.