Indian Polity Quiz: Day 99

Answer: (d)

As per the 73rd Amendment Act of 1992, the state legislature may

(a) authorise a panchayat to levy, collect and appropriate taxes, duties, tolls and fees;

(b) assign to a panchayat taxes, duties, tolls and fees levied and collected by the state government;

(c) provide for making grants-in-aid to the panchayats from the consolidated fund of the state; and

(d) provide for constitution of funds for crediting all moneys of the panchayats.

Answer: (b)

Eleventh Schedule: It contains the following 29 functional items placed within the purview of panchayats:

1. Agriculture, including agricultural extension
2. Land improvement, implementation of land reforms, land consolidation and soil conservation
3. Minor irrigation, water management and watershed development
4. Animal husbandry, dairying and poultry
5. Fisheries
6. Social forestry and farm forestry
7. Minor forest produce
8. Small-scale industries, including food processing industries
9. Khadi, village and cottage industries
10. Rural housing
11. Drinking water
12. Fuel and fodder
13. Roads, culverts, bridges, ferries, waterways and other means of communication
14. Rural electrification, including distribution of electricity
15. Non-conventional energy sources
16. Poverty alleviation programme
17. Education, including primary and secondary schools
18. Technical training and vocational education
19. Adult and non-formal education
20. Libraries
21. Cultural activities
22. Markets and fairs
23. Health and sanitation including hospitals, primary health centres and dispensaries
24. Family welfare
25. Women and child development
26. Social welfare, including welfare of the handicapped and mentally retarded
27. Welfare of the weaker sections, and in particular, of the scheduled castes and the scheduled tribes
28. Public distribution system
29. Maintenance of community assets.

Answer: (a)

The compulsory (obligatory or mandatory) and voluntary (discretionary or optional) provisions (features) of the 73rd Constitutional Amendment Act (1992) or the Part IX of the Constitution:

Compulsory Provisions

1. Organisation of Gram Sabha in a village or group of villages.
2. Establishment of panchayats at the village, intermediate and district levels.
3. Direct elections to all seats in panchayats at the village, intermediate and district levels.
4. Indirect elections to the post of chairperson of panchayats at the intermediate and district levels.
5. 21 years to be the minimum age for contesting elections to panchayats.
6. Reservation of seats (both members and chairpersons) for SCs and STs in panchayats at all the three levels.
7. Reservation of one-third seats (both members and chairpersons) for women in panchayats at all the three levels.
8. Fixing tenure of five years for panchayats at all levels and holding fresh elections within six months in the event of supersession of any panchayat.
9. Establishment of a State Election Commission for conducting elections to the panchayats.
10. Constitution of a State Finance Commission after every five years to review the financial position of the panchayats.

Answer: (b)

PESA ACT OF 1996 (EXTENSION ACT)

The provisions of Part IX of the constitution relating to the Panchayats are not applicable to the Fifth Schedule areas. However, the Parliament may extend these provisions to such areas, subject to such exceptions and modifications as it may specify. Under this provision, the Parliament has enacted the “Provisions of the Panchayats (Extension to the Scheduled Areas) Act”, 1996, popularly known as the PESA Act or the Extension Act.

Objectives of the Act

The objectives of the PESA Act are as follows6:

1. To extend the provisions of Part IX of the Constitution relating to the panchayats to the scheduled areas with certain modifications.
2. To provide self-rule for the bulk of the tribal population.
3. To have village governance with participatory democracy and to make the gram sabha a nucleus of all activities.
4. To evolve a suitable administrative framework consistent with traditional practices.
5. To safeguard and to preserve the traditions and customs of tribal communities.
6. To empower panchayats at the appropriate levels with specific powers conducive to tribal requirements.
7. To prevent panchayats at the higher level from assuming the powers and authority of panchayats at the lower level of the gram sabha.

Answer: (d)

A cantonment board is established for municipal administration for civilian population in the cantonment area7. It is set up under the provisions of the Cantonments Act of 2006—a legislation enacted by the Central government.

It works under the administrative control of the defence ministry of the Central government.

The Cantonments Act of 2006 was enacted to consolidate and amend the law relating to the administration of cantonments with a view to impart greater democratisation, improvement of their financial base to make provisions for developmental activities and for matters connected with them.

This Act has repealed the Cantonments Act of 1924.

Answer: (d)

The Emergency provisions are contained in Part XVIII of the Constitution, from Articles 352 to 360. Hence, statement 1 is not correct and statement 2 is correct.

These provisions enable the Central government to meet any abnormal situation effectively.

The rationality behind the incorporation of these provisions in the Constitution is to safeguard the sovereignty, unity, integrity and security of the country, the democratic political system, and the Constitution.

Answer: (c)

• The Constitution contains the following provision in respect of the official language of the Union. (Article 343)
• Hindi written in Devanagari script is to be the official language of the Union. But, the form of numerals to be used for the official purposes of the Union has to be the international form of Indian numerals and not the Devanagari form of numerals.
• The Constitution does not specify the official language of different states. In this regard, it makes the following provisions.
• The legislature of a state may adopt any one or more of the languages in use in the state or Hindi as the official language of that state. Until that is done, English is to continue as official language of that state.

Answer: (a)

The Official Language Part XVII of the Constitution deals with the official language in Articles 343 to 351. Its provisions are divided into four heads—Language of the Union, Regional languages, Language of the judiciary and texts of laws and Special directives.

Answer: (a)

The original Constitution did not contain provisions with respect to tribunals.

The 42nd Amendment Act of 1976 added a new Part XIV-A to the Constitution. This part is entitled as ‘Tribunals’ and consists of only two Articles—Article 323 A dealing with administrative tribunals and Article 323 B dealing with tribunals for other matters.

Answer: (c)

Articles 239 to 241 in Part VIII of the Constitution deal with the union territories. Hence, option c is the correct answer.

Answer: (a)

The 69th Constitutional Amendment Act of 1991 provided a special status to the Union Territory of Delhi, and redesignated it the National Capital Territory of Delhi and designated the administrator of Delhi as the lieutenant (lt.) governor. It created a legislative assembly and a council of ministers for Delhi. Previously, Delhi had a metropolitan council and an executive council.

Answer: (d)

Article 244 in Part X of the Constitution envisages a special system of administration for certain areas designated as ‘scheduled areas’ and ‘tribal areas’.

Answer: (c)

As per the various features of administration contained in the Fifth Schedule:

The president is empowered to declare an area to be a scheduled area. Hence, option c is the correct answer.

He can also increase or decrease its area, alter its boundary lines, rescind such designation or make fresh orders for such redesignation on an area in consultation with the governor of the state concerned.

Answer: (a)

Tribes Advisory Council: Each state having scheduled areas has to establish a tribes advisory council to advise on welfare and advancement of the scheduled tribes. It is to consist of 20 members, three-fourths of whom are to be the representatives of the scheduled tribes in the state legislative assembly. A similar council can also be established in a state having scheduled tribes but not scheduled areas therein, if the president so directs.

Answer: (b)

Seat Vacancy in Parliament in case of Double Membership

A person cannot be a member of both Houses of Parliament at the same time. Thus, the Representation of People Act (1951) provides for the following:

(a) If a person is elected to both the Houses of Parliament, he must intimate within 10 days in which House he desires to serve. In default of such intimation, his seat in the Rajya Sabha becomes vacant. Hence, statement 1 is not correct.

(b) If a sitting member of one House is also elected to the other House, his seat in the first House becomes vacant.

(c) If a person is elected to two seats in a House, he should exercise his option for one. Otherwise, both seats become vacant. Hence, statement 2 is correct.

Similarly, a person cannot be a member of both the Parliament and the state legislature at the same time. If a person is so elected, his seat in Parliament becomes vacant if he does not resign his seat in the state legislature within 14 days.