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Quick recap: State and local government on one page

State and local government · Quick recap · Fact-checked on · how we check

Written with AI from the sources listed at the bottom of this page, then fact-checked by a separate AI.

All three parts condensed for quick revision: the Governor, Chief Minister and State legislature; panchayats and PESA; municipalities, Union Territories, Delhi and the special provisions, with a one-table overview and eight mixed questions.

Part VI gives every State a parliamentary system. The Governor is the formal head, appointed by the President by warrant (Article 155), a citizen of at least 35, and one person may serve two or more States (7th Amendment, 1956). The Governor holds office during the President's pleasure for a five-year term (Article 156), with no impeachment, though B.P. Singhal (2010) bars arbitrary removal. Powers include appointing the Chief Minister, summoning and dissolving the Assembly (Article 174), ordinances (Article 213) and pardons for offences against State law (Article 161). On a bill the Governor may assent, withhold, return a non-Money Bill or reserve it for the President, and must reserve one that endangers the High Court (Article 200).

State and local government at a glance
LevelKey ArticlesKey points
Governor153–162, 200, 213Appointed by the President; pleasure tenure; ordinances, pardons, bills
Chief Minister and council163–167Responsible to the Assembly; 15 per cent cap, minimum 12
State legislature168–212Councils in six States (Article 169); Council only delays bills
Panchayats243–243O73rd Amendment; Gram Sabha; three tiers; Eleventh Schedule (29)
Municipalities243P–243ZG74th Amendment; three types; Twelfth Schedule (18)
Union Territories and Delhi239–241, 239AARun through administrators; Delhi Assembly without police, public order, land
Special provisions371–371JDevelopment boards, tribal customary law, local reservation

Real power lies with the Chief Minister and the council of ministers, collectively responsible to the Legislative Assembly (Article 164). The 91st Amendment caps the council at 15 per cent of the Assembly, with a minimum of 12, and the 94th Amendment (2006) requires a tribal welfare minister in Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh and Odisha. Discretion under Article 163 is kept narrow by Shamsher Singh (1974) and Nabam Rebia (2016). Six States have a Legislative Council, created or abolished by a law of Parliament after a special-majority resolution of the Assembly (Article 169). The Council is at most one-third of the Assembly, at least 40, can delay an ordinary bill for about four months and a Money Bill for 14 days, and has no joint sitting to fall back on.

Panchayats were asked for in Article 40, but the road ran through the Balwant Rai Mehta Committee (1957, three tiers), Rajasthan's start at Nagaur on 2 October 1959, the Ashok Mehta Committee (1978, two tiers), the G.V.K. Rao (1985) and L.M. Singhvi (1986) Committees, and the 64th Amendment Bill that failed in 1989. The 73rd Amendment (1992, in force 24 April 1993) added Part IX and the Eleventh Schedule of 29 matters. Its frame: a Gram Sabha of all village voters (Article 243A); three tiers, the middle one optional below 20 lakh population (Article 243B); direct elections every five years; reserved seats for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes and at least one-third for women; and a minimum age of 21.

The State Election Commission runs panchayat and municipal elections; its head is appointed by the Governor but removable only like a High Court judge (Article 243K). The State Finance Commission reviews local finances every five years (Article 243I), and the real powers and money come from State law. Part IX does not apply on its own to Scheduled and tribal areas or to Nagaland, Meghalaya and Mizoram (Article 243M); PESA, 1996 extends it to the Fifth Schedule areas of ten States, with strong Gram Sabha powers and at least half the seats and all chairpersons' posts reserved for Scheduled Tribes. Krishna Murthy (2010) upheld reservation of chairpersons' posts, and Vikas Kishanrao Gawali (2021) required a triple test before reserving seats for backward classes.

Towns got the same frame through the 74th Amendment (1992, in force 1 June 1993): Part IXA and the Twelfth Schedule of 18 matters. Article 243Q names three types of municipality: the Nagar Panchayat for an area in transition from rural to urban, the Municipal Council and the Municipal Corporation; an industrial township may be left without one. Ward committees are required where the population is three lakh or more. A District Planning Committee in every district (at least four-fifths elected) joins rural and urban plans, and a Metropolitan Planning Committee (at least two-thirds elected) serves areas of ten lakh or more. Part IXB on co-operatives (97th Amendment, 2011) now applies only to multi-State societies after Rajendra N. Shah (2021).

Eight areas are a Union Territory, run by the President through an administrator (Articles 239–241); a neighbouring Governor serving as administrator acts independently of his own ministers, and Parliament may legislate for them on any subject. Puducherry (Article 239A) and Jammu and Kashmir (Reorganisation Act, 2019) have legislatures; for the island territories the President makes regulations under Article 240. Delhi (Article 239AA, 69th Amendment, 1991) has an Assembly that cannot legislate on public order, police or land, and a council of ministers capped at ten per cent; the NCT cases of 2018 and 2023 bound the Lieutenant Governor to ministerial advice outside those subjects. Articles 371–371J protect regions and tribal customs in particular States, and the Supreme Court upheld the 2019 abrogation of Article 370 in December 2023.

Exam traps

Recap

Practice questions

Q1. Before whom does the Governor of a State take the oath of office?

  1. The President
  2. The Chief Justice of India
  3. The Chief Justice of the State's High Court
  4. The Speaker of the Legislative Assembly
Show answer

Answer: C. The Chief Justice of the State's High Court

Under Article 159 the oath is taken before the Chief Justice of the High Court. The President appoints the Governor but does not administer the oath; the Chief Justice of India administers the President's oath; the Speaker has no role here.

Q2. Consider the following statements:
1. A Legislative Council can be abolished only by an amendment under Article 368.
2. There is no provision for a joint sitting of the two Houses of a State legislature.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. 1 only
  2. 2 only
  3. Both 1 and 2
  4. Neither 1 nor 2
Show answer

Answer: B. 2 only

Statement 1 is wrong: Article 169 lets Parliament abolish a Council by ordinary law after the Assembly's resolution, and such a law is not an Article 368 amendment. Statement 2 is correct. So '1 only' and 'Both' are wrong, and 'Neither' ignores statement 2.

Q3. The 94th Amendment requires a minister in charge of tribal welfare in which of the following States?

  1. Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha and Madhya Pradesh
  2. Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh and Odisha
  3. Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram
  4. Gujarat, Rajasthan, Maharashtra and Odisha
Show answer

Answer: B. Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh and Odisha

Article 164(1), as amended in 2006, names Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh and Odisha. Bihar was removed from the list, so the first option is wrong; the other two lists name States the proviso does not cover.

Q4. Under Article 243B, the intermediate level of panchayats need not be constituted in a State whose population does not exceed:

  1. 10 lakh
  2. 20 lakh
  3. 30 lakh
  4. 50 lakh
Show answer

Answer: B. 20 lakh

The figure is 20 lakh. Ten lakh is the threshold for a metropolitan area under Part IXA, and 30 lakh and 50 lakh appear nowhere in Part IX.

Q5. Consider the following statements about the Panchayats (Extension to the Scheduled Areas) Act, 1996:
1. It extends Part IX to the Sixth Schedule areas of the North-East.
2. It reserves the posts of chairpersons of panchayats in Scheduled Areas for Scheduled Tribes.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. 1 only
  2. 2 only
  3. Both 1 and 2
  4. Neither 1 nor 2
Show answer

Answer: B. 2 only

Statement 1 is wrong: PESA covers Fifth Schedule areas in ten States, not Sixth Schedule areas. Statement 2 is correct. So '1 only' and 'Both' are wrong, and 'Neither' ignores statement 2.

Q6. Match List I with List II:
List I
A. Eleventh Schedule
B. Twelfth Schedule
C. Article 243K
D. Article 243ZE
List II
1. Metropolitan Planning Committee
2. 18 matters for municipalities
3. State Election Commission
4. 29 matters for panchayats
Select the correct answer using the code given below.

  1. A-4, B-2, C-3, D-1
  2. A-2, B-4, C-3, D-1
  3. A-4, B-2, C-1, D-3
  4. A-3, B-1, C-4, D-2
Show answer

Answer: A. A-4, B-2, C-3, D-1

Eleventh Schedule has 29 panchayat matters, the Twelfth 18 municipal matters, Article 243K the State Election Commission and Article 243ZE the Metropolitan Planning Committee. The second option swaps the two Schedules, the third swaps 243K and 243ZE, and the fourth matches nothing.

Q7. The Legislative Assembly of the National Capital Territory of Delhi cannot make laws on which of the following?

  1. Public health and sanitation
  2. Police
  3. Education
  4. Agriculture
Show answer

Answer: B. Police

Article 239AA keeps public order, police and land with the Union. Public health, education and agriculture are within the Assembly's reach, so those options are wrong.

Q8. Which one of the following Articles contains special provisions for Nagaland that protect Naga customary law and ownership of land?

  1. Article 370
  2. Article 371A
  3. Article 371G
  4. Article 371J
Show answer

Answer: B. Article 371A

Article 371A is for Nagaland. Article 370 concerned Jammu and Kashmir, Article 371G gives a similar shield to Mizoram, and Article 371J deals with the Hyderabad-Karnataka region of Karnataka.

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