FEDERALISM

 

FEDERALISM

Federalism is the vertical division of power sharing among different levels of government. It is a system of government in which power is divided between a central authority and various constituent units of the country.  

LEVELS IN A FEDERAL GOVERNMENT

Generally, a federation has two levels of government: -

 

1.Government for the entire country that is usually responsible for a few subjects of common national interest.

2. The others are governments at the level of provinces or states that look after much of the day-to-day administering of their state.

Both these levels enjoy their powers independent of each other and into their own spheres.

 

DIFFERENCE BETWEEN FEDERAL AND UNITARY SYSTEM OF GOVERNMENT

1.    1. In the unitary system of government there is only one level of government while in a federal system of government, there is multiple levels of government.

 

2.     2. In the Unitary system of government, the sub-units are subordinate to the central government but in a federal form of government, they are independent of each other.

 

 

3.     In a Unitary System government, the central government can pass on orders to the provincial or the local government but in a federal system, the central government cannot order the state government to do something.

 

 

FEATURES OF FEDERALISM

1.There exist two or more tiers under a federal system.

2.Each tier has its own jurisdiction and power of legislation, taxation etc.

3.The existence and authority of each tier of government is constitutionally guaranteed.

4.No unilateral changes are allowed. Consent is required to alter fundamental provisions.

5.Each level has its own financial autonomy.

 

 

DUAL OBJECTIVE OF FEDERAL SYSTEM

1.To safeguard and promote unity of the country

2.To accommodate regional diversity.

An ideal federal system has both aspects - mutual trust and     agreement to live together.

 

DIFFERENT TYPE OF FEDERATIONS

1.Coming Together Federations –

Independent States come together on their own to form a bigger unit, so that by pooling sovereignty and retaining identity they can increase their security.

 For example - USA, Switzerland and Australia.

2.Holding Together Federations –

 A large country decides to divide its power between the constituent States and the national government.

For example - India, Spain and Belgium.

Here, the central government tends to be more powerful vis-à-vis the States. Some special powers are also granted.

 

WHAT MAKES INDIA A FEDERAL COUNTRY?

The Constitution of India clearly provided a threefold distribution of legislative powers between the Union Government and the State Governments.

There are in there lists-

1. Union List: Under this are included subjects of national importance. Ex- Defence of the country, Foreign Affairs, Banking, Communications and Currency. The Union Government alone can make laws relating to the subjects mentioned in this list.

2.State List: It contains subjects of State and local importance such as Police, Trade, Commerce, Agriculture and Irrigation. The State Governments alone can make laws relating to the subjects mentioned in this list.

3. Concurrent List: It includes subjects of common interest to both the Union and the State Governments. The list includes Education, Forest, Trade Unions, Marriage, Adoption and Succession. Both the Union as well as the State Governments can make laws on it. If there is a conflict, the Union Government’s decision prevails.

 

 

HOW IS FEDERALISM PRACTICE IN INDIA?

The real success of federalism in India can be attributed to the nature of democratic politics in our country.

 Federalism practice in India in following ways-

1. Linguistic States- This was the first major test for democratic politics in India. From 1947 to 2019, many old States have disappeared, and new States have been created. This experience has shown that the formation of linguistic States has made the country more united and its administration easier.

2.Language Policy- This was the second test for Indian federation. Our Constitution did not give the status of national language to any one language. Besides Hindi, there are 21 other languages recognized as Scheduled Languages by the Constitution. There are also various safeguards provided to protect different languages as India is very diverse on this ground.

3.Centre- State Relations- the Centre-State relations is one more way in which federalism has been strengthened in practice. For a long time, State governments did not enjoy much autonomy as federal units. But from 1990, a lot of regional parties emerged. This was also a period of rise of Coalition Governments.

 

DECENTRALIZATION IN INDIA

 1.Decentralization means division of authority and responsibility at different levels of hierarchy. 

2.India being a vast country could not be administered well with just two tiers. Thus, resulted a third tier of government, called local government. This is power sharing  or decentralization in India.

3.When power is taken away from Central and State governments and given to local government, it is called decentralization.

 

4.There are issues that are best settled at local level with people’s participation and hence the need for this level of government arises.

5.Panchayats and Municipalities gained ground as local models of self- government. This type of government added through an amendment to the Constitution but remained ineffective on account of budget problem and less autonomy.

 

DECENTRALIZATION SINCE 1992

A major step was taken in 1992 in order to make decentralization more effective. Some changes introduced were as follows-

1.Mandatory to hold regular elections to local bodies

2.Seats were reserved for Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes as well as Other Backward Classes.

3.One- third of all positions reserved for women.

4.State Election Commission constituted as an independent body to hold elections.

5.State Governments to share power and other resources with local bodies.

 

 

PANCHAYTI RAJ SYSTEM

 

GRAM PANCHAYAT

 1.Each village, or a group of villages in some States, has a gram panchayat.

2.This is a council consisting of several ward members, often called panch, and a president or sarpanch.

3. They are directly elected by all the adult population living in a village or ward. Gram Panchayat is the decision-making body for the entire village.

GRAM SABHA

1.The Panchayat works under the overall supervision of the Gram Sabha.

2. All the voters in the village are its members.

3.It meets at least twice or thrice in a year to approve the annual budget of the gram panchayat and to review its performance.

PANCHYAT SAMITI OR MANDAL

1.When Gram Panchayats are grouped together, they form a Panchayat Samiti or Block or Mandal.

2.The member of Panchayat Samiti representative are elected by all the Panchayat members in that area.

ZILA PARISHAD

1.All the Panchayat Samitis or Mandals in a district together constitute the Zila (district) Parishad.

2.Members of the Lok Sabha, MLAs of the district, some other officials of other district-level bodies are its members.

 PREVIOUS YEAR QUESTION WITH ANSWER

 

QUESTION 1.

Explain the vertical division of power by giving examples from India.

Answer:

1.When power is shared among governments at different levels, i.e., the Union or the Central Government, the State Government and the Municipality and Panchayat at the lower level.

2. This division of power involving higher and lower levels of government is called the vertical division of power.

Vertical division of power in India:

1.The Constitution declares India as a Union of States. Although the word ‘Federation’ is not used, the Indian Union is based on the principles of federation.

2.The Constitution originally provided for a two-tier system of government, the Union Government or the Central Government representing Union of India and the State Governments.

3.A third-tier of federation was added in the form of Panchayats and Municipalities. As in any federation, these different tiers enjoy separate jurisdiction.

4.The Constitution provides for a three-fold distribution of legislative powers between the Union Government and State Government.

 It contains three lists:

1.     Union List (97 Subjects)

2.     State List (66 Subjects)

3.     Concurrent List (47 Subjects)

QUESTION 2.

Why is decentralization favoured in democracy? Identify any two reasons.

Answer:

Five advantages of decentralisation of power:

When power is taken away from Central and State Governments and given to local governments, it is called decentralisation.

1.The basic idea behind decentralisation is that there are a large number of problems and issues which are best settled at the local level. People have better knowledge of problems in their localities.

2.They also have better ideas on where to spend money and how to manage things more efficiently.

3.Besides, at the local level, it is possible for the people to directly participate in decision making. This helps to inculcate a habit of democratic participation.

4.Local government is the best way to realise one important principle of democracy, namely local self-government.

5.The need for decentralisation was recognised in our Constitution. A major step towards decentralisation was taken in 1992. The Constitution was amended to make the third tier of democracy more powerful and effective.

QUESTION 3.

India comes under which type of federation and why?

Answer:

1.India comes under ‘a holding together’ type federation. In this type of federation, a large country divides its power between the constituent States and the National government.

2. There is one government for the entire country and the others are governments at the State level. Both Central and State Governments enjoy their power independent of the other.

3.The Central government tends to be more powerful vis-a-vis the states. Often different constituent units of the federation have unequal powers. For example, special powers have been granted to Jammu & Kashmir.

QUESTION 4.

State two agreements through which federations have been formed. Give an example of each.

Answer:

1.Coming Together Federations –

Independent States come together on their own to form a bigger unit, so that by pooling sovereignty and retaining identity they can increase their security.

 For example - USA, Switzerland and Australia.

2.Holding Together Federations –

 A large country decides to divide its power between the constituent States and the national government.

For example - India, Spain and Belgium.

Here, the central government tends to be more powerful vis-à-vis the States. Some special powers are also granted.

 

 

QUESTION 5.

Which five provisions of the constitutional amendment of 1992 really strengthened the third tier of democracy in India? Explain.

Answer:

A major step was taken in 1992 in order to make decentralization more effective. Some changes introduced were as follows-

1.Mandatory to hold regular elections to local bodies

2.Seats were reserved for Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes as well as Other Backward Classes.

3.One- third of all positions reserved for women.

4.State Election Commission constituted as an independent body to hold elections.

5.State Governments to share power and other resources with local bodies.

 

QUESTION 6.

Why has federalism succeeded in India? Which are the policies adopted by India that have ensured it? Explain.

Answer:

Reasons for success of federalism in India are:

 

The real success of federalism in India can be attributed to the nature of democratic politics in our country.

 Federalism practice in India in following ways-

1. Linguistic States- This was the first major test for democratic politics in India. From 1947 to 2019, many old States have disappeared, and new States have been created. This experience has shown that the formation of linguistic States has made the country more united and its administration easier.

2.Language Policy- This was the second test for Indian federation. Our Constitution did not give the status of national language to any one language. Besides Hindi, there are 21 other languages recognized as Scheduled Languages by the Constitution. There are also various safeguards provided to protect different languages as India is very diverse on this ground.

3.Centre- State Relations- the Centre-State relations is one more way in which federalism has been strengthened in practice. For a long time, State governments did not enjoy much autonomy as federal units. But from 1990, a lot of regional parties emerged. This was also a period of rise of Coalition Governments.

4.Three fold distribution of power- Union list ,state list and concurrent list between the union and state governments.

5.Nature of democratic politics- our country which ensures that the spirit of federalism respect for diversity and desire for living together became a shared ideal.

 

 

QUESTION 7.

Explain any five features of federalism.

Answer:

1.There exist two or more tiers under a federal system.

2.Each tier has its own jurisdiction and power of legislation, taxation etc.

3.The existence and authority of each tier of government is constitutionally guaranteed.

4.No unilateral changes are allowed. Consent is required to alter fundamental provisions.

5.Each level has its own financial autonomy.

QUESTION 8.

.
Describe the three forms of power sharing among different organs of government in India.

Answer:

The Constitution declared India as a Union of States based on the principles of federalism. The Constitution originally provided for a two-tier system of government, the Union or the Central Government representing Union of India and the State Governments. Later, a third tier was added in the form of Panchayats and Municipalities.

The Constitution provided a three-fold distribution of legislative powers:-

1.Union List includes subjects of national importance, i.e., defence of the country, foreign affairs, banking, communications and currency.

2.State List contains subjects of state and local importance, i.e., police, trade, commerce, agriculture and irrigation.

3.Concurrent List includes subjects of common interest to both the Union Government as well as the State Governments, i.e., education, forests, trade unions, marriages, adoption and succession.
In case of dispute, law made by the Union Government shall prevail.

4.Residuary—Subjects which do not fall in any of the three lists, i.e., computer software, etc. Union Government has the power to legislate such subjects.

 

a)This sharing of power between the Union Government and State Governments is basic to the structure of the Constitution. Any change to it, has to be passed by both the Houses of the Parliament with at least two-third majority.

b)The judiciary plays an important role in the implementation of constitutional procedures. In case of any dispute about division of powers, the High Courts and the Supreme Court make a decision.

QUESTION 9.

Describe in brief the language policy of India?

Answer:

1.Our Constitution did not give the status of national language to any one language.

2.The formation of linguistic states united the country and made administration easier.

3.The leaders of our country adopted a very cautious attitude in spreading the use of Hindi. Hindi was identified as official language.

4.The banning of use of English for official purposes in 1965 took a violent form in Tamil Nadu. The Central Government responded by agreeing to continue the use of English along with Hindi for official purposes.

5.Promotion of Hindi is an official policy of the Government of India but it does not impose Hindi on states where people speak a different language.Besides Hindi, there are 21 other languages recognised as scheduled languages by the Constitution.

 

QUESTION 10.

Explain the structure of the new Panchayati Raj institutions, both in rural and urban areas.

Answer:

Rural Local Government is known by the name of Panachayati Raj/ Democratic decentralization.

1.Each village or group of villages has a Gram Panchayat.

2.Panch, President or Sarpanch are directly elected by all the adult population of the village and is the decision-making body.

3.The Panchayat works under the supervision of Gram Sabha, with all the voters as its members.

4.The local structure goes up to the district level—a group of Gram Panchayats form a Panchayat Samiti or Block or Mandal.

5.All the Panchayat Samitis or Mandals together constitute the Zilla Parishad which consists of elected members.

6.Lok Sabha members, Local MLAs and officers are also members of the Zilla Parishad.

7.Its Chairperson is the political head of the Parishad.

Urban areas local bodies-

1.Municipalities are set up in towns.

2.Big cities are constituted into Municipal Corporations.

3.Both are controlled by elected bodies consisting of people’s representatives.

4.Municipal chairperson is the political head of the Municipality.
The head of Municipal Corporation is an officer called the Mayor.

 

 

 

QUESTION 11.

How is federal power sharing more effective today than in the early years? Explain.

Answer:-

1.Federal power sharing is more effective because of the nature of democratic politics in India. It has ensured that the spirit of federalism, respect for diversity and desire for living together have become a shared ideal in our country.

2.Federal power sharing has helped to inculcate a habit of democratic participation. Federal power sharing is the best way to realize one important principle of democracy, namely local self-government. Constitutional status for local government has helped to deepen democracy.

A) It has increased women’s representation and voice in democracy.

B) Federal power sharing has led to formation of linguistic states which has actually made the country more united. It has also made administration easier.

C) It reduces the power of the Central government and gives power to regional governments.

SOURCE OF INFORMATION

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2. INTERNET DATA BASE

PREPARED BY

DR. SANTOSH ANAND MISHRA

D A V PUBLIC SCHOOL

MANPUR 

KAIYA

GAYA

BIHAR

 

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