❖ SHORT NOTES In this lesson we will study the federal system of India. The lowest level of decentralization of power will be arranged for local self - government. We will also take a look at Panchayati Raj in Bihar. When human groups based on caste, religion, colour, lan guage etc. do not get proper recognition and power sharing, their dissatisfaction and conflict leads to social division, political instability, cultural conflict and economic stagnation. Different linguistic and caste groups can get proper representation i n governance. On the contrary, the ruling class in Sri Lanka continued to ignore the interests of the Sinhalese community, resulting in a fierce civil war between the Tamils and the Sinhalese. This also makes it clear that division of power among differe nt social groups is appropriate because in this different social groups get expression and identity. Their interests and needs are respected. In this the possibility of conflict between different social groups reduces. Therefore, the system of power sharin g is the first condition for the unity, integrity and validity of a moral society. It was believed for a long time that political power cannot be divided. The power of governance should remain in the hands of one person or group of persons. If the powers o f governance are divided then the power of decision also gets scattered. In such a situation, it would be impossible to take decisions and implement them, but democracy refuted this belief by making separation of power its basic basis. In a democracy, all the power of the government is not limited to any one organ, rather power is distributed among the various organs of the government. This distribution takes place at only one level of government. For example, there is distribution of power between the thre e organs of the government - legislature, executive and judiciary and all these organs form a partnership in power by exercising their respective powers at the same level. With such distribution of power, the possibility of concentration of power in any on e organ and its misuse is eliminated. This system was adopted in many democratic countries of the world like America, India etc. Such distribution of power at one level of government is called horizontal distribution of power. In this type of system there is a common government for the entire country. There are separate governments at the provincial and territorial levels. Clear division of power between the two is arranged through a constitution or written document. This sharing of power is commonly known as federalism. We can note the characteristics of federal government system as follows - • In a federal government system, supreme power is divided between the central government and its various subordinate units. • In a federal system of government, there is a dual government, a central level government under whose jurisdiction are matters of national importance. At the second level there are provincial or regional levels. In whose jurisdiction there are subjects of local importance. • Each level of government is autonomous in its own area and is accountable or answerable to the people for its actions. • Different levels of government rule over the same citizen group. • Citizens have dual identities and loyalties, they belong to their region as well as to the nation. Like any of us is a Bihari, a Bengali and a Marathi as well as an Indian. • The detailed arrangements for governance at the dual level are made through a written constitution. • An independent judiciary is provided. It also has the authority to provide for the Constitution and the powers of different levels of governments and it also resolves legal disputes that arise regarding the distribution of rights and power between the Central and State Governments. federal government system in india Under the federal system in India, the right to make laws has been divided into three lists. Union List , State List and Concurrent List. • On the Union List, the country has the right to make laws, on the State List, the State has the right to make laws and on t he Concurrent List, both the country and the State have the right to make laws. • The Central Government is given the right to make laws on the residual or remaining subjects which are not included in these three lists. • The Indian Constitution has been made rigid, so that the distribution of powers between the Center and the States cannot be changed easily and without the consent of the States. • An independent and supreme judiciary has been created, which has the power to interpret the Constitution, settle dis putes between the Center and the State, and investigate the laws made by the Central and State Governments and declare them against the Constitution or illegal. . • The Center and the States have the right to impose taxes and raise resources to raise the rev enue necessary for running the government and performing other responsibilities. language policy • Many languages are spoken in India. Linguistic discrimination has been a major cause of political instability in Sri Lanka. Therefore, Hindi language was giv en the status of official language in the Indian Constitution, because it is the language of 40 percent of the population. Along with this, measures were taken for the use, conservation and promotion of other languages. • Power of the Central Government – Parliament has control over the existence of a state and the stability of its geographical boundaries. She can change the boundary or name of a state. But to prevent misuse of this power, the legislature of the affected state has also been given an opportu nity to express its views. • There are some emergency provisions in the Constitution which make the Center extremely powerful and when implemented, they transform our federal system into a centralized system. • The Governor can also send any bill passed by the State Legislature to the President for the approval of the President and also to recommend removal of t he State Government and dissolution of the Assembly. • In special circumstances, the Central Government can also make laws on the subjects of the State List. • The Indian administrative system is uniform. In this, the selected officers do the work of administr ation of the states, but the state can neither take any disciplinary action against them, nor can they remove them from service. • Two Articles 33 and 34 of the Constitution greatly increase the power of the Union Government in the event that military rule i s imposed in any area of the country. Parliament gets the right to legalize in such a situation any action taken by any official of the Center or the State for maintaining or restoring peace. A glimpse of Panchayati Raj system in Bihar At the national l evel, the Panchayati Raj system was formally started on 2 October 1959 from Nagaur district of Rajasthan on the basis of the recommendations of the Balwant Rai Mahata Committee. Panchayati Raj system was implemented in Andhra Pradesh only in 1959. Balwant Rai Mehta Committee suggested a three - tier structure for the Panchayat system - 1. Panchayat at village level 2. Panchayat committee or regional committee at block level 3. Zilla Parishad at the district level. With the aim of bringing uniformity in the Panchayati R aj system across the country, the 73rd Constitution Bill was brought in the Parliament in 1991, which was passed by the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha respectively on 22 - 23 December 1992. As a result, the Panchayati State Act was included under the title Pa nchayat in a new Part 9 of the Constitution. A new Article 243 consisting of 13 paragraphs has been placed in it. One new schedule (eleven schedules) has been added by this amendment. Three - tier form of Panchayati Raj in Bihar A. Gram Panchayat B. Panchayat Committee C. District Council Tenure – five years The state government considers the establishment of Gram Panchayat as the basis on average population of 7000. A Panchayat area is divided into wards based on the population of about 500, the num ber of which is generally 15 - 16. Ward members are elected by each voter. The head of the Gram Panchayats is the Mukhiya and to assist him, the post of a Deputy Mukhiya has been created. In every Panchayat, a Panchayat servant is appointed by the state gove rnment, who plays the role of secretary. Under the Bihar Panchayati Raj Act 2006 , there is a provision for reservation of half of the total seats i.e. 50 percent for women. The head of the village panchayat is the head. The head or deputy head can resign from his post on his own or can be removed. To step down voluntarily, they have to submit their resignation letter to the District Panchayati Raj Officer . If the members of the Gram Panchayats pass a no - confidence motion against the head with a two - thirds majority, then the head and deputy head can be removed from their posts. General functions of Gram Panchayat - 1. 1. To prepare annual plan and annual budget for the development of Panchayat area. 2. 2. Work to provide assistance in natural calamities. 3. Removal of encroachment from public property. 4. To organize voluntary workers and provide voluntary assistance in community work. Powers of Gram Panchayat - 1. Power to acquire, hold and dispose of property and to contract 2. Annual taxes like water tax , sanitation tax, management tax in fairs and markets, fees on vehicle registration and tax on businesses and establishments running within the jurisdiction. 3. Right to receive grants - in - aid from the Consolidated Fund on the recommendation of the State Finan ce Commission. Sources of income of Gram Panchayat - 1. Tax Sources - Holding, business, trade, profession and employment. 2. Fees and Rent – Registration of vehicles, pilgrimage places, haats and fairs, water supply, lighting on streets and other places, toilet s and urinals. 3. Financial grants - On the basis of the recommendation of the State Finance Commission, grants are also given to the Panchayats from the Consolidated Fund by the State Government. Major organs of Gram Panchayat - 1. Gram Sabha 2. Chief 3. Village Raksha Dal/Dalpati 4. Village Court Gram Sabha - This is the legislative assembly of the Panchayat. All adult men and women living in the Gram Panchayat area who are above 18 years of age will be members of the Gram Sabha. Gra m Sabha meetings will be held at least four times in a year. The Mukhika will call the meeting of the Gram Sabha and preside over it. Gram Raksha Dal - This is the village police. Youth between 18 to 30 years of age can participate in this. There is a leader of the security team who is called Dalpati . The responsibility of security and peace of the village rests on him. Gram Kachari - This is the court of Gram Panchayat which has been given judicial functions. In Bihar, the executive and judiciary of Gr am Panchayat have been kept separate from each other. Every Gram Panchayat has a Gram Kachari in which there is a directly elected Sarpanch and Panchs elected according to the population of every 500. Their tenure is of five years. Gram Kachari has been pr ovided with powers in both civil and criminal fields. Sarpanch can hear all types of cases up to a maximum of Rs 10 thousand. There is also an amicus curiae and a justice secretary in the village court. The posts of Justice Mitras and Justice Secretaries h ave been created by the Government of Bihar. The Justice Mitra assists the Sarpanch in his work, while the Justice Secretary looks after the documents of the Village Court. Working Procedure of Satta Mein Sajhedhari ( b) Panchayat Samiti Panchayat Samiti i s the second or middle level of the Panchayati state system. It is the link between Gram Panchayat and Zilla Parishad. In Bihar, there is a provision to elect Panchayat Committee on population of 5000. They elect a chief and a deputy chief from among thems elves. He is the chief officer of the Panchayat Committee. Scrutinizes the work of Panchayat Samiti members and exercises control over the Block Development Officer. The Block Development Officer is the ex - officio Secretary of the Panchayat Samiti. He call s a meeting of the Panchayat Committee on the orders of the Chief. Functions of Panchayat Committee - Panchayat Committee deliberates on the annual plans of all the Gram Panchayats and presents the consolidated plan to the District Council. It is also their responsibility to arrange community development work and relief during natural disasters. Zilla Parishad - Zilla Parishad is the third level of Panchayati Raj system in Bihar. One member of the Zilla Parishad is elected for a population of 50,000. All the Panchayat Samitis of the district come under the jurisdiction of the District Council. Its tenure is of 5 years. Each District Council has a Chairman and Vice - Chairman whom it elects from among its members. Bihar Panchayati Raj Act 2005 has made a provisio n for reservation of half the seats and 50 percent of the total seats for women. Apart from this, reservation arrangements have also been made for people belonging to Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and extremely backward classes. Urban governance in Bi har Bihar has a glorious history of local self - governance in cities and towns. They are mentioned in Manusmriti and Mahabharata. Greek scholar Megasthenes in his book It has been written in detail about the municipal organization of 'Pataliputra', the capi tal of the Magadha Empire. Chanakya, who was the prime minister of Chandragupta, also described the city administration of Pataliputra in his book 'Arthashastra'. After independence, the municipal administration has been completely reorganized and reformed The Indian Parliament has given constitutional recognition to the urban self - governance system for the first time by passing the 74th Constitutional Amendment in 1992. The jurisdiction of the municipality is mentioned in the 12th Schedule of the Constitu tion. Working Procedure of Satta Mein Sajhedhari There are three types of institutions in urban governance system - 1. Nagar Panchayat 2. city council and 3. Municipal council. 1. Nagar Panchayat - Nagar Panchayat is formed to run the local governance in those places which start changing from village to city. Nagar Panchayat is established in cities whose population is between 12,000 and 40,000. The essential condition for Nagar Panchayat is that three - fourth of the adult population there should be engaged in wo rk other than agriculture. The number of Nagar Panchayat members ranges from 10 to 37, elected by voters from wards. The tenure of the members is five years. Nagar Panchayat has a President and a Vice President who are elected from among its members. 2. Mu nicipal Council - Municipal Council is formed in big cities from Nagar Panchayat. In those cities whose population is at least between 2,00,000 and 3,00,000, a Municipal Council is established. The essential condition for the Municipal Council is that three - fourth of the total population should be engaged in work other than agriculture. Parts of the Municipal Council – There are three parts of the Municipal Council – 1. City Council 2. Committees 3. President and Vice President and 4. Executive officer. 1. Municipal Cou ncilor - A major agency of the Municipal Council is the Municipal Councilor. Its members are called councilors or commissioners. Its number is at least ten and maximum 40. The tenure of the councilor is 5 years. 80 percent of its members are elected and 20 members are nominated. The members of the Municipal Council elect a Chairman and Vice Chairman from among the mselves. 2. Committees - There are many committees of the Municipal Council to run the works of the Municipal Council smoothly. The city councilor appoints the committees. It consists of 3 to 6 members . 3. Chairman and Vice Chairman - Every city council of Bihar has a Chief Councilor (Chairman) and Deputy Chief Councilor (Vice Chairman). Both of them are elected by the members of the Municipal Council. The Municipal Councilor is the head of the Municipal Council. He takes care of all their work. The Chief Co uncilor is considered the first citizen of his city. 4. Executive Officer - There is a post of an executive officer in every city. It is appointed by the state government. He is the chief officer who runs the administration of the Municipal Council. Functio ns of Municipal Council - There are two types of functions of the Municipal Council – mandatory and optional. Mandatory functions are those functions which the Municipal Council is required to perform. Voluntary tasks are those tasks which the City Council does as per need. Following are the essential functions of the Municipal Council. 1.Cleaning the city 2. Arrangement of lighting in roads and streets 3. To arrange drinking water 4. Building and repairing roads 5. Cleaning the drains. 6. To arrange primary education, such as opening and running schools. 7. Vaccination and taking measures to prevent epidemics 8. Opening of hospital for humans and animals 9. Fire protection 10. Managing the crematorium 11. To register births and deaths and keep their a ccounts. Working Procedure of Satta Mein Sajhedhari Optional work - 1. Building a new road 2. Making streets and drains 3. Making the dirty areas of the city habitable 4. Building houses for the poor 5. Managing electricity. 6. To hold an exhibition 7. Buil ding a park, garden and museum 8. To arrange a library. Sources of income of Municipal Council - Municipal Council collects various types of taxes. Like, house tax, water tax, lighting tax, drain tax, entertainment tax etc. Apart from this, the Municipal Co uncil collects border tax, which is commonly called Changi, for sales in the city from outside the city. The city also collects tax on bullock carts, tamtams, bicycles, rickshaws etc. running in the city. Apart from this, the state government also gives gr ants from time to time. 3 Municipal council - As we know that there are three types of institutions for local governance of cities in states. Among these three institutions, Municipal Corporation is established in big cities. That is, Municipal Corporation is established in cities whose population is more than 3 lakh. Madras (Chennai) Municipal Corporation was first established in India in 1688 AD. In Bihar, the first Municipal Corporation was established in Patna in 1952. Each municipal corporation is divi ded into several areas according to population. Which is called ward. The number of wards in a municipal corporation depends on the population of that city. The rules of reservation are followed in determining the wards. In which scheduled caste, Reservati on is made for Scheduled Tribes and extremely backward people. In Bihar, 50 percent seats in the Municipal Corporation have been reserved for women. The minimum number of wards in a municipal corporation in Bihar can be 37 and maximum 75. There are 72 ward s in Patna Municipal Corporation, 35 in Gaya Municipal Corporation, 51 in Bhagalpur Municipal Corporation, 48 in Darbhanga Municipal Corporation, 46 in Bihar Sharif Municipal Corporation and 45 wards in Arrah Municipal Corporation. Working Procedure of Sat ta Mein Sajhedhari Major organs of Municipal Corporation - Major organs of Municipal Corporation in Bihar are 1. Municipal Council 2. Empowered Local Committee 3. Consultative Committees 4. Municipal Commissioner 1 Municipal Council - The entire municipal corporation area is divided into different areas (wards). From each area divided in this way, one representative is elected by the voters of that area. They are called ward councilors or ward councillors. The tenure of councilors is 5 years. Apart from the elected members, groups representing special interests such as Chamber of Commerce, trade associations and registered graduates are also members of the Council. The nominated members, along with all the elected members, elect a number of co - opted members. Apart from this, there are MPs, local MLAs and local councilors of that municipal corporation area as invited members. The Corporation Council meeting is held every month. The main functions of the Corporation Council are to make rules, take decisions and impose taxes. Mayor and Deputy Mayor – The Municipal Council elects a Mayor and Deputy Mayor from among its members. The tenure of both of them is 5 years. The Mayor is the Chairman of the Corporation Council and presides over the meetings of the Corporat ion. He also chairs the powerful standing committee. The mayor is considered the first citizen of the city. In this capacity, he welcomes the guests coming to the city on behalf of the city. In the absence of the Mayor, the Deputy Mayor performs all the du ties of the Municipal Council. 2 Powerful Local Committee – This is the second important part of the Municipal Corporation after the Municipal Council. The Mayor and Deputy Mayor are also members of this committee. This committee is chaired by the Mayor. All the major functions of the Corporation Council are done by the empowered committee. Apart from appointing some employees, this committee also exercises control over the Municipal Commissioner. 3 Consultative Committees - There are also some consultative committees in the Municipal Corporation, like Education Committee, Market and Garden Committee etc. These committees give advice to the Municipal Corporation. 4 Municipal Commissioner - This officer of the Municipal Corporation is appointed b y the Government of Bihar. He is usually an Indian Administrative Service level officer and looks after the work of all the employees of the city. The Municipal Commissioner can also appoint some employees. Major functions of Municipal Corporation - Municip al Corporation performs many works for comfort and convenience. Some major functions of Municipal Corporation - 1. Construction of drains, urinals, toilets etc. in the city area. 2. Cleaning garbage and filth. 3. To arrange drinking water. 4. Cleaning and c onstruction of streets and gardens. 5. To establish medical centers for humans and animals and try to stop diseases like touch - and - touch. 6. To establish and arrange elementary level government schools, libraries, museums. 7. To establish and maintain vari ous welfare centers like dead center, child center, old age home. 8. To prevent dangerous trades, to arrange for killing of dangerous animals and mad dogs. 9. Establishing and managing a dairy farm. DOWNLOAD NOW VILLO ED UCATION APP