{"id":41324,"date":"2025-04-16T19:36:45","date_gmt":"2025-04-16T14:06:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/?p=41324"},"modified":"2025-04-16T19:36:57","modified_gmt":"2025-04-16T14:06:57","slug":"tn-panel-state-autonomy-recommendations","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/current-affairs\/16-04-2025\/tn-panel-state-autonomy-recommendations","title":{"rendered":"T.N. Govt. Forms Panel to Recommend Measures on State Autonomy"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>Syllabus: GS2\/Polity and Governance<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Context<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The Tamil Nadu Chief Minister has set up a<strong> high-level committee<\/strong> to <strong>recommend measures on state autonomy <\/strong>with a view to protect state governments&#8217; rights and improve working relations with the union government.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>About the Committee<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>It is a <strong>three member committee<\/strong> headed by<strong> former Supreme Court judge Justice Kurian Joseph.\u00a0<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The committee is expected to submit its interim report by<strong> January 2026 and the final report within two years.<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>The mandate of the committee includes:<\/strong>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>to review the Constitutional provisions, laws, rules and policies with respect to Centre-State relations;\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>to recommend ways to restore subjects moved from the State List to the Concurrent List;\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>to propose measures for States to overcome administrative challenges;\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>to suggest reforms to ensure maximum autonomy for States without compromising the unity and integrity of the nation;\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>and to consider the recommendations of the Rajamannar Committee and subsequent commissions formed by the Union government on the Centre-State relations.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Federalism and Its Key Features<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Federalism <\/strong>is a system of government in which the <strong>power is divided between a central authority and various constituent units of the country.\u00a0<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>There are<strong> two or more levels (or tiers) of government.\u00a0<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Different tiers of government govern the same citizens, but each tier has <strong>its own jurisdiction in specific matters of legislation, taxation and administration.\u00a0<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The jurisdictions of the respective levels or tiers of government are <strong>specified in the constitution<\/strong>.\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>The fundamental provisions of the constitution cannot be unilaterally changed<\/strong> by one level of government. Such changes require the <strong>consent of both the levels of government.\u00a0<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Courts have the power to interpret the constitution<\/strong> and the powers of different levels of government.\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Sources of revenue for each level of government are clearly specified <\/strong>to ensure its financial autonomy.\u00a0<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Key Features of Indian Federalism<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Constitutional Division of Powers:<\/strong> The Constitution divides subjects between the Union and the States through the<strong> Union List, State List, and Concurrent List (Seventh Schedule).<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Strong Centre:<\/strong> The central government has more powers, especially in times of emergency.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The Union List contains more and significant subjects (like defense, foreign affairs).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Single Constitution &amp; Citizenship:<\/strong> India has a single constitution and single citizenship, unlike the USA.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Independent Judiciary: <\/strong>The Supreme Court acts as the guardian of the Constitution and arbitrator in Centre-State disputes.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Interstate Councils &amp; Finance Commission: <\/strong>Bodies like the Inter-State Council and Finance Commission<strong> promote cooperative federalism.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Challenges to Indian Federalism<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Rising Regional Sensitivity and Sub-Nationalism: <\/strong>Increasing regional identity and sensitivity among states challenge national unity.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Political ideologies focused on regional interests may benefit specific areas but weaken the overall federal spirit.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Financial Dependency of States: <\/strong>States are financially dependent on the Centre due to lack of fiscal autonomy.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>This dependency results in operational constraints and deepens the federal crisis.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Inequality and Political Bias:<\/strong> States often express grievances over unfulfilled regional demands.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Disparities in representation based on population and territory lead to inequality.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>This leads to both inter-state inequality and a perception of neglect by the Centre.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Indestructible Union, Destructible States: <\/strong>Unlike the U.S. model, Indian states do not have a permanent status.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The Union can alter, merge, or bifurcate states unilaterally.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>This power of the Centre weakens the federal nature by making states structurally vulnerable.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Religious Conflicts: <\/strong>Religious tensions lead to institutional conflicts and disrupt the unity.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>These challenges highlight the difficulty of maintaining harmony in a diverse nation.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Demand for new States: <\/strong>The continuous increase demands for the new states create a threat in the smooth operation of federalism.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Recommendations by Committees<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Sarkaria Commission (1983): <\/strong>To examine and review the working of the existing arrangements between the Centre and the States.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Key Recommendations: <\/strong>Strengthen the role of the Inter-State Council (Article 263) as a permanent, regular body.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Use Article 356 (President\u2019s Rule) sparingly and only as a last resort.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>More financial autonomy to states; a greater share in central taxes.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>National Commission to Review the Working of the Constitution (NCRWC) \u2013 2000 <\/strong>(<strong>Headed by: <\/strong>Justice M.N. Venkatachaliah)\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Key Recommendations: <\/strong>Strengthen fiscal federalism with greater devolution of funds to states.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Set up an Inter-State Trade Commission to regulate trade disputes.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Improve Centre-State consultation mechanisms before passing legislation affecting states.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Punchhi Commission (2007): <\/strong>To revisit Centre-State relations in the context of changes since the Sarkaria Commission.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Key Recommendations: <\/strong>Limit misuse of Article 356; it should be used only in exceptional situations.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The Governor&#8217;s role should be non-partisan; the removal process should be more transparent.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Creation of a Supreme Court-authorized Inter-State Trade and Commerce Commission.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>States should have more autonomy in subjects listed under Concurrent List.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>NITI Aayog Reforms (Post-Planning Commission):\u00a0<\/strong>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Promote Cooperative Federalism through regular consultations with states.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>More say for states in economic planning.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Reorienting Centrally Sponsored Schemes based on state-specific needs.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Source: <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehindu.com\/news\/national\/tamil-nadu\/tn-chief-minister-mk-stalin-forms-high-level-committee-to-strengthen-state-autonomy\/article69451798.ece\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\"><strong>TH<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<h3><strong>Context<\/strong><\/h3>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">The Tamil Nadu Chief Minister has set up a high-level committee to recommend measures on state autonomy with a view to protect state governments&#8217; rights and improve working relations with the union government.<\/li>\n<p><\/p>\n<h3><strong>About the Committee<\/strong><\/h3>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">It is a three member committee headed by former Supreme Court judge Justice Kurian Joseph.\u00a0<\/li>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">The committee is expected to submit its interim report by January 2026 and the final report within two years.<\/li>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/current-affairs\/16-04-2025\/tn-panel-state-autonomy-recommendations\" class=\"btn btn-primary btn-sm float-end\">Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-41324","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-current-affairs"],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41324","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/12"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=41324"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41324\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":41337,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41324\/revisions\/41337"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=41324"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=41324"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=41324"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}