DEBATES PN INDIAN FEDERALISM:
1. Regionalism
• It is considered one of the significant challenges to federalism in India.
• Federalism best thrives as a democratic system when it mitigates the
centralization of power sharing between the centre and the states.
• The pluralist character of India gives rise to many factors including
regionalism. People from far northeast sometimes feel themselves at
a formidable distance from New Delhi and people in southern part of
the country with bigger states feel neglected having been within larger
states.
• Regionalism or love for one’s area, despite India’s tradition of
successful federal rule over the years since independence, still raises
its head in different parts of the country.
• The voice for the demand of more states has become more prominent
in recent times, especially after the formation of Telangana in 2014.
Recent demands like four-fold division of Uttar Pradesh and the
creation of Gorkhaland from West Bengal are instances of aggressive
regionalism that pose a threat to the federal structure of India.
• The agitations for Gorkhaland, Bodoland, and KarbiAnglong have
been revived. This is apart from the new demands for a separate
Vidarbha State in Maharashtra, and Harit Pradesh and Poorvanchal in
Uttar Pradesh. The more the number of states the more the centre will
be held hostage to state parties on matters of national importance.
• For instance, West Bengal threatened India’s Teesta river waters
treaty with Bangladesh because of its possible potential costs for West
Bengal. Even growing regional powers may affect effective foreign
policy as the federal government may bow to the will of an individual
state. India had to vote in favour of UNHRC resolution for Sri Lanka in
2012 for a backlash from Tamil Nadu.
2. Division of Powers
• Unlike the USA and Australia, in India distribution of power is made
under Three Lists found in the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution.
The powers of both the Central and State Governments are
specifically enumerated in the Union list and State list respectively
while powers mentioned in the Concurrent list are enjoyed by the two
, sets of governments. The residuary powers are vested in the Central
government.
• The general principle underlying the division of powers is that all
matters of national importance, e.g. defence, foreign affairs, railways,
currency are allotted to the Central government while matters that are
primarily of local or regional importance e.g., education, public health,
police, local administration are assigned to regional governments.
Some matters which require the involvement of both the centre and
states like criminal law, forest, economic and social planning are
assigned in the Concurrent List. However, in the case of conflict over
the legislation on any of the subjects mentioned in the Concurrent List,
the Centre supersedes the States.
• Article 200 (reservation of State Bills by the Governor for
consideration of the President), emergency provisions under Article
352, 356 and 360 and compulsory compliance by the States with the
executive power of the Centre under Article 256 and 257 amount to
centralisation of power which has been the major concern among the
states. Centralisation is as such a threat to Indian federalism.
3. Absence of Fiscal Federalism
• The Indian Constitution, while expressly vesting the Centre with
greater powers of taxation, also provides for an institutional
mechanism — the Finance Commission — to determine the share of
the States in the Central tax revenues by way of correcting this
imbalance.
• While deciding the devolution of taxes and the provisions of grants the
Finance Commission is required to address both the vertical
imbalance between the Centre and the States and the horizontal
imbalance between states.
• At present, about 40 percent of Central revenues (tax and non-tax) is
transferred to the States, and this includes the grants they get from
the Planning Commission and the Central Ministries.
• Despite the enlargement of the shareable pool under the 80th
Amendment which includes all central taxes, the revenue accruals of
the Centre and the States have not seen any major changes.
• Asymmetrical sharing of revenue and resource crunch at the periphery
results in uneven development across the country. The current Goods
and Services Tax measure is feared by many states to be against
fiscal federalism in India. It has amalgamated the various taxes into a
single tax, procurement of which will then be divided among states in
a prescribed ratio. Many states in India demand for more financial
autonomy in India.
1. Regionalism
• It is considered one of the significant challenges to federalism in India.
• Federalism best thrives as a democratic system when it mitigates the
centralization of power sharing between the centre and the states.
• The pluralist character of India gives rise to many factors including
regionalism. People from far northeast sometimes feel themselves at
a formidable distance from New Delhi and people in southern part of
the country with bigger states feel neglected having been within larger
states.
• Regionalism or love for one’s area, despite India’s tradition of
successful federal rule over the years since independence, still raises
its head in different parts of the country.
• The voice for the demand of more states has become more prominent
in recent times, especially after the formation of Telangana in 2014.
Recent demands like four-fold division of Uttar Pradesh and the
creation of Gorkhaland from West Bengal are instances of aggressive
regionalism that pose a threat to the federal structure of India.
• The agitations for Gorkhaland, Bodoland, and KarbiAnglong have
been revived. This is apart from the new demands for a separate
Vidarbha State in Maharashtra, and Harit Pradesh and Poorvanchal in
Uttar Pradesh. The more the number of states the more the centre will
be held hostage to state parties on matters of national importance.
• For instance, West Bengal threatened India’s Teesta river waters
treaty with Bangladesh because of its possible potential costs for West
Bengal. Even growing regional powers may affect effective foreign
policy as the federal government may bow to the will of an individual
state. India had to vote in favour of UNHRC resolution for Sri Lanka in
2012 for a backlash from Tamil Nadu.
2. Division of Powers
• Unlike the USA and Australia, in India distribution of power is made
under Three Lists found in the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution.
The powers of both the Central and State Governments are
specifically enumerated in the Union list and State list respectively
while powers mentioned in the Concurrent list are enjoyed by the two
, sets of governments. The residuary powers are vested in the Central
government.
• The general principle underlying the division of powers is that all
matters of national importance, e.g. defence, foreign affairs, railways,
currency are allotted to the Central government while matters that are
primarily of local or regional importance e.g., education, public health,
police, local administration are assigned to regional governments.
Some matters which require the involvement of both the centre and
states like criminal law, forest, economic and social planning are
assigned in the Concurrent List. However, in the case of conflict over
the legislation on any of the subjects mentioned in the Concurrent List,
the Centre supersedes the States.
• Article 200 (reservation of State Bills by the Governor for
consideration of the President), emergency provisions under Article
352, 356 and 360 and compulsory compliance by the States with the
executive power of the Centre under Article 256 and 257 amount to
centralisation of power which has been the major concern among the
states. Centralisation is as such a threat to Indian federalism.
3. Absence of Fiscal Federalism
• The Indian Constitution, while expressly vesting the Centre with
greater powers of taxation, also provides for an institutional
mechanism — the Finance Commission — to determine the share of
the States in the Central tax revenues by way of correcting this
imbalance.
• While deciding the devolution of taxes and the provisions of grants the
Finance Commission is required to address both the vertical
imbalance between the Centre and the States and the horizontal
imbalance between states.
• At present, about 40 percent of Central revenues (tax and non-tax) is
transferred to the States, and this includes the grants they get from
the Planning Commission and the Central Ministries.
• Despite the enlargement of the shareable pool under the 80th
Amendment which includes all central taxes, the revenue accruals of
the Centre and the States have not seen any major changes.
• Asymmetrical sharing of revenue and resource crunch at the periphery
results in uneven development across the country. The current Goods
and Services Tax measure is feared by many states to be against
fiscal federalism in India. It has amalgamated the various taxes into a
single tax, procurement of which will then be divided among states in
a prescribed ratio. Many states in India demand for more financial
autonomy in India.
