Question 84 from UPSC CSE 2022 - Polity & Governanc e

Question

If a particular area is brought under the Fifth Schedule of the Constitution of India, which one of the following statements best reflects the consequence of it?

Accepted Answer

Correct Option: A. This would prevent the transfer of land of tribal people to non-tribal people.

Strategy: - Identify the direct impact of bringing an area under the Fifth Schedule: legal safeguards for tribal lands.
- Eliminate options such as Union Territory status, special category state designation, or creation of a local government body, as they do not directly correlate with the Fifth Schedule's constitutional intent.
- Focus on the primary protection: restriction on land transfer from tribal to non-tribal persons.

Key Info: Fifth Schedule of the Indian Constitution provides for the administration and control of Scheduled Areas and Scheduled Tribes in states other than those in the North East. Key features include:

- The Governor of a State with Scheduled Areas has special legislative and executive powers, including the ability to make regulations restricting or prohibiting the transfer of tribal land to non-tribals and regulate allotment of land to ST members.
- Tribes Advisory Council (TAC) is mandated for consultation on matters of ST welfare and advancement.
- Scheduled Areas are formally notified areas with significant tribal populations and economic backwardness; central government approval is required for modification or declaration of a Scheduled Area.
- Landmark cases, such as Samatha v. State of Andhra Pradesh (1997), reinforce that transfer of land by tribals to non-tribals (including private companies) in Scheduled Areas is prohibited without prior government approval.
- Currently, states like Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Rajasthan, and Telangana have such areas under the Fifth Schedule.
- The Fifth Schedule does not convert an area into a Union Territory, does not automatically provide Special Category State status (now discontinued), and does not establish local self-governance bodies by itself (though Panchayats Extension to Scheduled Areas Act, 1996, PESA, operates in these areas to strengthen local self-governance separately).
- The major effect is the legal protection over tribal land and prevention of its alienation to non-tribal people, securing tribal land rights and autonomy in governance.

Answer

Option B: This would create a local self-governing body in that area.

Answer

Option C: This would convert that area into a Union Territory.

Answer

Option D: The State having such areas would be declared a Special Category State.