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GS Paper: GS2

  • Quad

    The article discusses the future course of action for the Quad and issues it faces in the present circumstances.

    Evolution of the Quad

    • In 2007, the Quad (the United States, Japan, India, and Australia) was an idea whose time had not yet come.
    • The global financial crisis was yet to happen as America continued to enjoy its ‘unipolar moment’.
    • The American still expected China to become a ‘responsible stake-holder’.
    • America required Chinese goodwill in handling issues with North Korea and Iran, and the War on Terror.
    • Japan and Australia were riding the China Boom to prosperity.
    • If India was ambivalent at the time, it was because this mirrored the uncertainties of others.

    China’s reaction and naval expansion

    • When the idea of Quad was barely on the table; the Chinese, labelled it as an Asian version of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.
    • The real reason for China’s hyperreaction was out of concern that such a grouping would “out” China’s plans for naval expansion by focusing on the Indo-Pacific maritime space.
    • Once the idea of Quad 1.0 had died down, China advanced a new claim — the Nine-Dash Line — in the South China Sea.
    • It undertook the rapid kind of warship building activity
    • It built its first overseas base in Djibouti.
    • It started systematically to explore the surface and sub-surface environment in the Indian Ocean beyond the Malacca Straits.
    • China’s dismissal of the Arbitral Award in the dispute with the Philippines on the South China Sea and its militarization of the islands has given a second chance to the Quad.

    Quad: A plurilateral mechanism

    • The Quad nations need to better explain that the Indo-Pacific Vision is an overarching framework being discussed in a transparent manner.
    • They should also explain that the objective of Indo-Pacific vision is of advancing everyone’s economic and security interests.
    • The Quad is a plurilateral mechanism between countries that share interest on specific matters.
    • In 2016, China itself established a Quadrilateral Cooperation and Coordination Mechanism with Afghanistan, Pakistan and Tajikistan.
    • The Quad is no exception.

    Way forward

    • The forthcoming Ministerial Quad meeting will be an opportunity to define the idea and chart a future path.
    • Needless provocation of China should be avoided.
    • Other countries might be invited to join in the future.
    • An outreach to the Indian Ocean littoral states is especially important since there are reports from some quarters suggesting that India is seeking to deny access to some extra-regional countries through the Indian Ocean.

    Conclusion

    A positive agenda built around collective action in humanitarian assistance and disaster relief, monitoring shipping for search and rescue or anti-piracy operations, infrastructure assistance to climatically vulnerable states, connectivity initiatives and similar activities, will re-assure the littoral States that the Quad will be a factor for regional benefit, and a far cry from Chinese allegations that it is some sort of a military alliance.

  • Should India have one national Language?

    The article discusses the issues with excessive attention given to Hindi and how the neglect of another language could lead to the loss of language and the way of life associated with it as well.

    Debate in Constituent Assembly and issues in the adoption of Hindi

    • The issue of adopting a national language could not be resolved when the Constituent Assembly began drafting India’s Constitution.
    • Members from the Hindi-speaking provinces who moved a number of pro-Hindi amendments and argued for adopting Hindi as the sole national language.
    • Widespread resistance to the imposition of Hindi led to the passage of the Official Languages Act of 1963, which provided for the continued use of English for all official purposes.
    • Hindi became the sole working language of the Union government by 1965 with the State governments free to function in the language of their choice.
    • The constitutional directive for the Union government to encourage the spread of Hindi was retained within Central government entities in non-Hindi-speaking States.

    Issues with the Eighth Schedule

    • According to the 2001 Census, India has 30 languages that are spoken by more than a million people each.
    • The Constitution lists 22 languages and protects them in the eighth schedule.
    • Many languages are kept out of this schedule even if they deserve to be included.
    • This includes Tulu which is spoken by over 1.8 million people and has inscriptions dating back to the 14th and 15th centuries.
    • While Hindi, a much younger Indo-Aryan language, has been gaining prominence since before independence.
    • When a refined language loses its status in literary and daily interactions, the way of life associated with it also vanishes.
    • The Census found that while Hindi is the fastest growing language, the number of speakers of other languages has dropped.

    Way forward

    • While discussing Hindi and its use, let us also focus on the merit of other Indian languages.
    • Instead of focusing on one national language, we should learn a language beyond the mother tongue and get to know a different way of life too.

    Conclusion

    If we don’t protect and promote other well-evolved or endangered and indigenous languages, our future generations may end up never understanding their ‘real’ roots and culture

  • Ambedkar Social Innovation and Incubation Mission (PIB)

    Union Social Justice Minister launched the Ambedkar Social Innovation and Incubation Mission(ASIIM) under Venture Capital Fund for SCs, with a view to promoting innovation and enterprise among SC students studying in higher educational institutions.

    What is ASIIM ?

    • Under Ambedkar Social Innovation Incubation Mission initiative, one thousand SC youth will be identified in the next four years with start-up ideas through the Technology Business Incubators in various higher educational institutions.
    • They will be funded 30 lakh rupees in three years as equity funding to translate their start-up ideas into commercial ventures.
    • Successful ventures would further qualify for venture funding of up to five Crore rupees from the Venture Capital Fund for SCs.

    Venture Capital Fund for SCs:

    • The Social Justice Ministry had launched the Venture Capital Fund for SCs in 2014-15 with a view to developing entrepreneurship amongst the SC and Divyang youth and to enable them to become job-givers.
    • The objective of this fund is to provide concessional finance to the entities of the SC entrepreneurs. Under this fund, 117 companies promoted by SC entrepreneurs have been sanctioned financial assistance to set up business ventures.

  • A demarcation in the interest of public order

    The article analyses how could the duel role assigned to an official leads to the problems in certain situations and so suggest the separation of the roles.

    Context

    • Delhi Police, having magisterial powers under the Criminal Procedure Code to take preventive action has been criticised for failing to maintain public order and prevent riots in Delhi.

    Issue with delegation: Confusion powers with the role

    • The distinction between independent actions, for which no political clearance is needed, by the District Magistrate to maintain public order and by the police to investigate crime and make arrests, was ignored.
    • Maintaining public order requires the District Magistrate to make hard choices but there can be no justification for lack of effective police action.
    • The District Magistrate is expected to consider protest as legitimate.
    • In Delhi, the police did not distinguish between wider political support and violence caused by a few.

    Distinction between “law and order” and “public order”

    • The Supreme Court has made a distinction between law and order, relating to individual crime, and public order.
    • Law and order consists of the analysis made by police of the situation in an area and their commitment to firm action and penalties under criminal law.
    • Public order is a duty imposed on the District Magistrate to assess whether it is necessary to rush to the spot where law and order has been breached to prevent violence.
    • The District Magistrate’s role is important in exceptional situations — for example, to prevent a breach of peace at a particular place.
    • If an official is allotted a dual role, this could lead to the displacement of one goal in favour of the other.

    Supreme Court’s guidelines

    • The Supreme Court has formulated certain guidelines and rules when it comes to these distinct duties.
    • 1) In Ram Manohar Lohia vs. State of Bihar, in 1965, the Supreme Court held that in the case of ‘public order’, the community or the public at large have to be affected by a particular action as it “embraces more of the community than ‘law and order’, which affects only a few individuals”.
    • 2) In the Madhu Limaye case, the Bench reiterated that “the emergency must be sudden and the consequences sufficiently grave” for imposition of restrictions.
    • 3) In Anuradha Bhasin vs. Union of India, the Supreme Court held that prohibitive orders should not prevent legitimate expression of opinion or grievance or exercise of democratic rights.
    • The Supreme Court has also specifically recognised the importance of the assessment of the role of the District Magistrate, distinct from that of the police.

    Way forward

    • Judicial review of roles and proportionality of decisions for maintaining public order requires a policy rethink.
    • Prevention through grievance redress and reliance on the least blunt instruments are critical for legitimacy.
    • The National Police Commission also recognises the coordinating role of the District Magistrate, having more leverage than the police.

    Conclusion

    The role of the District Magistrate needs to be clearly differentiated from the role of the Police Commissioner.

  • Maharashtra modifies Forest Rights Act

    Maharashtra government has issued a notification modifying the Forest Rights Act (FRA), 2006 that will enable tribals and other traditional forest dwelling families to build houses in the neighbourhood forest areas.

    Try this question for mains:

    Q.Forest dwellers are integral to the very survival and sustainability of the forest ecosystem. Analyse.

    Historical Background

    1878: The Forest Act of 1878 was introduced and it truncated the centuries-old traditional use by communities of their forests and secured the colonial governments control over the forestry. The provision of this Act established a virtual State monopoly over the forests in a legal sense on one hand, and attempted to establish, on the other, that the customary use of the forests by the villagers was not a ‘right’, but a ‘privilege’ that could be withdrawn at will.

    1927:  The Indian Forest Act, 1927. In continuance with the forest use policy of 1878, this landmark law – India’s main forest law, had nothing to do with conservation. It was created to serve the British need for timber. It sought to override customary rights and forest management systems by declaring forests state property and exploiting their timber.

    1952: ‘National interests’ overrode all interests and forests were viewed as a national asset. It was made clear that local priorities and interests and claims of the communities around forest areas should be subservient to larger national interests

    About the FRA, 2006

    • The Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006, is a key piece of forest legislation in India.
    • It has also been called the Forest Rights Act, the Tribal Rights Act, the Tribal Bill, and the Tribal Land Act. In the colonial era, the British diverted abundant forest wealth of the nation to meet their economic needs.
    • While the procedure for settlement of rights was provided under statutes such as the Indian Forest Act, 1927, these were hardly followed.
    • As a result, tribal and forest-dwelling communities, who had been living within the forests in harmony with the environment and the ecosystem, continued to live inside the forests in tenurial insecurity, a situation which continued even after independence as they were marginalised.
    • The symbiotic relationship between forests and forest-dwelling communities found recognition in the National Forest Policy, 1988.
    • The FRA, 2006, was enacted to protect the marginalised socio-economic class of citizens and balance the right to the environment with their right to life and livelihood.

    What empowers the Governor?

    • The notification has been issued by the Governor using his powers under subparagraph (1) of paragraph 5 of the Schedule V of the Constitution, according to a statement issued by Raj Bhavan.
    • PESA rules in the State have given recognition to many habitations as villages, but there is no provision for land for house-building.

    Significance of the move

    • The decision is likely to provide a major relief to Scheduled Tribes and other traditional forest-dwelling families residing in the scheduled areas of the State.
    • The urban areas get increased FSI, the rural areas (on revenue lands) get the same too, but tribal villages (on forest lands) have no legal space for building houses.
    • The move aims to prevent the migration of forest-dwelling families outside their native villages and provide them with housing areas by extending the village site into forest land in their neighbourhood.

    Back2Basics: Fifth Schedule of the Constitution

    • It deals with the administration and control of Scheduled Areas as well as of Scheduled Tribes residing in any State other than the States of Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram (ATM2).
    • In Article 244(1) of the Constitution, expression Scheduled Areas means such areas as the President may by order declare to be Scheduled Areas (SA).

    The President may at any time by order-

    1. direct that the whole or any specified part of SA shall cease to be a SA or a part of such an area;
    2. increase the area of any SA in a State after consultation with the Governor of that State;
    3. alter, but only by way of rectification of boundaries, any Scheduled Area;
    4. on any alteration of the boundaries of a State on the admission into the Union or the establishment of a new State, declare any territory not previously included in any State to be, or to form part of, a SA;
    5. rescind, in relation to any State of States, any order or orders made under these provisions and in consultation with the Governor of the State concerned, make fresh orders redefining the areas which are to be SA.
    • The Governor may, by public notification, direct that any particular Act of Parliament or of the Legislature of the State shall or shall not apply to a SA or any part thereof in the State, subject to such exceptions and modifications, as specified.
    • The Governor may make regulations for the peace and good government of any area in the State which is for the time being a SA. Such regulations may
    1. prohibit or restrict the transfer of land by or among members of the Scheduled Tribes in such area;
    2. regulate the allotment of land to members of the STs in such area;
    3. regulate the carrying on of business as money-lender by persons who lend money to members of the STs in such area.

    In making such regulations, the Governor may repeal or amend any Act of Parliament or of Legislature of the State or any existing law after obtaining the assent of the President.

  • What’s behind the Armenia-Azerbaijan clashes?

    Fresh clashes erupted on the Armenia-Azerbaijan border, threatening to push the countries back to war 26 years after a ceasefire was reached.

    Try this PYQ:

    Q.Turkey is located between-

    (a) The Black Sea and Caspian Sea

    (b) The Black Sea and Mediterranean Sea

    (c) Gulf of Suez and the Mediterranean Sea

    (d) Gulf of Aqaba and the Dead Sea

    The conflict

    • The largely mountainous and forested Nagorno-Karabakh, home for some 150,000 people, is at the centre of the conflict.
    • Nagorno-Karabakh is located within Azerbaijan but is populated, mostly, by those of Armenian ethnicity (and mostly Christian compared to the Shia Muslim majority Azerbaijan).
    • The conflict can be traced back to the pre-Soviet era when the region was at the meeting point of Ottoman, Russian and the Persian empires.

    A legacy of soviet era

    • Once Azerbaijan and Armenia became Soviet Republics in 1921, Moscow gave Nagorno-Karabakh to Azerbaijan but offered autonomy to the contested region.
    • In the 1980s, when the Soviet power was receding, separatist currents picked up in Nagorno-Karabakh.
    • In 1988, the national assembly voted to dissolve the region’s autonomous status and join Armenia.
    • But Baku suppressed such calls, which led to a military conflict.
    • When Armenia and Azerbaijan became independent countries after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, the clashes led to an open war in which tens of thousands of people were killed.
    • The war lasted till 1994 when both sides reached a ceasefire (they are yet to sign a peace treaty and the border is not clearly demarcated).

    Issue over control

    • By that time, Armenia had taken control of Nagorno-Karabakh and handed it to Armenian rebels. The rebels have declared independence, but have not won recognition from any country.
    • The region is still treated as a part of Azerbaijan by the international community, and Baku wants to take it back.

    What is the strategic significance of the region?

    • The energy-rich Azerbaijan has built several gas and oil pipelines across the Caucasus (the region between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea) to Turkey and Europe.
    • This includes the Baku-Tblisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline (with a capacity of transporting 1.2 billion barrels a day), the Western Route Export oil pipeline, the Trans-Anatolian gas pipeline and the South Caucasus gas pipeline.
    • Some of these pipelines pass close to the conflict zone (within 16 km of the border). In an open war between the two countries, the pipelines could be targeted, which would impact energy supplies.

    What’s Turkey’s role?

    • Turkey has historically supported Azerbaijan and has had a troublesome relationship with Armenia.
    • In the 1990s, during the war, Turkey closed its border with Armenia and it has no diplomatic relations with the country.
    • The main point of contention between the two was Ankara’s refusal to recognise the 1915 Armenian genocide in which the Ottomans killed some 1.5 million Armenians.
    • On the other end, the Azeris and Turks share strong cultural and historical links. Azerbaijanis are a Turkic ethnic group and their language is from the Turkic family.

    Where does Russia stand?

    • Moscow sees the Caucasus and Central Asian region as its backyard. But the current clashes put President Vladimir Putin in a difficult spot.
    • Russia enjoys good ties with both Azerbaijan and Armenia and supplies weapons to both.
    • But Armenia is more dependent on Russia than the energy-rich, ambitious Azerbaijan. Russia also has a military base in Armenia.
    • But Moscow, at least publicly, is trying to strike a balance between the two. Like in the 1990s, its best interest would be in mediating a ceasefire between the warring sides.

  • Obesity in India

    Adults in urban India consume much more fat than those in rural areas, found the latest survey by the Indian Council of Medical Research and National Institute of Nutrition.

    Do you know?

    Over-nutrition is also a form of malnutrition.

    ‘What India Eats’ Survey

    • Adults in India’s urban centres consumed 51.6 grammes fat per day per head on an average. The volume was 36 g in rural areas, according to the survey report What India Eats.
    • The report categorised fat into two groups:
    1. Visible or added fat, comprising oils and fat in preparing food, in fried food and those derived from meat and poultry
    2. Invisible fat, including fat/oils from rice, pulses, nuts and oilseeds

    Urban-Rural data

    • 84 per cent of the rural population secured their energy (E) per day requirement from total fats/oils, or visible / added fats.
    • On the other hand, less than 20 per cent of the urban population derived their E / day from this category.
    • In urban areas of the country, northern India had the highest intake of added fat with 45.9 g / day.
    • Southern India reported the lowest per capita consumption of added fat/oils with 22.9 g / day in this segment of the population.
    • In the urban region of north India, fat intake (67.3 g) was among the highest; and overweight, obesity and abdominal obesity were highest when compared to other regions.

  • Challenges India faces in managing relations in neighbourhood

    The article analyses the inherent challenges India faces in managing good relations with its neighbours.

    Duality challenge

    • Even for the Britishers, it was an unceasing struggle to sustain its primacy in the region.
    • The notion of regional primacy certainly persisted in the Nehru era.
    • Primacy was hard to sustain after Independence even within the immediate neighbourhood.

    Five reasons stand out

    1) Partition of the subcontinent

    • The problems generated by the great division of the Subcontinent on religious lines continue to animate the region.
    • Partition created the challenges of settling boundaries, sharing river-waters, protecting the rights of minorities, and easing the flow of goods and people.
    • The burden of the Subcontinent’s history is not easily discarded.

    2) Unification of China

    • The unification of China amidst the Partition of India had profoundly transformed the geopolitical condition of India.
    • Beyond the bilateral territorial dispute in the Himalayas, the emergence of a large and purposeful state on India’s frontiers was going to be a problem given the ease with which it could constrain Delhi within the Subcontinent.

    3) India’s choice in favour of de-globalisation

    • Independent India’s conscious choice in favour of de-globalisation led to a steady dissipation of commercial connectivity with the neighbours.
    •  India’s economic reorientation since the 1990s and the rediscovery of regionalism did open possibilities for reconnecting with its neighbours.
    • Delhi today is acutely aware of the need to revive regional connectivity.
    • There is much progress in recent years — note, for example, the recent launch of a ferry service to the Maldives or the reopening of inland waterways with Bangladesh.
    • Integrating India’s regional economic and foreign policy remains a major challenge-Consider the recent fiasco of onion exports to Bangladesh.

    4) Rise of political agency in the neighbourhood

    • India ignores the rise of political agency among neighbourhood elites and mass politics that they need to manage.
    • Their imperatives don’t always coincide with those of Delhi.
    • It is unlikely that Delhi can completely insure itself against the intra-elite conflicts in the neighbourhood.

    5) Influence of domestic politics on foreign policy

    • Can India persistently champion Tamil minority rights in Sri Lanka without incurring any costs with the Sinhala majority?
    • But asking that question takes us to India’s own domestic politics.
    • Can Delhi ignore sentiments in India’s Tamil Nadu in making its Sri Lanka policy?
    • Indian Prime Minister did not attend the Colombo Commonwealth Summit in 2013 because of the Tamil minority issue.
    • The Teesta Waters agreement was not concluded due to political reasons.

    Ways forward

    • Timely responses to problems.
    • Preventing small issues from becoming big.
    • Aligning Delhi’s regional economic policy with India’s natural geographic advantages .
    • These are some important elements of any successful management of India’s perennial neighbourhood challenges.

    Conclusion

    There are no easy answers to the regional difficulties that trouble all governments in Delhi. The source of the problem lies in the deeply interconnected nature of South Asian societies administered by multiple sovereigns.

  • UN and the retreat from multilateralism

    As the U.N. enters into 75th year of its existence, it faces several challenges. The article discusses such challenges.

    Challenges to the multilateralism

    1) Withdrawal of the main stakeholders: U.S. and the U.K.

    • The U.S. is withdrawing from multilateralism and so it the U.K.
    • Brexit has shown that nationalism remains strong in Europe.
    • Nevertheless, the most important development is the position of the U.S.
    • The U.S., which created the international system as we know today, is no longer willing to be its “guarantor of last resort”.
    • U.S. President Donald Trump stressed “America First” and suggested that others too should put their countries first.

    2) China’s reluctance

    • China has stepped in to take advantage of the West’s retreat from multilateralism.
    • But China is not embracing the idea of multilateralism.
    • China’s Belt and Road Initiative consists of a series of bilateral credit agreements with recipient countries with no mechanism for multilateral consultation or oversight.
    • The European Union’s and U.S.’s sanctions against Russia have driven it closer to China.
    • Work of the UN Security Council has been affected by the lack of consensus between its permanent members.

    3) Turkey’s interventions

    • Turkey has intervened in Syria, Libya, and the Eastern Mediterranean, which is a breach of international law.
    • The last was a reference to Turkey sending a drilling ship in Greek and Cypriot exclusive economic zones.
    • Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan made a detailed reference to the Jammu and Kashmir issue.
    • As Turkey has assumed the position of UN General Assembly President, statement and its actions matters.

    4) Paucity of resources

    • Over 40 UN political missions and peacekeeping operations engage 95,000 troops, police, and civil personnel. it suffers from a paucity of resources.
    • The UN peacekeeping budget, a little over $8 billion, is a small fraction of the $1.9 trillion military expenditure governments made in 2019.
    •  Most of the humanitarian assistance, developmental work, and budgets of the specialised agencies are based on voluntary contributions.
    • There are calls for increasing public-private partnerships. This is not a satisfactory arrangement.
    • The UN provides ‘public goods’ in terms of peace and development often in remote parts of the world.
    • There may not be enough appetite on the part of corporations. The UN remains an inter-governmental body.

    5) Climate action

    • President Trump mentioned that China’s emissions are nearly twice of those of the U.S.
    • Despite its withdrawal from the Paris Agreement, the U.S. has reduced its carbon emissions by more than any country in the world.
    • President Xi said that after peaking emissions by 2030, China will achieve carbon neutrality before 2060.
    • President Macron said that he was determined to see the EU agree on a target of achieving carbon neutrality by 2050.

    Consider the question “As the world is facing the retreat from multilateralism, what are the challenges facing the U.N. in the current global order?”

    Conclusion

    What does the UN bring to the developing countries? It gives them greater political space. We need to support reform not only to expand the permanent members’ category of the Security Council but also to revitalise the role of the General Assembly. The retreat from multilateralism would undermine the UN’s capacity to face diverse challenges.

  • Explained: Farm Acts and federalism

    The President has finally given assent to the controversial farm Bills passed by Parliament last week. Amid protests by farmers’ organisations across the country, questions are being raised about the anti-federal nature of these ‘Acts’.

    Here we shall only discuss its constitutionality and federal nature. Tap to read more about the theme at:

    What is the question over the constitutionality of these laws?

    • These are some of the questions that will be raised in the petitions challenging the constitutionality of the Acts.
    • As per Union of India v H.S.Dhillon (1972), the constitutionality of parliamentary laws can be challenged only on two grounds — that the subject is in the State List, or that it violates fundamental rights.
    • As per Ram Krishna Dalmia v Justice S R Tendolkar (1958) and other judgments, the Supreme Court will begin hearings after presuming the constitutionality of these laws.
    • The bills (now Acts as they have got the President’s assent) do not mention, in the Statement of Objects & Reasons, the constitutional provisions under which Parliament has the power to legislate on the subjects covered.

    Where does the question of federalism come in?

    What is federalism, first?

    • Federalism is the system of government in which sovereignty is constitutionally divided between a central governing authority and constituent political units.
    • It is based upon democratic rules and institutions in which the power to govern is shared between national and state governments, creating a federation.
    • It essentially means both the Centre and states have the freedom to operate in their allotted spheres of power, in coordination with each other.

    Try this PYQ:

    Q.Which of the following federal principles are not found in Indian federation?

    1. Bifurcation of the judiciary between the Federal and State Governments
    2. Equality of representation of the states in the upper house of the Federal Legislature
    3. The Union cannot be destroyed by any state seceding from the Union at its will
    4. Federal Government can redraw the map of the Indian Union by forming new States

    Select the correct answer using the codes given below:

    a) 1, 2 and 3

    b) 2, 3 and 4

    c) 1 and 2

    d) 3 and 4

    Federalism in India

    • The Seventh Schedule of the Constitution contains three lists that distribute power between the Centre and states.
    • There are 97 subjects in the Union List, on which Parliament has exclusive power to legislate (Article 246); the State List has 66 items on which states alone can legislate.
    • The Concurrent List has 47 subjects on which both the Centre and states can legislate, but in case of a conflict, the law made by Parliament prevails (Article 254).
    • Parliament can legislate on an item in the State List under certain specific circumstances laid down in the Constitution.

    Concretization of the idea

    • Federalism, like constitutionalism and separation of powers, is not mentioned in the Constitution. But it is the very essence of our constitutional scheme.
    • In the State of West Bengal v Union of India (1962), the Supreme Court held that the Indian Constitution is not federal.
    • But in SR Bommai v Union of India (1994), a nine-judge Bench held federalism as part of the basic structure of the Constitution.
    • Neither the relative importance of the legislative entries in Schedule VII, Lists I and II of the Constitution, nor the fiscal control by the Union per se is decisive to conclude the Constitution is unitary.
    • The respective legislative powers are traceable to Articles 245 to 254… The State qua the Constitution is federal in structure and independent in its exercise of legislative and executive power,” it said.

    Where is agriculture in the scheme of legislative powers?

    Terms relating to agriculture occur at 15 places in the Seventh Schedule.

    1. Entries 82, 86, 87, and 88 in the Union List mention taxes and duties on income and assets, specifically excluding those in respect of agriculture.
    2. In the State List, eight entries contain terms relating to agriculture: Entry 14 (agricultural education and research, pests, plant diseases); 18 (rights in or over land, land tenures, rents, transfer agricultural land, agricultural loans, etc.); 28 (markets and fairs); 30 (agricultural indebtedness); 45 (land revenue, land records, etc.); 46 (taxes on agricultural income); 47 (succession of agricultural land); and 48 (estate duty in respect of agricultural land).
    3. In the Concurrent List, Entry 6 mentions the transfer of property other than agricultural land; 7 is about various contracts not relating to agricultural land; and 41 deals with evacuee property, including agricultural land.
    • It is clear that the Union List and Concurrent List put matters relating to agriculture outside Parliament’s jurisdiction, and give state legislatures exclusive power.
    • No entry in respect of agriculture in the State List is subject to any entry in the Union or Concurrent Lists.

    What about Entry 27 of the State List that is subject to Entry 33 of List III (Concurrent)?

    • Entry 33 of the Concurrent List mentions trade and commerce, production, supply and distribution of domestic and imported products of an industry over which Parliament has control in the public interest.
    • This includes foodstuffs, including oilseeds and oils; cattle fodder; raw cotton and jute.
    • The Centre could, therefore, argue that it is within its powers to pass laws on contract farming and intra- and inter-state trade, and prohibit states from imposing fees/cesses outside APMC areas.
    • However, like education, farming is an occupation, not trade or commerce.
    • If foodstuffs are considered synonymous with agriculture, then all the powers of states in respect of agriculture, listed so elaborately in the Constitution, shall become redundant.

    So what happens in case of legislation that covers entries in two Lists?

    • In cases such as State of Rajasthan v G Chawla (1959), courts have used the doctrine of “pith and substance” to determine the character of legislation that overlaps between entries.
    • The constitutionality of legislation is upheld if it is largely covered by one list and touches upon the other list only incidentally.
    • But the two new farm Acts go beyond that — they impinge on entries in the State List.
    • In interpreting the lists, the Supreme Court in State of Bihar v Kameshwar Singh (1952) invoked the doctrine of colourable legislation, which means you cannot do indirectly what you cannot do directly.

    What is the Doctrine of Colorable Legislation?

    • This doctrine refers to the question of competency of the legislature while enacting a provision of law.
    • If a legislature is prohibited from doing something, it may not be permitted to do this under the guise or pretence of doing something while acting within its lawful jurisdiction and this prohibition is an implied result of the maxim “what cannot be done directly, cannot be done indirectly”
    • This doctrine is a tool used to determine the legislative competence of laws enacted by various legislatures.
    • Therefore, it is a means to implement the separation of powers and impose judicial accountability.