Polity
Centre-State Relations
Centre-State Relations — Quick Revision
One-page CGPSC quick revision for Centre-State Relations: articles, lists, Finance Commission, GST Council, Sarkaria and Punchhi in tables.
Legislative, administrative and financial relations and the commissions on one page. For explanations, go back to the chapter.
How to use this sheet
Scan it top to bottom in the week before Prelims. Bold entries are the facts examiners return to most often.
Legislative Relations (Arts 245–255)
| Article / item | Key fact |
|---|---|
| 245 | Territorial extent; Parliament’s laws can operate extra-territorially |
| 246 | Three lists in the Seventh Schedule: originally 97 (Union) / 66 (State) / 47 (Concurrent); Concurrent now 52 |
| 246A | GST: Parliament and states both (101st Amendment, 2016); IGST only by Parliament |
| 248 | Residuary power with Parliament (Entry 97, List I) — Canadian model |
| 42nd Amendment (1976) | Five subjects to Concurrent: education, forests, weights and measures, wild animals and birds, administration of justice |
| 249 | Rajya Sabha, two-thirds of members present and voting, national interest; 1 year, renewable; law lapses 6 months after |
| 250 | National Emergency; law lapses 6 months after Emergency ends |
| 252 | Two or more states request; only Parliament can amend or repeal |
| 253 | International agreements |
| 254 | Central law prevails on Concurrent subjects; 254(2) State law with President’s assent prevails in that state |
| 200 / 201 | Governor’s options / President’s options on reserved Bills |
| 304(b) | President’s previous sanction for trade-restricting State Bills |
| Assent rulings | TN v. Governor (8 Apr 2025); Presidential Reference opinion (20 Nov 2025): no court-fixed timelines, no deemed assent, no indefinite delay |
| Pith and substance | State of Bombay v. F.N. Balsara (1951) |
Administrative Relations (Arts 256–263)
| Article / body | Key fact |
|---|---|
| 256 / 257 | States must comply with Union laws; must not impede the Union; communications and railways |
| 258 / 258A | President → state (state consent) / Governor → Centre (Centre consent; 7th Amendment, 1956) |
| 261 | Full faith and credit |
| 262 | Water disputes; Inter-State River Water Disputes Act and River Boards Act, 1956 |
| 263 | Inter-State Council: set up 1990; PM chairs; Standing Committee under Home Minister; 11th meeting 16 July 2016 |
| 312 | All-India Services; new one by Rajya Sabha resolution; IFoS 1966 |
| 315 / 317 | PSCs; Joint PSC by Parliament; State PSC members removed only by President |
| 339(2), Fifth Schedule | Union directions on ST welfare and Scheduled Areas |
| 353(a) | Directions to any state on any matter in National Emergency |
| 355 / 365 | Union’s duty to protect states / non-compliance can lead to Art 356 |
| Zonal Councils | Statutory (SR Act, 1956); five; Union Home Minister chairs |
| Central Zonal Council | Chhattisgarh, MP, UP, Uttarakhand; 25th meeting Varanasi, 24 June 2025 |
| Mahanadi tribunal | 12 March 2018; Odisha vs Chhattisgarh; first chair Justice A.M. Khanwilkar |
| NIA Act suit | Chhattisgarh, Art 131, January 2020 (“police” is State List Entry 2) |
Financial Relations (Arts 264–293)
| Article / body | Key fact |
|---|---|
| 265 | No tax without authority of law |
| 268 | Stamp duties: Union levies; states collect and keep |
| 269 / 269A | Inter-state sale tax assigned to states / IGST shared on GST Council advice |
| 270 | Divisible pool (80th Amendment, 2000); cesses and surcharges excluded |
| 271 | Surcharges: Union only |
| 275 | Statutory grants; ST welfare and Scheduled Areas |
| 282 | Discretionary grants (Centrally Sponsored Schemes) |
| 276 | Profession tax maximum ₹2,500 a year |
| 279A | GST Council: FM chairs; Centre 1/3, states 2/3; decisions by 3/4; quorum 1/2 |
| 280 | Finance Commission: chairman + 4; every 5 years |
| 292 / 293 | Union borrowing / state borrows only within India; Centre’s consent if indebted |
| 360 | Financial Emergency: never proclaimed (as of 2026) |
| Finance Commission | Chairman | Period | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | K.C. Neogy | 1952–57 | — |
| 13th | Vijay Kelkar | 2010–15 | 32% |
| 14th | Y.V. Reddy | 2015–20 | 42% |
| 15th | N.K. Singh | 2021–26 | 41% |
| 16th | Arvind Panagariya | 2026–31 | 41% |
| Fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| 16th FC criteria | Income distance 42.5, population (2011) 17.5, demographic performance 10, area 10, forest 10, contribution to GDP 10 (new) |
| 16th FC dates | Constituted 31 Dec 2023; report to President 17 Nov 2025; tabled 1 Feb 2026 |
| Chhattisgarh’s share | 3.407% under the 15th FC (2021–26) |
| GST | From 1 July 2017; compensation ended 30 June 2022 |
| Mohit Minerals (2022) | GST Council recommendations are not binding |
| MADA v. SAIL (25 July 2024) | Nine judges, 8:1: royalty is not a tax; states can tax mineral rights; arrears from 1 April 2005 in 12 years from 1 April 2026 |
Commissions and Cases
| Body / case | Year | Remember |
|---|---|---|
| ARC | 1966 (report 1969) | Morarji Desai → K. Hanumanthaiya; 22 recommendations |
| Rajamannar Committee | 1969 (report 1971) | Tamil Nadu; delete Arts 356, 357, 365; abolish AIS |
| Anandpur Sahib Resolution | 1973 | Centre limited to defence, foreign affairs, communications, currency |
| West Bengal Memorandum | 1977 | “Federal” for “union”; 75% revenue to states |
| Sarkaria Commission | 1983–88 | R.S. Sarkaria, B. Sivaraman, S.R. Sen; 247 recommendations; Inter-Governmental Council; Art 356 as last resort |
| S.R. Bommai | 1994 | Art 356 reviewable; floor test; federalism basic structure |
| Punchhi Commission | 2007–10 | M.M. Punchhi; 273 recommendations; localised emergency; Governor’s fixed tenure |
| B.P. Singhal | 2010 | No arbitrary removal of Governors |
| TN high-level committee | 2025 | Justice Kurian Joseph; state autonomy |
| Chhattisgarh | 2000–2026 | Never under President’s Rule (as of 2026) |
Don’t Confuse
| This | vs | That |
|---|---|---|
| Inter-State Council — Art 263, PM chairs | vs | Zonal Councils — statutory, Home Minister chairs |
| Art 249 — Rajya Sabha resolution for State List laws | vs | Art 312 — Rajya Sabha resolution for a new All-India Service |
| Art 252 law — only Parliament can amend | vs | Art 357 law — State legislature can later amend |
| Art 268 — states keep | vs | Art 271 — Union keeps |
| Art 275 — statutory grants | vs | Art 282 — discretionary grants |
| 14th FC — 42% | vs | 15th and 16th FC — 41% |
| Sarkaria — 247, Inter-Governmental Council | vs | Punchhi — 273, localised emergency |
| Rajamannar — Tamil Nadu, 1969 | vs | Sarkaria / Punchhi — Union, 1983 / 2007 |
Favourite MCQ trap
“An Article 249 resolution must be passed by both Houses of Parliament.” Wrong. Only the Rajya Sabha passes it, by two-thirds of members present and voting. The same Rajya Sabha-only rule applies to creating a new All-India Service under Article 312.
Second favourite trap
“Residuary powers of taxation should be transferred to the states — Sarkaria Commission.” Wrong. Sarkaria wanted residuary taxation to stay with Parliament; only non-tax residuary powers were to move to the Concurrent List.
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