RAS question
Article 340 empowers the President to appoint a commission to investigate:
Correct answer: (C) Conditions of backward classes.
Article 340 empowers the President to appoint a commission to investigate the conditions of socially and educationally backward classes in India.
Explanation
Article 340 is about backward classes, not Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes or minorities as separate categories. The Constitution says the President may appoint a commission to investigate the conditions of socially and educationally backward classes within India, examine the difficulties under which they labour, and recommend steps or grants needed to remove those difficulties and improve their condition. This is why option C is the correct reading of the Article. The Mandal Commission, appointed in 1979 under Article 340, is the standard RAS example used to connect the constitutional text with affirmative-action policy.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) Scheduled Tribes are dealt with separately in the constitutional scheme, while Article 340 is specifically framed for socially and educationally backward classes.
- (B) Article 340 does not create a commission for minorities alone; its text points to socially and educationally backward classes and their difficulties.
- (D) Scheduled Castes are not the exclusive subject of Article 340, because the Article authorises inquiry into backward classes rather than only SC conditions.
Concept
This tests the constitutional provisions on commissions and affirmative action, especially the distinction between backward classes and SC/ST-specific provisions. It recurs in RAS because Article 340 links bare constitutional text with landmark policy examples such as the Mandal Commission.