RAS question
DM/Collector in Rajasthan is responsible for:
Correct answer: (D) Revenue, law & order, development, elections, disaster management.
In Rajasthan, the District Magistrate or Collector is responsible for revenue administration, law and order, development coordination, elections and disaster management.
Explanation
The Collector is not a single-function officer. The cited Rajasthan District Gazetteers chapter says the district is under an officer designated as Collector, who also acts as District Magistrate, District Development Officer and head of the revenue department. It further describes the Collector as the focal authority for revenue administration, responsible for maintaining law and order, exercising functional control over district officers of development departments, chairing district disaster management work, and serving as District Election Officer. That is why the complete answer is the combined list: revenue, law and order, development, elections and disaster management. The other options shrink the post to only one slice of a much wider district role.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) Revenue is a core Collector function, but the source also gives the Collector law-and-order, development, election and disaster-management roles.
- (B) Law and order belongs to the Collector in the capacity of District Magistrate, but the post is also the district head for revenue and development functions.
- (C) Development coordination is part of the Collector's work, but the source does not limit the office to development alone.
Concept
This tests district administration under Rajasthan polity, especially the combined Collector-District Magistrate role. It recurs in RAS because many executive powers at district level are routed through this office rather than through a single specialised department.