RAS question
The 74th Constitutional Amendment deals with:
Correct answer: (B) Urban Local Bodies.
The 74th Constitutional Amendment deals with Urban Local Bodies, as it inserted Part IXA titled "The Municipalities" into the Constitution of India.
Explanation
The 74th Constitutional Amendment Act, 1992 is linked to urban local government because it inserted Part IXA into the Constitution, and Part IXA is expressly titled "The Municipalities". The official Constitution text notes that this Part was inserted by the Constitution (Seventy-fourth Amendment) Act, 1992, and Article 243Q then provides for municipalities in every State: a Nagar Panchayat for a transitional area, a Municipal Council for a smaller urban area, and a Municipal Corporation for a larger urban area. That is why the amendment is tested as the constitutional basis for Urban Local Bodies, not for Scheduled Areas, official languages, or rural Panchayati Raj.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) Scheduled Areas are tied to the Fifth and Sixth Schedules, whereas the 74th Amendment inserted Part IXA dealing with municipalities.
- (C) Official Languages fall under Part XVII, while the amendment in question created Part IXA for municipal institutions.
- (D) Panchayati Raj is associated with the 73rd Amendment; the 74th Amendment concerns municipalities, and Part IXA itself distinguishes a Panchayat from a Municipality.
Concept
This tests constitutional local self-government within the Rajasthan Political and Administrative System syllabus. The key exam skill is separating municipal institutions under the 74th Amendment from Panchayati Raj under the 73rd Amendment.