RAS question
The 89th Amendment (2003) created a separate:
Correct answer: (D) National Commission for Scheduled Tribes (Article 338A).
The Constitution (Eighty-ninth Amendment) Act, 2003 created a separate National Commission for Scheduled Tribes under Article 338A.
Explanation
The 89th Amendment separated the institutional treatment of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. Before it, Article 338 dealt with the National Commission for the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes together. The amendment changed Article 338 so that it referred to the National Commission for Scheduled Castes, and inserted a new Article 338A for a distinct National Commission for Scheduled Tribes. The official Statement of Objects and Reasons says this was done because Scheduled Tribes were geographically and culturally different from Scheduled Castes, their problems were different, and a separate commission was needed to safeguard their interests more effectively. That is why the answer is the National Commission for Scheduled Tribes, not another statutory or constitutional body.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) The National Commission for Women is not the body created by the 89th Amendment, which specifically amended Article 338 and inserted Article 338A for Scheduled Tribes.
- (B) The National Commission for Minorities is unrelated to the 89th Amendment's bifurcation of the combined Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes commission.
- (C) The National Commission for OBC is not covered by Article 338A; the amendment created a separate commission for Scheduled Tribes.
Concept
This tests constitutional bodies and amendment-linked articles, a recurring RAS theme because commissions are often asked through their article number, target group and method of creation. Article 338A should be remembered as the Scheduled Tribes counterpart created after splitting the earlier SC/ST commission framework.