RAS question
The Panchayats (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act, 1996 (PESA) was enacted to extend Part IX to:
Correct answer: (B) Fifth Schedule areas (Scheduled Areas).
The Provisions of the Panchayats (Extension to the Scheduled Areas) Act, 1996 was enacted to extend Part IX of the Constitution, relating to Panchayats, to the Scheduled Areas under Article 244(1), that is, Fifth Schedule areas.
Explanation
PESA is about adapting Panchayati Raj to Scheduled Areas, not about applying a general local-government law everywhere. The India Code text says the Act provides for the extension of the provisions of Part IX of the Constitution relating to Panchayats to the Scheduled Areas. It also defines Scheduled Areas by reference to Article 244(1), which corresponds to Fifth Schedule areas. This matters because the 73rd Amendment framework did not itself apply to these Scheduled Areas in the ordinary way. PESA extends that framework with exceptions and modifications, including a central role for the Gram Sabha, consultation before land acquisition and rehabilitation in Scheduled Areas, and ownership of minor forest produce.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) All Union Territories are not the target of PESA; the Act is specifically framed for Scheduled Areas, not for a territory-wide Union Territory category.
- (C) Disturbed areas under AFSPA are a security-law category, whereas PESA concerns Panchayats and self-government in Scheduled Areas.
- (D) Sixth Schedule areas have a separate constitutional pattern, while PESA extends Part IX to Scheduled Areas referred to in Article 244(1), i.e. Fifth Schedule areas.
Concept
This tests the constitutional mapping between Part IX, Scheduled Areas and tribal self-government. RAS asks it often because PESA links Panchayati Raj institutions with land, forests, Gram Sabha powers and Rajasthan's tribal-area governance debates.