RAS question
What is the maximum strength of the Rajya Sabha?
Correct answer: (B) 250.
The Rajya Sabha has a constitutional maximum strength of 250 members under Article 80.
Explanation
Article 80 fixes the ceiling, not merely the working strength, of the Rajya Sabha. It says the Council of States consists of 12 members nominated by the President and not more than 238 representatives of the States and Union territories. Adding those two categories gives the constitutional maximum of 250. The nominated members are drawn from persons with special knowledge or practical experience in literature, science, art and social service, while the representative seats are allocated under the constitutional scheme for States and Union territories. This is why 250 is the answer: it is the upper limit created by Article 80, whereas some nearby figures refer only to parts of that composition or to the present working strength.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) 240 is wrong because Article 80 does not use 240 as the Rajya Sabha's constitutional ceiling.
- (C) 245 is wrong because it is identified here as the current strength, not the constitutional maximum asked in the question.
- (D) 238 is wrong because it covers only the maximum number of representatives from the States and Union territories, before adding the 12 nominated members.
Concept
This tests the Union Parliament portion of Indian Polity, especially Article 80 and the composition of the Council of States. RAS repeatedly asks such institutional-number questions because they separate constitutional maxima from current or partial membership figures.