Question Discussion & Solution

The correct answer is Contingency Fund.

• Contingency Fund is being used by the Government of India to meet the unforeseen expenses.

Additional Information 

• Consolidated Fund of India:
  • This is the most important of all accounts of the government.
  • This fund is filled by Direct and indirect taxes Loans taken by the Indian government, Returning of loans/interests of loans to the government by anyone/agency that has taken it.
  • The government meets all its expenditure from this fund.
  • The government needs parliamentary approval to withdraw money from this fund.
  • The provision for this fund is given in Article 266 (1) of the Constitution of India.
  • Each state can have its own Consolidated Fund of the state with similar provisions.
  • The Comptroller and Auditor General of India audit these funds and reports to the relevant legislatures on their management.
• Contingency Fund of India:
  • Provision for this fund is made in Article 267 (1) of the Constitution of India.
  • Its corpus is Rs. 500 crores.
  • The Secretary of, Finance Ministry holds this fund on behalf of the President of India.
  • This fund is used to meet unexpected or unforeseen expenditure.
  • Contingency Fund is being used by the Government of India to meet the unforeseen expenses
  • Each state can have its own contingency fund.
• Public Accounts of India:
  • This is constituted under Article 266 (2) of the Constitution.
  • All other public money (other than those covered under the Consolidated Fund of India) received by or on behalf of the Indian Government are credited to this account/fund.
  • This is made up of Bank savings account of the various ministries/departments, National small savings fund, defence fund, National Investment Fund (money earned from disinvestment), National Calamity & Contingency Fund (NCCF) (for Disaster Management), Provident fund, Postal insurance, etc.

The correct answer is September 2020.

• Rajya Sabha passed the Major Port Authorities Bill, 2020 on 10 February 2021.
• The Lok Sabha had passed the bill on September 23, 2020.
• The Bill aims to provide for the regulation, operation and planning of Major Ports in India and to vest the administration, control and management of such ports upon the Boards of Major Port Authorities.

The correct answer is I, II, IV.

Key Points

• Under the purview of enquiry of 'LOKAYUKTA' in Rajasthan
  • Ministers
  • Secretaries
  • Chairpersons of autonomous institutions

Additional Information 

• The Lokayukta has been empowered under Section 7 of the Rajasthan Lokayukta and Sub-Lokayukta Act, 1973 to investigate allegations against ministers and public servants, in certain cases.
• According to the definition of public servant given in section 2 (i) of the Act, the Lokayukta has the jurisdiction to investigate against the following:
  • A member of the Council of Ministers of the State of Rajasthan (other than the Chief Minister and Governor), by whatever name is known, namely, Minister, Minister of State or Deputy Minister,
  • A person appointed to public service or a public post in relation to the activities of the State of Rajasthan,
• Every head and deputy head of the Zilla Parishad, the head and deputy head of the:
  • Panchayat Samiti and the chairman of any standing committee constituted by or under the Rajasthan Panchayati Raj Act.
  • Every Mayor and Deputy Mayor of the Municipal Corporation, each Chairman and Vice- Chairman of the Municipal / Council, the Chairman of the Municipal Board, and the Vice- Chairman and the Chairman of any committee constituted under the Rajasthan Municipal Act.
• Every person who is in the service of the following or has been paid his salary, namely:
  • Any local authority in the State of Rajasthan, to be notified on this behalf by the State Government in the Gazette,
  • Any corporation (not being a local authority), established by or under a State Act and owned or controlled by the State Government.
  • Any Government company under section 617 of the Companies Act, in which twenty-one per cent of the paid-up share capital is held by the State Government or any company which is a subsidiary of any such company in which the State Government is holding fifty-one per cent of the paid-up share capital.

The correct answer is ​Both A and R are true and R is the correct explanation of A.

Key Points

• ENFORCEMENT OF THE CONSTITUTION
  • Some provisions of the Constitution pertaining to citizenship, elections, provisional parliament, temporary and transitional provisions, and short title
  • contained in Articles 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 60, 324, 366, 367, 379, 380, 388, 391, 392 and 393 came into force on November 26, 1949 itself.
  • The remaining provisions (the major part) of the Constitution came into force on January 26, 1950.
  • This day is referred to in the Constitution as the ‘date of its commencement and celebrated as Republic Day.
  • January 26 was specifically chosen as the ‘date of commencement of the Constitution because of its historical importance. Hence Assertion is correct 
  • It was on this day in 1930 that Purna Swaraj day was celebrated, following the resolution of the Lahore Session (December 1929) of the INC. Hence R is the correct explanation of A.
  • Constitution Day or Samvidhan Diwas (26th November) is also known as National Law Day. The day commemorates the adoption of the Constitution in India. On this day in 1949, the Constituent Assembly of India formally adopted the Constitution of India.

The correct answer is directly elected by the people.

Key Points

• Panchayat Samiti:
  • Panchayat Samiti is a rural local government (panchayat) body at the intermediate tehsil (taluka/Mandal) level in India.
  • It works for the villages of the tehsil that together are called a development block.
  • The members of the Panchayat Samiti are elected directly elected by the people.
  • Panchayat Samiti is related to Article 243(c) of the Indian Constitution.
  • According to  Article 243(c) - “intermediate level” means a level between the village and district levels specified by the Governor of a State by public notification to be the intermediate level for the purposes of this Part
  • It has been said to be the "panchayat of panchayats".
  • The 73rd Amendment defines the levels of Panchayati raj institution as:
    • District (or apex) level
    • Intermediate level
    • Base level
  • The Panchayat Samiti is the link between the gram panchayat (village council) and the Zila Parishad (district board).
  • The name varies across states: Mandal Parishad in Andhra Pradesh, taluka panchayat in Gujarat, and Mandal panchayat in Karnataka.

Additional Information

• The most common departments found in a panchayat Samiti are:
  • Administration
  • Finance
  • Public works (especially water and roads)
  • Agriculture
  • Health
• Each department in a panchayat Samiti has its own officer.
• Most often these are state government employees acting as extension officers, but occasionally in more revenue-rich panchayat Samiti, they may be local employees.
• A government-appointed block development officer (BDO) is the supervisor of the extension officers and executive officer to the panchayat Samiti and becomes, in effect, its administrative chief.
• The panchayat Samiti collects all the prospective plans prepared at the Gram Panchayat level and processes them for funding and implementation by evaluating them from the angles of financial constraints, social welfare, and area development.
• It also identifies and prioritizes the issues that should be addressed at the block level.