User:Pavanai45/sandbox

The Union Government, commonly known as the Central Government or the Government of India (GoI), was established by the Constitution of India, and is the governing authority of the union of 29 states and seven union territories, collectively called the Republic of India. It is located in New Delhi, the capital of India.

The basic civil and criminal laws governing the citizens of India are set down in major parliamentary legislation, such as the Civil Procedure Code, the Indian Penal Code, and the Criminal Procedure Code. The union and individual state governments all each consist of executive, legislative and judicial branches. The legal system as applicable to the federal and individual state governments is based on the English Common and Statutory Law. Because the seat of government is in New Delhi, "New Delhi" is commonly used as a metonym for the Central Government.

Federal System of India is governed in terms of the Constitution of India. The country of India is also referred to as the Sovereign, Secular, Democratic Republic and has a Parliamentary form of government. The nation is basically a Union of 28 states and 7 Union Territories that works according to the Indian Constitution, which was adopted on the 16th of November 1949.

In the Federal System of India, the head of the Executive Union is the President of the country. The real political as well as social power, however, resides in the hands of the Prime Minister, who in turn heads the Council of Ministers. According to the Federal System of India, it is clearly stated in the Article 74(1) of the Indian Constitution, that the Prime Minister and his Council of Ministers will advise and help the President. The Council of Members is answerable to the Lok Sabha or the House of People, as per the Federal System prevailing in India.

The Indian Constitution is subject to change, however, this change can only occur after the bill is passed with a majority of votes in the Parliament House. Legislative powers are shared between the State Legislatures and the Parliament, while the rest of the powers are in the hands of the Parliament of India. The Federal System in India conveys that the President, the Prime Minister, the Council of Ministers and the Vice-President, together form the Union Executive.

Government of India
The government of India or the central government is the governing authority of the country which governs it as per the Constitution of India. The official name of the Indian government is Union Government of India. The government carries out its operation from New Delhi, the capital city of the nation. The entire Republic of India comes within the purview of the central government. The Republic of India comprises 29 states and 7 union territories of the country. The Indian government is democratic in nature.

Branches of the Indian Government
The central government of India comprises three distinctive branches that are as follows:
 * The Executive
 * The Legislative
 * The Judiciary

Executive
Comprising the President, the Vice President, the Prime Minister and the Cabinet Ministers of India, the Executive branch of the nation's government is entirely responsible for the daily administration of the bureaucracies of the different states and union territories of India.

Being the Head of State, the President of India heads the country's government. As per the Article 53 (1) of the Constitution of India, an Indian President has the authority to exercise the vested executive and constitutional powers directly or via the subordinate officers. As mentioned in Article 74 of the Indian Constitution, the country's President acts in accordance with the advice of the Prime Minister of the Republic, who is the head of the government. The Prime Minister is appointed by the President though. Apart from the Prime Minister, the President even appoints Council of Ministers as well as numerous other high ranking government officials after consultation with the Prime Minister.

The President is de jure Commander in Chief of the Indian Armed Forces.

The Vice President, who occupies the second rank in the government hierarchy after the rank of the President, is vested with the legislative power to act as Rajya Sabha's Chairperson. The Vice President can work as an acting President of India in case of resignation, removal or death of the President. The maximum tenure for an acting President is just 6 months though.

The Executive Branch of government is the one that has sole authority and responsibility for the daily administration of the state bureaucracy. The division of power into separate branches of government is central to the republican idea of the separation of powers.

President
The executive power is vested mainly in the President of India, as per Article 53 (1) of the constitution. The President enjoys all constitutional powers and exercises them directly or through officers subordinate to him as per the aforesaid Article 53(1). The President is to act in accordance with aid and advice tendered by the Prime Minister, who leads the Council of Ministers as described in Article 74 of the Constitution of India.

The Council of Ministers remains in power during the 'pleasure' of the President. However, in practice, the Council of Ministers must retain the support of the Lok Sabha. If a President were to dismiss the Council of Ministers on his or her own initiative, it might trigger a constitutional crisis. Thus, in practice, the Council of Ministers cannot be dismissed as long as it holds the support of a majority in the Lok Sabha.

The President is responsible for making a wide variety of appointments. These include:
 * Governors of States
 * The Chief Justice, other judges of the Supreme Court and High Courts of India
 * The Attorney General
 * The Comptroller and Auditor General
 * The Chief Election Commissioner and other Election Commissioners
 * The Chairman and other Members of the Union Public Service Commission
 * The President's Officer
 * The Cabinet Secretary, whose position is equivalent to the Ministers in Central Government. His/Her work is to facilitate smooth transaction of business in Ministries/ Departments of the Government. The Secretariat held by Cabinet Secretary is termed as Cabinet Secretariat and assists in decision-making in Government by ensuring Inter-Ministerial co-ordination, ironing out differences amongst Ministries/ Departments and evolving consensus through the instrumentality of the standing/ ad hoc Committees of Secretaries.
 * Ambassadors and High Commissioners to other countries

The President, as Head of State also receives the credentials of Ambassadors from other countries, whilst the Prime Minister, as Head of Government, receives credentials of High Commissioners from other members of the Commonwealth, in line with historical tradition.

The President is de jure the Commander in Chief of the Indian Armed Forces.

The President of India can grant a pardon to or reduce the sentence of a convicted person for one time, particularly in cases involving punishment of death. The decisions involving pardoning and other rights by the President are independent of the opinion of the Prime Minister or the Lok Sabha majority. In most other cases, however, the President exercises his or her executive powers on the advice of the Prime Minister.

Vice-President
The Vice-President of India is the second-highest ranked government official in the executive branch of the Government of India, following the President. Vice-President represents the nation in the absence of the President.The Vice-President also has the legislative function of acting as the Chairman of the Rajya Sabha.

Prime Minister


The Prime Minister of India, as addressed to in the Constitution of India, is the chief of government, chief adviser to the President of India, head of the Council of Ministers and the leader of the majority party in the parliament. The prime minister leads the executive branch of the Government of India.

The Prime minister is the senior member of cabinet in the executive branch of government in a parliamentary system. The prime minister selects and can dismiss other members of the cabinet; allocates posts to members within the Government; is the presiding member and chairman of the cabinet and is responsible for bringing a proposal of legislation. The resignation or death of the prime minister dissolves the cabinet.

The Prime minister is appointed by the president to assist the latter in the administration of the affairs of the executive.

Cabinet, executive departments and agencies
The Cabinet of India includes the Prime Minister and his Cabinet Ministers. Each Minister must be a member of one of the houses of India's Parliament. The Cabinet is headed by the Prime Minister, and is advised by the Cabinet Secretary, who also acts as the head of the Indian Administrative Service. Other Ministers are either as Union Cabinet Ministers, who are heads of the various Ministries; Ministers of State, who are junior members who report directly to one of the Cabinet Ministers, often overseeing a specific aspect of government; or Junior Ministers of State (Independent Charges), which do not report to a Cabinet Minister. As per article 88 of the constitution, every Minister shall have the right to speak in, and to take part in the proceedings of, either House, any joint sitting of the Houses, and any committee of Parliament of which he may be named a member, but shall not be entitled to a vote in the house where he is not a member.

The Union Council of Ministers exercises executive authority in the Republic of India.[1] It consists of senior ministers, called "Cabinet Ministers", and junior ministers, called "Ministers of State". It is led by the Prime Minister. A smaller executive body, called the Union Cabinet is the supreme decision-making body in India.[2] Only the Prime Minister and ministers of the rank of "Cabinet Minister" are members of the Cabinet. The most senior civil servant in India, called the Cabinet Secretary, leads the Cabinet Secretariat, and provides administrative assistance to the Council of Ministers, attends and convene its meetings thus making him ex-officio Secretary to the Union Council of Ministers .[3] Ministers of State are tasked with assisting Cabinet Ministers in their work.[4]

Ranking
There are three categories of ministers, in descending order of rank:


 * Cabinet Minister: member of cabinet; leads a ministry
 * Minister of State (Independent Charges): junior minister not reporting to a cabinet minister
 * Minister of State (MoS): junior minister reporting to a cabinet minister, usually tasked with a specific responsibility in that ministry

Current ministry
As a collective, each successive Council of Ministers is referred to as a ministry. The current ministry is led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who took office on 26 May 2014.}

Cabinet Ministers
India cabinet ministers information-2014




 * }

Ministers of State
Note : *Indicates Minister of State having Independent charge Category:India politics and government templates

Independent Offices of Government of India
The Government of India consists of several independent offices forming an integral part of the administration of India. The independent offices were set up to develop and improve various sectors of the country. The apex / independent offices of Government of India are as follows:


 * Planning Commission
 * Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI)
 * Central Information Commission
 * Central Vigilance Commission (CVC)
 * Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG)
 * Election Commission of India
 * National Commission for Women (NCW)
 * Union Public Service Commission (UPSC)
 * Accountant General, Maharashtra
 * National Commission on Population
 * National Human Rights Commission (NHRC)
 * Office of the Principal Scientific Adviser
 * Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI)

The Planning Commission of India, one of the most important independent offices of the country, was set up in 1950. It was established for monitoring proper utilization of the resources of India, increasing employment opportunities and other purposes. The Commission handles all the matters related to the balanced consumption of country's resources. The first Chairman of the Commission was Shri Jawaharlal Nehru.

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), another important independent office of Government of India, is responsible for investigating cases related to corruption, murder, bribery and other severe crimes. It rapidly grew into a national investigative body with the help of its founder Shri. D.P. Kohli. Currently, the department has 2 divisions namely, Special Crimes Division and Anti- Corruption Division.

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India was founded for developing the telecommunication in India so that it can emerge as a leader in the international information society. It has created many mandates and schemes for providing quality service to the people.

Organizations of Indian Government
The organizations of Indian Government assist the Indian administration to pursue realistic development goals. Most of the Indian government organizations take the form of co-operatives.

The organizations of Indian Government are engaged in the betterment of the Indian economy. The co-operatives are independent legal entities and are capable of taking independent crucial decisions. Almost all of the organizations of Indian Government are controlled by its members. The continued success of these organizations is a pointer to their success of intimate contact with the common Indian populace. The gamut of Indian government organizations runs from agriculture to culture. Modern thrust areas like sports, tourism and health also come under the ambit of the organizations of Indian Government.

The Indian Government licensed co-operatives are divided into two empirical types: central co-operatives and state co-operatives. The non-comprehensive list of organizations of Indian Government includes the following:


 * Indian Farmers Fertilizers Co-operative Limited (IFFCO)
 * National Agricultural Co-operative Marketing Federation of India (NAFED)
 * National Co-operative Development Corporation (NCDC)
 * National Co-operative Union of India
 * Repatriates Co-operative Finance and Development Bank Limited
 * Tamil Nadu Handicrafts Industrial Co-operative Marketing Federation
 * Co-operation and Civil Supplies Department, Lakshadweep
 * Co-operation Department, Meghalaya
 * International Co-operative Alliance Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific (ICAROAP)
 * National Dairy Development Board (NDDB)

Legislature
This branch of Indian government is commonly known as Parliament consisting of the President of India, the Rajya Sabha (The Upper House or the "Council of States"), and the Lok Sabha. The parliamentary form of government is said to be bicameral because of these two houses. In Rajya Sabha, members get elected indirectly whereas in Lok Sabha members are directly elected. Based on the Westminster System prevalent in the United Kingdom (U K), this form of government enjoys supremacy but its laws are subject to judicial review by the Supreme Court of India. The members of cabinet, including the Prime Minister and the Council of Ministers, are either members of Parliament (MP) or elected thereto within six months of assuming office.

The members of the legislative government have twofold responsibilities: collective and individual. As per the collective responsibility, the Prime Minister of India along with his or her Council of Ministers is liable for any policy failure within the government.

However, according to the individual responsibility, every member of the Ministers' Council has to take charge of more than one assigned portfolio or ministry.

Legislative power in India is exercised by the Parliament, a bicameral legislature consisting of the Rajya Sabha, and the Lok Sabha. Of the two houses of Parliament, the former is considered to be the upper house or the Council of States and consists of members appointed by the President and elected by the state and territorial legislatures. The latter is considered the lower house or the House of the people.



The Parliament does not enjoy complete sovereignty, as its laws are subject to judicial review by the Supreme Court of India. However, it does exercise some control over the executive branch. The members of the cabinet, including the prime minister and the Council of Ministers, are either chosen from parliament or elected there to within six months of assuming office. The cabinet as a whole is responsible to the Lok Sabha. The Lok Sabha is a temporary house and can only be dissolved when the party in power loses the support of the majority of the house. Whereas the Rajya Sabha is a permanent house which can never be dissolved though the members of the Rajya Sabha who are elected for a six-year term.

Indian Parliament
The Indian Parliament is the utmost lawmaking body of the country. The Indian Parliament encompasses Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha. After the first general elections were held under the new Constitution in 1951-52, the first chosen Parliament in India came into existence in the year 1952 in the month of April.

The Parliament of India is of bicameral type. The Lok Sabha members are selected straight by all entitled voters and remains in seat for a period of five years unless the House gets dissolved before hand. The state legislatures along with the union territories choose 233 members to Rajya Sabha. In Rajya Sabha of Parliament, 12 of the members are chosen by the Indian President.

The Lok Sabha is the organization of representatives of the nation. The candidates who are appointed as Lok Sabha members should have the minimum age of 25 years. The present Lok Sabha membership is 545.

The Upper House of the Parliament is known as Rajya Sabha. There can be 250 members in Rajya Sabha. The Rajya Sabha members should have at least 30 years of age. The twelve candidates who are selected by the President of India to Rajya Sabha can belong from various areas like arts, literature, social service and science and should have gained distinction and praise in any of these areas.

The Upper House or the Rajya Sabha is a permanent body. One third of the Rajya Sabha members have to get retired after a gap of two years. The major function of both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha is passing laws. Every bill has to be passed by both the Houses and acquiesced to by the Indian President prior to becoming a law.

The presiding officer of Lok Sabha is known as the Speaker and he/she is assisted by a Deputy Speaker. Both the Speaker and the Deputy Speaker are elected from the elected members of Lok Sabha. Rajya Sabha has the Vice President of India as its ex officio Chairperson. The "Sansad Bhavan" or the Parliament House of India has a circular building which was designed by Herbert Baker.

Politics of India
Politics of India is concentrated in the framework of a parliamentary system that is federal and a democratic republic. The politics of India is based on a multi-party system, which is modeled according to the British Westminster System of government. As per the Indian politics, the head of the government is the Prime Minister, while the President of the nation is the formal head of the government. The President, according to the politics of India, has some of the reserved powers that he can use during emergency situations. The government of India exercises the executive powers while the federal powers are distributed among the government and the two Houses in the Parliament.

There are two Houses in the political system in India, namely, the Lok Sabha or the House of the People and the Rajya Sabha or the House of Councils. The people of the country elect the members of the Lok Sabha, which is headed by the Prime Minister. There are also three divisions in the politics of India, which are listed as The Legislative Branch, The Executive Branch and The Judicial Branch

The working of the politics of India is conducted according to the laws of the land, which are created after the bill clears both the upper House and the lower House of the Parliament. The Bill is signed as an Act only after the signature of the President.

The various political parties of Indian politics play an important role in defining the basic framework of the same. These parties are divided into parts namely national political parties and regional political parties. The candidates of National parties take part in elections all over India, while the regional parties can contest only the State elections.

Some of the National Parties of India are:


 * Bharatiya Janata Party
 * Indian National Congress
 * Samajwadi Party
 * Communist Party of India (Marxist)
 * Bahujan Samaj Party
 * Communist Party of India

Some of the Regional Parties under the politics of India are:


 * Telegu Desam
 * Dravida Munnetra Kazagham (DMK)
 * Shiv Sena
 * Akali Dal

Judiciary
Headed by the Supreme Court of India, the Judiciary consists of 24 High Courts and many district level civil, family as well as criminal courts. The judicial aspects are taken care of by the criminal and civil laws mentioned in the Civil Procedure Code, the Criminal Procedure Code and the Indian Penal Code. The system of law applicable to the union as well as state governments is solely based on the statutory law and common law.

In addition to the advisory, appellate and original jurisdictions prevalent in the country's Supreme Court, Article 32 of the Constitution of India provides another original and extensive jurisdiction related to the fundamental rights enforcement.

India's independent union judicial system began under the British, and its concepts and procedures resemble those of Anglo-Saxon countries. The Supreme Court of India consists of a Chief Justice and 25 associate justices, all appointed by the President on the advice of the Chief Justice of India. The jury trials were abolished in India in the early 1960s, after the famous case KM Nanavati v State of Maharashtra, for reasons of being vulnerable to media and public pressure, as well as to being misled.

Unlike its United States counterpart, the Indian justice system consists of a unitary system at both state and federal level. The judiciary consists of the Supreme Court of India, High Courts of India at the state level, and District Courts and Sessions Courts at the district level.

Judicial System in India
The Government of India has three different independent branches namely the Executive, the Legislative and the Judiciary. The Indian judicial system was formed by the British during their colonial rule in the country. This system is known as the Common Law System in which the judges develop the laws with their judgments, orders and decisions. The different types of courts form the different levels of judiciary in the country. The apex court of India is the Supreme Court, located in New Delhi, followed by the high courts in different states. The high courts are followed by the district courts and subordinate courts which are also known as the lower courts.

Supreme Court of India
The Supreme Court of India came into being on 28 January 1950 and substituted the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council and the Federal Court of India which were the apex legal system under the colonial rule in India. There is one Chief Justice and 30 other judges in the Supreme Court who are appointed by the Indian President. These judges retire after the attainment of the age of 65 years. The apex court works extensively for the protection of the fundamental rights of the Indian citizens. It is also a supreme authority as it settles the disputes within several governments of the country. It also has an authority to review any judgement or order earlier passed by it and can also transfer cases from one high court to another and from one district court to another.

The Supreme Court of India is situated in New Delhi, the capital region of India. The Supreme Court of India enjoys original, appellate and advisory jurisdiction. Its exclusive original jurisdiction extends to any dispute between the Government of India and one or more states, or between the Government of India and any state or states on one side and one or more states on the other, or between two or more states, if and insofar as the dispute involves any question (whether of law or of fact) on which the existence or extent of a legal right depends on.

In addition, Article 69 of the Indian Constitution gives an extensive original jurisdiction to the Supreme Court in regard to enforcing fundamental rights. It is empowered to issue directions, orders or writs, including writs in the nature of habeas corpus, mandamus, prohibition, quo warranto and certiorari to enforce them. The Supreme Court has been conferred with power to direct transfer of any civil or criminal case from one State High Court to another State High Court, or from a court subordinate to another State High Court and supreme court.

High Courts
The supreme judicial powers at the state level lie with the high courts of India. There are 24 high courts in the country which hold jurisdiction over a state, union territory or a group of union territories or states. Being established in 1862, Calcutta High Court is the oldest high court in India. Being the appellate authority of state or group of states, the high courts have similar authorities and powers like that of the apex court, except for the difference of territorial jurisdiction of high courts which is varied. The high courts may also have original jurisdiction in certain cases if permitted under the federal law system. There are lower courts - civil or criminal, and tribunals which function under the high courts. All the high courts come under the jurisdiction of Supreme Court of India.

Following is the list of the 24 high courts of India:


 * High Court of Judicature at Hyderabad (Andhra Pradesh and Telangana)
 * High Court of Judicature at Allahabad (Uttar Pradesh)
 * Bombay High Court (Maharashtra, Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Goa and Daman and Diu)
 * Calcutta High Court (West Bengal and Andaman and Nicobar Islands)
 * Chhattisgarh High Court
 * Delhi High Court (National Capital Territory of Delhi)
 * Gujarat High Court
 * Gauhati High Court (Assam, Nagaland, Mizoram and Arunachal Pradesh)
 * Himachal Pradesh High Court
 * Jammu and Kashmir High Court
 * Jharkhand High Court
 * Karnataka High Court
 * Kerala High Court (Kerala and Lakshadweep)
 * Madras High Court (Tamil Nadu and Puducherry)
 * Madhya Pradesh High Court
 * Meghalaya High Court
 * Manipur High Court
 * Orissa High Court (Odisha)
 * Patna High Court (Bihar)
 * Punjab and Haryana High Court (Punjab, Haryana and Chandigarh)
 * Rajasthan High Court
 * Sikkim High Court
 * Uttarakhand High Court
 * Tripura High Court

District and Subordinate Courts
The district and the subordinate courts are the courts below the high courts. These courts administer jurisdiction at the district level in India. The district courts are at the top of all the subordinate courts but fall under the administrative control of the state high court to which that district belongs to. The jurisdiction in the districts of the states is presided over by District and Sessions Judge. The judge is referred to as a District Judge when he presides over the civil cases and as a Sessions Judge when he presides over criminal cases. He is addressed as a Metropolitan Sessions Judge when he presides over a district court in a city which is recognised as a metropolitan city or area by the state government. The District Judge is also the highest judicial authority after the High Court Judge.

The district courts also hold jurisdiction over the subordinate courts. For handling civil cases, the subordinate courts, in ascending order, are Junior Civil Judge Court, Principal Junior Civil Judge Court, Senior Civil Judge Courts. For handling criminal cases the ascending order of the subordinate courts is Second Class Judicial Magistrates Court, First Class Judicial magistrate Court and Chief Judicial Magistrate Court.

Tribunal
In general a tribunal is a person or an institution with an authority to act judicially even if it is not referred to as a tribunal in its title. For instance, a lawyer appearing before court even if there is only one sitting judge, he could also call the judge as their 'tribunal'.

According to the notification dated 8 October 2012, uploaded on Supreme Court of India website, there are 19 Tribunals:


 * Appellate Tribunal for Electricity (ATE)
 * Armed Force Tribunal
 * Authority for Advance Rulings
 * Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CERC)
 * Central Administrative Tribunal
 * Company Law Board
 * Competition Commission of India (CCI)
 * Competition Appellate Tribunal (CAT)
 * Copyright Board
 * Customs Excise And Service Tax Appellate Tribunal
 * Cyber Appellate Tribunal
 * Employees Provident Fund Appellate Tribunal
 * Income Tax Appellate Tribunal
 * Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDA)
 * Intellectual Property Appellate Board
 * National Green Tribunal
 * Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI)
 * Telecom Disputes Settlement & Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT)
 * Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI)

Fast Track Courts
The fast track courts (FTC) in India were aimed at clearing the backlog of cases which were pending in the district and the session courts. These courts function on the similar procedures as session and trial courts. At the initial stage, the fast track courts were to look into the long-pending cases but later they were directed to look after specific cases especially for crimes against children and women. The scheme of fast track courts was recommended by the Eleventh Finance Commission. Under this scheme, the government sanctioned a sum of Rs. 502.90 crores to set up 1734 FTCs in the country. As per the Ministry of Law and Justice, by the end of March 2011, these courts had resolved 32.34 lakh cases*. However, since their inception, the number of functioning courts has marginally reduced every year.

Lok Adalats
The concept of Lok Adalat is based on the system of alternative dispute resolution (ADR). They are based on the Gandhian principles of Gram Panchayats or Panch Parmeshwar. "Lok" stands for "people" and the meaning of "Adalat" is court and therefore this institution in general means "People's Court". The Lok Adalats are held by the several committees or authorities such as District Authority, State Authority, High Court Legal Services Committee, Supreme Court Legal Services and Taluk Legal Services Committee. These Lok Adalats are efficient to handle different cases such as motor accident compensation cases, matrimonial and family disputes, land acquisition disputes and partition claims, etc.

The judiciary plays a pivotal role in the country by maintaining and administering the laws. It not only administers justice but also protects the rights of the citizens of the country. Judiciary interprets the laws and acts as a custodian of the Constitution. Courts, tribunals and regulators together work and form this integrated system for the benefit of the nation.

Appointments of Judges
The Constitution of India lays down the rules for the appointment of the judges of the Supreme Court, High Courts and District Courts. The judges of the Supreme Court are appointed by the President of India in consultation with the Chief Justice. Their appointment is held under a collegium system which is a group of the Chief Justice and four senior judges of the court. Similarly, for high courts, the President in consultation with the Chief Justice, Governor of the State and the Chief Justice of the concerned High Court appoints the judges. The eligibility for the judge demands a person to be a citizen of India. He must have served as an advocate for at least five years or as a judge of any high court for ten years to become a Supreme Court Judge. For a high court judge it is necessary that a person must have been an advocate in any high court for a minimum period of ten years.

A judge can be removed from his position only on the grounds of misconduct or by the order of the President. A Supreme Court Judge can only be removed after a notice is signed by at least 50 members of the Rajya Sabha or 100 members of the Lok Sabha.

Public interest litigation (PIL)
Although the proceedings in the Supreme Court arise out of the judgement or orders made by the subordinate courts, of late the Supreme Court has started entertaining matters in which interest of the public at large is involved, and the Court may be moved by any individual or group of persons either by filing a Writ Petition at the Filing Counter of the Court, or by addressing a letter to Hon'ble The Chief Justice of India highlighting the question of public importance for invoking this.

State and local governments
State governments in India are the governments ruling States of India and the chief minister heads the state government. Power is divided between union government and state governments. State government's legislature is bicameral in 7 states and unicameral in the rest. Lower house is elected with 5 years term, while in upper house 1/3 of the total members in the house gets elected every 2 years with 6-year term.

Local government function at the basic level. It is the third level of government apart from union and state governments. It consists of panchayats in rural areas and municipalities in urban areas. They are elected directly or indirectly by the people.

Local Government of India refers to the government of the 28 Indian states and the 7 union territories. There are a total of 6,45,000 local governments of India. Local governments of the rural regions are termed as the Panchayats. The local government in the urban areas is referred to as the nagar panchayats and the municipalities.

The village panchayats basically refer to the councils of the local government of India, that take care of the various administrative affairs of the rural regions. Along with the independence of India, came the verdict from the Indian Constitution that all the panchayats will be chosen by the state and will be provided such powers so as to enable them function on their own. These local governments of India are self-sufficient and self-enabled units that work under the state government of India.

The 73rd Constitution Amendment Act, 1992 and the 74th Constitution Amendment Act, 1992 came into force in the year 1993. In this Act, the constitutional status was attached to the city as well as village councils in India. Some of the significant steps that were taken for the local government in India include regular elections, the fixed five-year term and the review and augmentation of the finances by the State Finance Commissions.

Functions of Local Government of India
All the local governments of India have to perform certain responsibilities, which are divided into two categories - obligatory functions and discretionary functions. Some of the obligatory functions performed by the local governments are:


 * Registration of births and deaths
 * Supply of pure drinking water
 * Construction and maintenance of public streets
 * Lighting and watering of public streets
 * Cleaning of public streets, places and sewers
 * Naming streets and numbering houses
 * Establishment and maintenance of primary schools
 * Maintenance or support of public hospitals
 * Some of the discretionary functions, which are performed by the local governments of India, are:
 * Planting and maintenance of trees
 * Housing for low income groups
 * Construction and maintenance of public parks, gardens, libraries, museums, rest houses and other public buildings
 * Securing or removal of dangerous buildings or places

Elections and voting
India has a federal government, with elected officials at the federal (national), state and local levels. On a national level, the head of government, the Prime Minister, is appointed by the President of India amongst the party which won the majority seats in Loksabha. All members of the federal legislature, the Parliament, are directly elected. Elections in India take place every five years by universal adult suffrage through first-past-the-post voting system.

Indian Civil Service as a part of the Central Government
Being a permanent bureaucracy of the country's government, Indian Civil Service forms a part of the government of India. The executive policies and decisions taken by the government are implemented by the civil servants, who are the high ranked employees of the Indian government appointed after clearing the civil services examination.

The Civil Services of India is the civil service and the permanent bureaucracy of the Republic of India. The executive decisions are implemented by the Indian civil servants.

In the parliamentary democracy of India, the ultimate responsibility for running the administration rests with the elected representatives of the people which are the ministers. These ministers are accountable to the legislatures which are also elected by the people on the basis of universal adult suffrage. The ministers are indirectly responsible to the people themselves. But the handful of ministers are not expected to deal personally with the various problems of modern administration. Thus the ministers lay down the policy and it is for the civil servants to enforce it.

The Civil Services refer to the civil services, the permanent executive branch of the Republic of India. The civil service system is the backbone of the administrative machinery of the country.

In the parliamentary democracy of India, the ultimate responsibility for running the administration rests with the elected representatives of the people which are the ministers. But the handful of ministers cannot be expected to deal personally with the manifold problems of modern administration. Thus the ministers lay down the policy and it is for the civil servants to carry out this policy.

The executive decisions are implemented by the Indian civil servants. The members of civil service serve at the pleasure of the President of India and Article 311 of the constitution protects them from politically motivated or vindictive action. Civil servants are employees of the Government of India; however, not all employees of the Government are civil servants. Civil servants in a personal capacity are paid from the Civil List. Senior civil servants may be called to account by Parliament.

As of year 2010, there are total 6.4 million government employees in India, and less than 50,000 civil servants to administer them. The civil service system in India is rank-based and does not follow the tenets of the position-based civil services.

In October 2015, the Government of India approved the formation of "new" Indian Skill Development Service-Group A.

Constitution
The constitution under Article 312 provides for All India Civil Services branches to be set up by giving the power to the Rajya Sabha (upper house of the Parliament of India) to resolve by a two-thirds majority to establish new all-India services. The Indian Administrative Service, Indian Police Service and Indian Forest Service are set up under this constitutional provision.

Power, purpose and responsibilities
The responsibility of the civil services is to run the administration of India. The country is managed through a number of Central Government agencies in accordance with the policy directions given by the ministries.

The members of the civil services represent as administrators in the central government and state government; emissaries in the foreign missions/embassies; as tax collectors and revenue commissioners; as civil service commissioned police officers; as permanent representative(s) and employees in the United Nations and its agencies and as Chairman, Managing Director, full-time functional Director/Member of the Board of Management of various Public Sector Undertakings/ Enterprises, Corporations, Banks and financial institutions. Civil servants are employed to various agencies of India and can also be appointed as advisors or special duty officers or private secretaries to ministers of the Union and the State Government.

All appointments in the rank of Joint Secretary to Government of India and above, other major appointments, empanelment and extension of tenure is done by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet. However, all appointments in the rank below Joint Secretary in the federal government is done by the Civil Services Board.

Head of the Civil Service
The highest ranking civil servant is the Cabinet Secretary. He is ex-officio Chairman of the Civil Services Board; the chief of the Indian Administrative Service and head of all civil services under the rules of business of the Government of India. He also holds the 11th position in the Order of Precedence of India.

The position holder is accountable for ensuring that the Civil Service is equipped with the skills and capability to meet the everyday challenges it faces and that civil servants work in a fair and decent environment.

Cabinet Secretary of India
The Cabinet Secretary of India is the senior most civil servant in the country. The Cabinet Secretary is the ex-officio Chairman of the Civil Services Board of the Republic of India; generally the senior most officer of the Indian Administrative Service (IAS) and head of all civil services under the rules of business of the Government of India. The Cabinet Secretary is arguably India's most powerful bureaucrat and right hand of Prime Minister of India.

The Cabinet Secretariat is responsible for the administration of the Government of India Transaction of Business Rules, 1961 and the Government of India Allocation of Business Rules 1971, facilitating smooth transaction of business in Ministries/Departments of the Government by ensuring adherence to these rules. The Secretariat assists in decision-making in Government by ensuring Inter-Ministerial co-ordination, ironing out differences amongst Ministries/Departments and evolving consensus through the instrumentality of the standing/ad hoc Committees of Secretaries. Through this mechanism new policy initiatives are also promoted.

The Cabinet Secretariat ensures that the President of India, the Vice-President and ministers are kept informed of the major activities of all Departments by means of a monthly summary report of their activities. Management of major crisis situations in the country and co-ordinating activities of the various Ministries in such a situation is also one of the functions of the Cabinet Secretariat.

Values
A member of the civil service in discharge of his/her functions is to be guided by maintaining absolute integrity, allegiance to the constitution and the law of the nation, patriotism, national pride, devotion to duty, honesty, impartiality and transparency.

Codes
The Government of India promotes values and a certain standard of ethics of requiring and facilitating every civil servant:
 * To discharge official duty with responsibility, honesty, accountability and without discrimination.
 * To ensure effective management, leadership development and personal growth.
 * To avoid misuse of official position or information.
 * To serve as instruments of good governance and foster social economic development.

Construction
The Civil Services of India can be classified into two types - the All India Services and the Central Civil Services (Group A and B). The recruits are university graduates (or above) selected through a rigorous system of examinations, called the Civil Services Examination (CSE) and the Engineering Services Examination (ESE) conducted by the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) and the Combined Graduate Level Examination (CGLE) by the (SSC).

All India Civil Services (AIS)
All appointments to All India Civil Services are made by the President of India.
 * Indian Administrative Service (IAS)
 * Indian Forest Service (IFS)
 * Indian Police Service (IPS)

Central Civil Services (CCS)
The Central Civil Services are concerned with the administration of the Union Government.

=
Group A ===== All appointments to Civil Services, Group A are made by the President of India.

=
Group B ===== ''All appointments to Group B are made by the authorities specified by a general or special order of the President. However,Appointing authority of officers of the Central Secretariat Service is the President of India himself''.
 * Income Tax Service, Group ‘B’
 * Indian Foreign Service, Group ‘B’ - (General Cadre, Grade I and General Cadre, Grade II only)
 * Central Secretariat Service, Group 'B' (Section and Assistant Section Grade officers only)
 * Indian Posts and Telegraphs Accounts and Finance Service, Group ‘B’ Telecommunication Wing.
 * Indian Posts & Telegraphs Accounts & Finance Service, Postal Wing, Group ‘B’
 * Indian Salt Service, Group ‘B’
 * India Meteorological Service, Group ‘B'
 * Central Secretariat Official Language Service, Group ‘B’
 * Central Secretariat Stenographers’ Service, (Grade I, Grade II and Selection Grade officers only)
 * Central Health Service, Group ‘B’
 * Botanical Survey of India, Group 'B'.
 * Geological Survey of India, Group 'B'.
 * Geological Survey of India, Group 'B'.
 * Survey of India, Group 'B'.
 * Zoological Survey of India, Group 'B'.
 * Central Electrical Engineering Service, Group 'B'.
 * Central Engineering Service, Group 'B'.
 * Central Power Engineering Service, Group ‘B’
 * Postal Superintendents’ Service, Group ‘B’
 * Postmasters’ Service, Group ‘B’
 * Railway Board Secretariat Service, Group ‘B’
 * Telecommunication Engineering Service, Group ‘B’
 * Telegraphs Traffic Service, Group ‘B
 * Central Excise Service, Group ‘B’
 * Customs Appraisers Service, Group ‘B’- (Principal Appraisers and Head Appraisers)
 * Customs Preventive Service, Group ‘B’ – (Chief Inspectors)
 * Defence Secretariat Service
 * Union Territories Administrative Service
 * Union Territories Police Service

State/Provincial Civil Services (SCS/PCS)
The Provincial Civil Services (also known as State Civil Services) examinations and recruitments are conducted by the individual states of India. The state civil services deals with subjects such as land revenue, agriculture, forests, education etc. The officers are recruited by different States through the State Public Service Commissions.


 * Provincial Civil Services, Class-I (PCS)
 * Provincial Police Services, Class-I (PPS).
 * Block Development Officer.
 * Tehsildar/Talukadar/Assistant Collector.
 * Excise and Taxation Officer.
 * District Employment Officer.
 * District Treasury Officer.
 * District Welfare Officer.
 * Assistant Registrar Cooperative Societies.
 * District Food and Supplies Controller/Officer.
 * Any other Class-I/Class-II service notified as per rules by the concerned State i. e. officers/lecturers/ assistant/associate professors/principals of Government Degree Colleges, Class I.

Employment by agency
Union Government executive branch civilian employment:

Independent agencies:


 * Reserve Bank of India
 * Securities and Exchange Board of India
 * Department of Space
 * Department of Atomic Energy
 * Planning Commission
 * Directorate General of Economic Enforcement
 * Directorate General of Income Tax Investigation
 * Directorate of Income Tax Intelligence and Criminal Investigation
 * Directorate General of Anti-Evasion
 * Directorate of Revenue Intelligence
 * Employees' Provident Fund Organisation
 * National Advisory Council
 * Central Bureau of Investigation
 * Intelligence Bureau
 * Central Vigilance Commission
 * National Security Guards

Finance
See Reserve Bank of India

Taxation
India has a three-tier tax structure, wherein the constitution empowers the union government to levy income tax, tax on capital transactions (wealth tax, inheritance tax), sales tax, service tax, customs and excise duties and the state governments to levy sales tax on intrastate sale of goods, tax on entertainment and professions, excise duties on manufacture of alcohol, stamp duties on transfer of property and collect land revenue (levy on land owned). The local governments are empowered by the state government to levy property tax and charge users for public utilities like water supply, sewage etc. More than half of the revenues of the union and state governments come from taxes, of which 3/4 come from direct taxes. More than a quarter of the union government's tax revenues is shared with the state governments.

The tax reforms, initiated in 1991, have sought to rationalise the tax structure and increase compliance by taking steps in the following directions:
 * Reducing the rates of individual and corporate income taxes, excises, customs and making it more progressive
 * Reducing exemptions and concessions
 * Simplification of laws and procedures
 * Introduction of permanent account number (PAN) to track monetary transactions
 * 21 of the 29 states introduced value added tax (VAT) on 1 April 2005 to replace the complex and multiple sales tax system

The non-tax revenues of the central government come from fiscal services, interest receipts, public sector dividends, etc., while the non-tax revenues of the States are grants from the central government, interest receipts, dividends and income from general, economic and social services.

Inter-state share in the federal tax pool is decided by the recommendations of the Finance Commission to the President.

Total tax receipts of Centre and State amount to approximately 18% of national GDP. This compares to a figure of 37–45% in the OECD.

Central Board of Direct Taxes
The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) is a part of the Department of Revenue in the Ministry of Finance, Government of India. The CBDT provides essential inputs for policy and planning of direct taxes in India and is also responsible for administration of the direct tax laws through Income Tax Department. The CBDT is a statutory authority functioning under the Central Board of Revenue Act, 1963.It is India's official Financial Action Task Force on Money Laundering (FATF) .The Central Board of Revenue as the Department apex body charged with the administration of taxes came into existence as a result of the Central Board of Revenue Act, 1924. Initially the Board was in charge of both direct and indirect taxes. However, when the administration of taxes became too unwieldy for one Board to handle, the Board was split up into two, namely the Central Board of Direct Taxes and Central Board of Excise and Customs with effect from 1.1.1964. This bifurcation was brought about by constitution of the two Boards u/s 3 of the Central Boards of Revenue Act, 1963.

Organisational structure of the Central Board of Direct Taxes
The CBDT is headed by Chairman and also comprises six members, all of whom are ex officio Special Secretary to Government of India.The Investigation Division of the Central Board of Direct Taxes is also headed by a member of the CBDT.

The Chairman and Members of CBDT are selected from Indian Revenue Service (IRS), a premier civil service of India, whose members constitute the top management of Income Tax Department and other various departments.

General budget
The Finance minister of India presents the annual union budget in the Parliament on the last working day of February. The budget has to be passed by the Lok Sabha before it can come into effect on 1 April, the start of India's fiscal year. The Union budget is preceded by an economic survey which outlines the broad direction of the budget and the economic performance of the country for the outgoing financial year. This economic survey involves all the various NGOs, women organisations, business people, old people associations etc.

The 2009 Union budget of India had a total estimated expenditure for 2009–10 wasinr 10208000000000, of which inr 6957000000000 was towards Non Plan andinr 3251000000000 towards Plan expenditure. Total estimated revenue wasinr 6198000000000, including revenue receipts of inr 6145000000000 and capital receipts of inr 53450000000, excluding borrowings. The resulting fiscal deficit wasinr 4009960000000 while revenue deficit was inr 2827000000000.The gross tax receipts were budgeted at inr 6411000000000 and non-tax revenue receipts atinr 1403000000000.

India's non-development revenue expenditure has increased nearly five-fold in 2003–04 since 1990–91 and more than tenfold since 1985–1986. Interest payments are the single largest item of expenditure and accounted for more than 40% of the total non-development expenditure in the 2003–04 budget. Defense expenditure increased fourfold during the same period and has been increasing because of India's desire to project its military prowess beyond South Asia. In 2007, India's defence spending stood at US$26.5 billion.

Fundamental Rights of Indian Citizens
Fundamental Rights of Indian Citizens are provided by the Constitution of India, that was adopted on the 26th of November, in the year 1949, but was put in use on the 26th of January, 1950. The Fundamental Rights of Indian Citizens guaranty that the residents of the land can lead a peaceful life, as long as they inhabit the country. The individual Fundamental Rights of Indian Citizens are most of the time similar in all the democratic countries.

The Individual Fundamental Rights to Indian Citizens include the following:


 * Equality before the law
 * Freedom of religion
 * Freedom of association and peaceful assembly
 * Freedom of speech and expression
 * Right to constitutional remedies for the protection of civil rights

According to the Indian Constitution, there are six basic Fundamental Rights of Indian Citizens, which are right to equality, right to freedom of religion, cultural and educational rights, right to freedom, right to constitutional remedies and right against exploitation.

Article 12 to 35 of the Indian Constitution covers the Fundamental Rights of the citizen of the country. All these Fundamental Rights indicate that all the citizens are equally treated by the nation irrespective of caste, sex and creed. The basic Fundamental Rights enumerated in Part III of the Indian Constitution are categorized under 7 sections apart from the general segment. The sections are as follows:

General Rights

 * Article 12: The Definition of Fundamental Rights is given in this Article
 * Article 13: The Article comprises Laws of inconsistent with or in derogation of the Fundamental Rights

Right to Equality

 * Article 14: The provisions regarding Equality before Law are included in this Article
 * Article 15: Prohibition of discrimination on grounds of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth is specified in this Article
 * Article 16: This Article consists of Rights of Equality of opportunity in matters of public employment
 * Article 17: Abolition of untouchability is mentioned in this particular Article
 * Article 18: This Article provides details about Abolition of titles

Right to Freedom

 * Article 19: Protection of certain rights regarding freedom of speech, etc. are clearly specified in the Article
 * Article 20: This Article states the Protection in respect of conviction for offenses
 * Article 21: Protection of life and personal liberty is mentioned in the Article
 * Article 22: This Article deals with Protection against arrest and detention in certain cases

Right against Exploitation

 * Article 23:The details of Prohibition of traffic in human beings and forced labor are presented in this Article
 * Article 24:The Article contains Prohibition of employment of children in factories, etc.

Right to Freedom of Religion

 * Article 25:Particulars of freedom of conscience and free profession, practice and propagation of religion are clearly enumerated in this Article
 * Article 26:The Article specifies the freedom to manage religious affairs
 * Article 27:Freedom as to payment of taxes for promotion of any particular religion is stated in the Article
 * Article 28:This Article includes freedom as to attendance at religious instruction or religious worship in certain education institutions

Cultural and Educational rights

 * Article 29:Protection of interests of minorities is specified in detailed form in this Article
 * Article 30:Right of minorities to establish and administer educational institutions is scripted in this very Article
 * Article 31:The Article dealing with Compulsory acquisition of property has been repealed through the Constitution Act, 1978 under 44th Amendment

Saving of Certain Laws

 * Article 31A:This Article contains savings of laws providing for acquisition of estates, etc.
 * Article 31B:Validation of certain Acts and Regulations are mentioned in the Article
 * Article 31C:This Article deals with saving of laws giving effect to certain directive principles
 * Article 31D:This Article deals with saving of laws giving effect to certain directive principles

Right to Constitutional Remedies

 * Article 32:Remedies for enforcement of rights conferred by this part have been included in the Article
 * Article 33:This particular Article addresses the Power of Parliament to modify the rights conferred by this Part in their application to forces, etc.
 * Article 34:Restriction on rights conferred by this Part while martial law is in force in any area is mentioned in the Article
 * Article 35:This Article indicates the Legislation to give effect to the provisions of this Part

Fundamental Duties of Indian Citizens
Fundamental Duties of Indian Citizens are listed in the Constitution of India. The Constitution was formed on the 26th of November in 1949 by the Constituent Assembly and came into force on the 26th of January 1950. Each and every citizen of India has to follow and practice these Fundamental Duties. The Fundamental Duties of Indian Nationals are mandatory for all the inhabitants of the country.

The Fundamental Duties of the citizens of India mentioned in Article 51A of the Indian Constitution. The various Fundamental Duties of Indian Citizens mentioned in the Indian Constitution include the following points
 * To abide by the Constitution and respect its ideals and institutions, the National Flag and the National Anthem
 * To defend the country and render national service when called upon to do so
 * To uphold and protect the sovereignty, unity and integrity of India
 * To develop the scientific temper, humanism and the spirit of inquiry and reform
 * To cherish and follow the noble ideals which inspired our national struggle for freedom
 * To promote harmony and the spirit of common brotherhood amongst all the people of India transcending religious, linguistic and regional or sectional diversities; to renounce practices derogatory to the dignity of women
 * To strive towards excellence in all spheres of individual and collective activity so that the nation constantly rises to higher levels of endeavor and achievement
 * To safeguard public property and to abjure violence
 * To protect and improve the natural environment including forests, lakes, rivers and wild life, and to have compassion for living creatures

Know India Better

 * National Symbols of India
 * Make in India
 * Passport and Visa
 * Facts about India
 * Heritage and culture
 * Citizenships
 * Politics of India
 * Organizations
 * Poverty in India
 * Air pollution in India
 * Land Acquisition Bill
 * What is Section 66A
 * Secularism in india
 * Black Money in India
 * Railway Budget 2015-16
 * What is GST
 * Democracy in India

Government Projects

 * Jan Dhan Yojana
 * Clean Ganga Project
 * MyGov
 * Swachh Bharat Abhiyan
 * Make in India

Order
The Order of precedence of the Republic of India is the protocol list (hierarchy of important positions) in which the functionaries and officials are listed according to their rank and office in the Government of India. The order is established by the President of India, through the Office of the President of India and is maintained by the Ministry of Home Affairs. It is only used to indicate ceremonial protocol and has no legal standing; it does not reflect the Indian presidential line of succession or the co-equal status of the separation of powers under the Constitution. It is also not applicable to day-to-day functioning of Government of India.

As of Jan 01 2015, Planning Commission has been replaced by NITI Aayog. However, MHA hasn't yet updated the Indian Order of Precedence.