Constitutionalisation

In August 1989, the Rajiv Gandhi government introduced the 65th Constitutional Amendment Bill (i.e., Nagarpalika Bill) in the Lok Sabha. The bill aimed at strengthening and revamping the municipal bodies

by conferring a constitutional status on them. Although the bill was passed in the Lok Sabha, it was defeated in the Rajya Sabha in October 1989 and hence, lapsed.

Table 39.1 Committees and Commissions on Urban Local Governments

Sl. No.	Year	Name of the Committee / Chairman Commission
1.	1949-51	Local Finance Enquiry Committee	P.K. Wattal
2.	1953-54	Taxation Enquiry Commission	John Matthai
3.	1963-65	Committee on the Training Nur-Ud-din Ahmed of Municipal Employees
4.	1963-66	Rural-Urban Relationship A.P. Jain Committee
5.	1963	Committee of Ministers on Rafiq Zakaria Augmentation of Financial Resources of Urban Local Bodies
6.	1965-68	Committee on Service Conditions of Municipal Employees	-
7.	1974	Committee on Budgetary Girijapati Mukharji Reform in Municipal Administration
8.	1982	Study Group on	K.N. Sahaya
		Constitution, Powers and
		Laws of Urban Local
		Bodies and Municipal
		Corporations
9.	1985-88	National Commission on Urbanisation	C.M. Correa

The National Front Government under V P Singh introduced the revised Nagarpalika Bill in the Lok Sabha again in September 1990.

However, the bill was not passed and finally lapsed due to the dissolution of the Lok Sabha.

P V Narasimha Rao’s Government also introduced the modified Municipalities Bill inthe Lok Sabha in September 1991. It finally emerged as the 74th Constitutional Amendment Act of 1992 and came into force on 1 June 19932 .

74TH AMENDMENT ACT OF 1992 ‌

This Act has added a new Part IX-A to the Constitution of India. This part is entitled as 'The Municipalities’ and consists of provisions from Articles 243-P to 243-ZG. In addition, the act has also added a new Twelfth Schedule to the Constitution. This schedule contains eighteen functional items of municipalities. It deals with Article 243-W.

The act gave constitutional status to the municipalities. It has brought them under the purview of justiciable part of the Constitution. In other words, state governments are under constitutional obligation to adopt the new system of municipalities in accordance with the provisions of the act.

The act aims at revitalising and strengthening the urban governments so that they function effectively as units of local government.

< Previous | Contents | Next >