UPSC Prelims 2001 · General Studies
Question 16: Polity and Governance
In which one of the following areas does the State Government NOT have control over its local bodies?
AnswerThe answer is (a).
State governments hold the legal and financial levers over local bodies. The state legislature makes the municipal and panchayat laws, the state controls money through grants, budget approval and audit, and it controls personnel through state-cadre officers and service rules. Handling citizens' day-to-day grievances is the local body's own job, so this is where the state has the least direct control.
Why each option is right or wrong
- (a) Right: local bodies deal with citizens' complaints themselves, without direct state control.
- (b) The state sanctions grants and has audit powers over local bodies.
- (c) Local bodies are created and governed by state laws, so the state does control them through legislation.
- (d) Senior staff are often state employees posted and disciplined by the state.
Explanation: written by UPSC Grade, not by UPSC.
Source: UPSC, Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination 2001, General Studies. UPSC's own paper isn't online; the words are from a published compilation. The paper on upsc.gov.in.