UPSC Prelims 2017 · GS Paper I
Question 16: Polity and Governance
Local self-government can be best explained as an exercise in
AnswerUPSC’s answer is (b).
Local self-government, through panchayats and municipalities, hands decision-making and public services to elected bodies close to the people. That is democratic decentralisation, the idea behind the 73rd and 74th Amendments. It is not federalism, which divides power between constitutionally separate levels of government; it is not administrative delegation, where officials act under higher authority; and it is not direct democracy, where citizens decide matters themselves. Remember: local bodies = decentralisation of power to the grassroots.
Why each option is right or wrong
- (a) Wrong: federalism divides power between the Union and States, not local bodies.
- (b) Right: elected local bodies are a form of democratic decentralisation.
- (c) Wrong: delegation passes tasks down, but local bodies are elected and have their own powers.
- (d) Wrong: direct democracy means people decide directly, not through elected councils.
Answer: UPSC’s key. Explanation: written by UPSC Grade, not by UPSC.
Source: UPSC, Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination 2017, General Studies Paper I, Series A. The paper on upsc.gov.in.