Welfare Schemes, State Laws and Current Affairs
2. Scheduled Areas, PESA and the panchayat law
The Fifth Schedule (Article 244(1)) governs the administration of Scheduled Areas in states other than Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram. The Governor can direct how an Act of Parliament or the state legislature applies in a Scheduled Area, make regulations on tribal land transfer, and a Tribes Advisory Council advises on tribal welfare. Chhattisgarh falls under the Fifth Schedule, not the Sixth. Its Scheduled Areas were redefined by the Scheduled Areas (States of Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand and Madhya Pradesh) Order, 2003 (G.S.R. 114(E), 20 February 2003). The Order names whole districts and, for others, only particular Tribal Development Blocks.
| Entry in the 2003 Order | Type |
|---|---|
| Surguja, Koria, Bastar, Dantewara, Kanker, Korba, Jashpur | Whole district (as constituted in 2003) |
| Bilaspur: Marwahi, Gorella-1, Gorella-2 blocks and Kota Revenue Inspector Circle | Part of district |
| Raigarh: Dharmjaigarh, Gharghoda, Tamnar, Lailunga, Kharsia | Part of district |
| Durg (Dondi), Rajnandgaon (Chauki, Manpur, Mohla), Raipur (Gariaband, Mainpur, Chhura), Dhamtari (Nagri-Sihawa) | Part of district |
The Provisions of the Panchayats (Extension to the Scheduled Areas) Act, 1996 (PESA) extends Part IX of the Constitution (panchayats) to Scheduled Areas, with the gram sabha as the centre: it safeguards community resources and customs, approves plans, and is consulted on land acquisition. It followed the Bhuria Committee (constituted 1994) and came into force on 24 December 1996. States had to align their panchayat laws within a year. Chhattisgarh runs on the Chhattisgarh Panchayat Raj Adhiniyam, 1993 (Act 1 of 1994, assent 24 January 1994), inherited from the undivided state and later given a chapter for Scheduled Area panchayats; critics said this did not fully reflect PESA. The state notified its own PESA Rules in August 2022 (gazetted 8 August, announced on 9 August, World Tribal Day), after a draft cleared by the cabinet in July 2022.
3. Forest rights and forest produce
The Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006, in force from 1 January 2008, recognises two kinds of right. Individual rights cover forest land under cultivation by a household before the cut-off date. Community rights include collection of minor forest produce, grazing and nistar, and the right to protect, regenerate and manage a community forest resource (CFR). It also recognises habitat rights of particularly vulnerable tribal groups. The gram sabha starts the process by receiving and verifying claims. The Act confers no right over minerals beneath forest land.
In Chhattisgarh the Act has produced visible firsts. Habitat rights were recognised for Kamar villages in Magarlod block of Dhamtari district (reported as the first such recognition for a PVTG in the state) and for 19 Baiga villages in the Gaurela-Pendra-Marwahi area. Community forest resource rights over forest in the Dhamtari-Gariaband landscape were distributed on World Tribal Day. Treat the "first" claims as reported claims; what is stable is the mechanism: gram sabha, claim, title.
Minor forest produce (MFP) is the cash crop of forest-dwelling households: tendu leaf, sal seed, mahua, harra and similar produce. The state buys through the Chhattisgarh State Minor Forest Produce Cooperative Federation and its primary committees. TRIFED data for 2020-21 credited the state with bringing 52 produce under minimum support price, the most in the country, and the state has led the national share of MFP procurement at MSP in recent years. These numbers are dated reports; the stable point is the model: cooperative collection, MSP and value addition.
4. Laws that shape welfare in the state
Social legislation is a tool of change: a law fixes an entitlement, a duty and a remedy, and a scheme then delivers it. The Mains item asks for the state's laws and their welfare effect. Learn each Act by year and purpose.
| Law | Year | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| Chhattisgarh Land Revenue Code (adopted from the 1959 Madhya Pradesh Code), Sections 165 and 170-B | 1959 | Section 165 restricts transfer of tribal bhumiswami land to non-tribals; Section 170-B provides for restoring land lost in breach |
| Chhattisgarh Panchayat Raj Adhiniyam | 1993 | Three-tier panchayat system; Scheduled Area chapter added later |
| Chhattisgarh Public Distribution System (Control) Order | 2004 | Fair price shops moved from private dealers to local governments and community groups |
| Chhattisgarh Special Public Security Act (Vishesh Jan Suraksha Adhiniyam) | 2005 (passed Dec 2005; published as Act 14 of 2006) | Action against unlawful organisations, aimed at left-wing extremism; criticised for wide powers |
| Chhattisgarh Lok Sewa Guarantee Act (Act 23 of 2011) | 2011 | Notified public services within a stipulated time, with liability on default |
| Chhattisgarh Food Security Act (Khadya Suraksha Adhiniyam) | 2012 | Food and nutritional security at affordable prices; the state's own statute for the targeted PDS |
| Chhattisgarh PESA Rules | 2022 | State rules putting the gram sabha at the centre of Scheduled Area governance |
The syllabus also names national laws by year. Match them: Civil Rights (Protection) Act 1955; Environment (Protection) Act 1986; Consumer Protection Act 1986 (replaced by the 2019 Act); Prevention of Corruption Act 1988; Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act 1989; Protection of Human Rights Act 1993; Information Technology Act 2000; Right to Information Act 2005; Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act 2005.
5. Scheme taxonomy and launch years
Sort every scheme under one of seven heads: farmers and rural livelihood, forest produce and tribal welfare, health, food security, education, women and children, urban and housing. The table gives schemes whose launch is firmly recorded. Where sources disagree on the year, the scheme is left out rather than guessed.
| Scheme | Year | Head and what it does |
|---|---|---|
| Mitanin programme | 2002 | Health: a village community health worker; later served as the prototype of the national ASHA cadre |
| Rajiv Gandhi Kisan Nyay Yojana | 2020 | Farmers: input assistance to cultivators |
| Godhan Nyay Yojana | 2020 (launched on Hareli, 20 July) | Rural livelihood: purchase of cow dung from livestock keepers for compost; part of the Narwa-Garwa-Ghurwa-Bari village plan |
| Swami Atmanand English Medium Schools | 2020 (1 November) | Education: government English-medium schools, first phase of about 50 schools (reports differ slightly) |
| PM-JANMAN (national, run in the state) | 2023 | Tribal welfare: housing, roads, health and nutrition for PVTG habitations |
| Mahtari Vandan Yojana | 2024 (first instalment 10 March) | Women: monthly cash assistance to eligible women of the state |
| Krishak Unnati Yojana | 2024 (12 March, Balod) | Farmers: input assistance alongside paddy procurement |
6. Reading the current-affairs stream
The commission tests "Current Affairs of Chhattisgarh" as part of the state paper. Most items are a scheme, a law, a project or an award. Run each through four questions: what is its legal or constitutional basis (Fifth Schedule, an Act, a rule), what is its type in the taxonomy, when did it begin, and who is meant to benefit. If you can answer those four, the amount and the day of the announcement add nothing you need.
- Record the year of the scheme, not the year of the latest instalment.
- Record whether the benefit is a cash transfer, an input, a service or a right.
- Never learn who holds an office; the question will name the office-holder if it needs to, and the answer will not depend on memory.
- For Mains, tie a scheme to the problem it answers: food insecurity, forest-dweller poverty, land alienation, maternal health.
Key takeaways
- Learn schemes in three layers: legal framework, taxonomy by purpose, then the scheme by year; never key on outlays, beneficiary counts or office-holders.
- Chhattisgarh is a Fifth Schedule state; the Scheduled Areas Order 2003 names whole districts (Bastar and Surguja regions, Korba, Jashpur) and, for others, only selected blocks.
- PESA (1996) brings Part IX to Scheduled Areas through the gram sabha; the state runs the Panchayat Raj Adhiniyam 1993 and notified its PESA Rules in August 2022.
- The Forest Rights Act 2006 (in force 2008) recognises individual, community and habitat rights through the gram sabha; it gives no right over minerals.
- Section 165 of the Land Revenue Code restricts tribal land transfer; Section 170-B restores land lost in breach.
- Key years: Mitanin 2002; PDS Control Order 2004; Lok Sewa Guarantee Act 2011; Food Security Act 2012; Kisan Nyay and Godhan Nyay 2020; Mahtari Vandan and Krishak Unnati 2024.
Practice questions (17)
Attempt each one before opening the answer. Every explanation names the tempting wrong option as well as the right one, because that is where marks are lost.
The Provisions of the Panchayats (Extension to the Scheduled Areas) Act, known as PESA, was enacted by Parliament in which year?
Show answer
Answer: C — 1996
PESA is a 1996 Act, in force from 24 December 1996, following the Bhuria Committee. The year 2006 belongs to the Forest Rights Act, a frequent mix-up, and 1992 is the year of the constitutional amendment that created Part IX for panchayats generally.The Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act was passed in which year?
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Answer: A — 2006
The Forest Rights Act is a 2006 Act that came into force on 1 January 2008. The year 1996 is PESA, which is the tempting wrong answer because both laws centre on the gram sabha.Under the Scheduled Areas (States of Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand and Madhya Pradesh) Order, 2003, which of the following districts, as constituted in 2003, was named as a whole Scheduled Area?
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Answer: D — Bastar
Bastar was named in the Order as a whole district. Durg, Raipur and Bilaspur appear only through particular Tribal Development Blocks (Dondi; Gariaband, Mainpur and Chhura; Marwahi and Gorella), so they are partial entries.Which of the following districts, as constituted in 2003, appears in the Scheduled Areas Order, 2003 only through selected Tribal Development Blocks and not as a whole district?
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Answer: B — Raigarh
Raigarh is listed through Dharmjaigarh, Gharghoda, Tamnar, Lailunga and Kharsia blocks. Surguja, Kanker and Dantewara are whole-district entries, and the nearby northern district of Jashpur is also whole, which makes Raigarh the easy one to mistake.PESA extends to Scheduled Areas the provisions of which part of the Constitution?
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Answer: B — Part IX, on panchayats
PESA carries Part IX, the panchayat chapter, into Scheduled Areas. Part X contains Article 244 and defines the Scheduled Areas themselves, which makes it the tempting wrong choice, but the Act's subject is panchayat governance.Consider the following statements about the legal framework in Chhattisgarh.
P. The Chhattisgarh Lok Sewa Guarantee Act was enacted in 2011.
Q. The Chhattisgarh Food Security Act was enacted in 2012.
R. The Chhattisgarh PESA Rules were notified in 2022.
S. The Chhattisgarh Panchayat Raj Adhiniyam was enacted in 2005.
Which of these are correct?Show answer
Answer: D — P, Q and R only
The Lok Sewa Guarantee Act is 2011, the Food Security Act 2012 and the PESA Rules 2022. The Panchayat Raj Adhiniyam is of 1993 (Act 1 of 1994), so S is wrong, and any option that includes S fails.Match each scheme or law with its year of launch or enactment.
P. Mitanin programme
Q. Chhattisgarh Lok Sewa Guarantee Act
R. Godhan Nyay Yojana
S. Mahtari Vandan Yojana
1. 2002 2. 2011 3. 2020 4. 2024Show answer
Answer: A — P-1, Q-2, R-3, S-4
The Mitanin programme dates from 2002, the Lok Sewa Guarantee Act from 2011, Godhan Nyay from 2020 and Mahtari Vandan from 2024. The tempting swap pairs the two earliest entries the wrong way round.Arrange in chronological order, earliest first:
P. Chhattisgarh Public Distribution System (Control) Order;
Q. Mitanin programme;
R. Chhattisgarh Lok Sewa Guarantee Act;
S. Godhan Nyay Yojana.Show answer
Answer: C — Q, P, R, S
The Mitanin programme (2002) came before the PDS Control Order (2004), then the Lok Sewa Guarantee Act (2011) and Godhan Nyay (2020). Starting with the PDS order is the usual slip because the order is better known than the 2002 health programme.Which of the following is NOT a right recognised under the Forest Rights Act, 2006?
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Answer: C — Ownership of minerals lying beneath forest land
The Act recognises forest land, community and habitat rights but confers no ownership of minerals under forest land. Habitat rights are tempting to doubt because they are less familiar, yet the Act does recognise them.The recognition of habitat rights for Kamar villages in Magarlod block of Dhamtari district was made under which law?
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Answer: A — The Forest Rights Act, 2006
Habitat rights of a particularly vulnerable tribal group are a category under the Forest Rights Act. PESA deals with gram sabha powers, and the Scheduled Areas Order only defines areas, so neither can grant habitat title.A tribal bhumiswami's land in Chhattisgarh was transferred to a non-tribal in breach of the restriction in the Land Revenue Code. Which provision is the usual route for restoring the land to the tribal holder?
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Answer: D — Section 170-B
Section 170-B provides for restoration of land lost in breach. Section 165 is the restriction, not the remedy, and is the tempting wrong answer. Articles 275(1) and 342 concern grants and the list of tribes.Consider the following statements about the Fifth Schedule.
P. It applies in Chhattisgarh to the areas notified as Scheduled Areas.
Q. A Tribes Advisory Council advises on the welfare of Scheduled Tribes.
R. The Governor may make regulations on the transfer of tribal land in a Scheduled Area.
S. It is the Schedule under which Bastar is administered through autonomous district councils.
Which are correct?Show answer
Answer: B — P, Q and R only
The first three describe Fifth Schedule machinery. Autonomous district councils belong to the Sixth Schedule, which covers parts of the north-east and not Chhattisgarh, so S is wrong.What was the main change made by the Chhattisgarh Public Distribution System (Control) Order of 2004, as reported in studies of the state's food-security reforms?
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Answer: B — It shifted fair price shops from private dealers to local governments and community groups
The Order de-privatised fair price shops and added transparency and audit measures. It did not abolish subsidy, and the Lok Sewa Guarantee Act came only in 2011.Which of the following pairings of a national law with its year is NOT correct?
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Answer: D — Information Technology Act: 2005
The Information Technology Act is of 2000. The Right to Information Act and the Domestic Violence Act are both 2005, which is why 2005 looks plausible for the IT Act too.In March 2024 a transfer of the first instalment of monthly cash assistance to eligible women of the state was made on 10 March 2024, while a scheme of input assistance to farmers was launched at Balod on 12 March 2024. Which pair of schemes is this?
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Answer: A — Mahtari Vandan Yojana and Krishak Unnati Yojana
The women's cash scheme is Mahtari Vandan and the farmers' input scheme of March 2024 is Krishak Unnati. Kisan Nyay is the 2020 predecessor and Godhan Nyay is a 2020 cow-dung scheme, so options with them are dated wrongly.The Godhan Nyay Yojana was launched in 2020 on the occasion of which festival?
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Answer: C — Hareli
The scheme began on Hareli, the farming festival of the monsoon month of Sawan, which suits a scheme about cattle and compost. Pola also honours bullocks but falls later, which makes it the tempting wrong choice.In which month and year did Chhattisgarh notify its own PESA Rules?
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Answer: C — August 2022
The rules were gazetted on 8 August 2022 and announced on World Tribal Day, 9 August. December 1997 was the national deadline for states to align their panchayat laws, and January 2008 is when the Forest Rights Act came into force.