Which Schedule of the Constitution deals with the administration of Scheduled…

2025

Which Schedule of the Constitution deals with the administration of Scheduled Areas and Scheduled Tribes in all States except the four States of Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram?

Answer: C. Fifth ScheduleConcept: Article 244 of the Constitution sets up two separate regimes for administering tribal areas, and the regime that applies is fixed by the State in…

  1. A.

    Third Schedule

  2. B.

    Fourth Schedule

  3. C.

    Fifth Schedule

  4. D.

    Sixth Schedule

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Show answer & explanation

Correct answer: C

Concept: Article 244 of the Constitution sets up two separate regimes for administering tribal areas, and the regime that applies is fixed by the State in which the area lies — not by the tribe, the district or the subject matter. One regime is written for a specifically named set of States; the other is the residual regime that covers every remaining State of the Union.

Application: this question defines its area of operation by exclusion — all States except Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram — so it is asking for the residual regime. Article 244(1) assigns that regime to the Fifth Schedule. Under it the President declares which tracts are Scheduled Areas; the Governor of every State that has Scheduled Areas reports annually to the President on their administration; a Tribes Advisory Council is set up in every State having Scheduled Areas, and also in a State that has Scheduled Tribes but no Scheduled Areas if the President so directs; and the Governor may direct that a law of Parliament or of the State legislature shall not apply to a Scheduled Area or shall apply there with modifications.

Cross-check: the four excluded States are exactly the States served by the other regime. Article 244(2) and the Sixth Schedule govern the tribal areas of Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram through autonomous district and regional councils. Because this question deliberately excludes those four States, the Sixth Schedule cannot be what it describes — the two Schedules are complementary and never overlap.

Contrast — what each Schedule named here actually contains:

Schedule

What it provides for

Third Schedule

Forms of oaths and affirmations for ministers, legislators, judges and the Comptroller and Auditor-General

Fourth Schedule

Allocation of Rajya Sabha seats to the States and Union Territories

Fifth Schedule

Administration and control of Scheduled Areas and Scheduled Tribes in States other than the four named ones (Article 244(1))

Sixth Schedule

Administration of the tribal areas of Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram through autonomous district and regional councils (Article 244(2))

Result: the Schedule that provides for the administration and control of Scheduled Areas and Scheduled Tribes in all States other than Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram is the Fifth Schedule.

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