Ratifying Reservation

Anirudh - March 10, 2010

There have been articles in the media on the future passage of the Women's Reservation Bill stating that the Bill will have to be ratified by state legislatures before it is signed into law by the President. Our analysis indicates that ratification by state legislatures is not required. We state the reasons below: This Bill amends the Constitution. It (a) amends Article 239AA, Article 331, and Article 333, and (b) inserts Article 330A, Article 332A, and Article 334A. In doing so the Bill:

Seeks to reserve one-third of all seats for women in the Lok Sabha and the state legislative assemblies;
One third of the total number of seats reserved for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes shall be reserved for women of those groups in the Lok Sabha and the legislative assemblies;
Reserved seats may be allotted by rotation to different constituencies.

Article 368 regulates the procedure for amending the Constitution. It states that the ratification of the state legislatures to a constitutional amendment is required in the following cases: a. If there is a change in the provisions regarding elections to the post of the President of India. b. If there is a change in the extent of the executive power of the centre or the state governments. c. If there is any change in the provisions regarding the Union judiciary or the High Courts. d. If the distribution of legislative powers between the centre and the states is affected. e. If any of the Lists in the Seventh Schedule is affected. f. If the representation of the states in the Rajya Sabha is changed. g. Lastly, if Article 368 itself is amended. None of these provisions are attracted in the case of the Women's Reservation Bill. The Parliament recently extended the reservation of seats for SCs, STs and Anglo-Indians in Lok Sabha and Legislative Assemblies by another ten years. Article 334 was amended to state that such reservation "will cease to have effect on the expiration of a period of seventy years from the commencement of the Constitution." The 109th Amendment Bill was passed by both Houses of Parliament and did not require the ratification of the states before being signed into law by the President. It follows that if Bills amending provisions for reserving seats for SCs and STs don't need ratification by state legislatures, a bill reserving seats for women does not need ratification either. Thus Article 368 very clearly lays down situations in which state legislatures have to ratify a piece of legislation before it can receive the assent of the President.

Parliament

Summary of the President's Address to Parliament, 2012

Karan - March 12, 2012

The President addressed the Parliament on 12 March 2012. Below are some items from the agenda of the central government as outlined in the speech. Legislation

A Bill to eliminate manual scavenging and insanitary latrines shall be introduced in Parliament.
New legislation is being considered for persons with disabilities, in order to replace the existing Act.
A Bill to provide for a uniform regulatory environment to protect consumer interests, enable speedy adjudication and ensure growth of the real estate sector shall be introduced.
A Bill to create a Civil Aviation Authority to ensure safe and affordable air services will be introduced this year.
The government is working on legislation for safeguarding and promoting the livelihoods of street vendors.
Amendments shall be made to the Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act to prohibit employment of children less than 14 years of age.
Government will aim for early enactment of the Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Bill.

Workforce Development

1500 new Industrial Training Institutes and 5000 Skill Development Centres shall be set up. Skill training will be provided to 85 lakh people during 2012-13 and to 800 lakh people during the 12^th Plan.
A National Mission for Teachers shall be established to improve teacher education and faculty development .
The National Urban Livelihoods Mission shall be launched for large-scale skill upgradation, entrepreneurship development and providing wage employment and self-employment opportunities.
The expenditure on Research & Development shall be increased from 1 percent to 2 percent of GDP.
A Higher Education Credit Guarantee Authority shall be set up in order to provide limited credit guarantees through risk pooling for educational loans.

Health

The government will increase national Plan and Non-Plan public expenditure on health to 2.5 percent of GDP by the end of the 12^th Plan.
The National Rural Health Mission will be converted to a National Health Mission during the 12^th Plan, which will also cover urban areas. Around 7 crore families will be provided health insurance cover under the Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana by the end of the 12^th Plan.
A Multi-sectoral Nutrition Programme will be launched in 200 districts for maternal and child nutrition needs.
A Department for Disability Affairs and the National Council for Senior Citizens shall be set up.

Economy

Steps will be taken to reduce the gap of 10 million hectares between irrigation potential created and realized.
A scheme for Minimum Support Price for minor forest produce is being considered.
A roadmap to double merchandise exports to US$ 500 billion by 2013-14 has been prepared.
Public sector banks shall be recapitalized to maintain their financial health.
A scheme for promotion of the capital goods industry will be launched during the 12^th Plan.
Rs 17,500 crore shall be provided to the Delhi Mumbai Industrial Corridor for infrastructure projects.
The National Electricity Fund shall be set up to provide interest subsidy on loans disbursed to State Power Utilities.
Installed capacity of nuclear plants shall be increased to 10,080 MW from 4,780 MW by the end of the 12^th Plan.

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Ratifying Reservation

Summary of the President's Address to Parliament, 2012

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