One Stop GK Guide - Static GK - Politics

India is a federal parliamentary democratic republic. The President is the head of state and the Prime Minister is the head of the central government. There have been 14 presidents of India since the introduction of the post in 1950. The current tenure is 5 years of an Indian President's term. An acting president is a person who temporarily fills the role of an organization's or country's president when the substantive president is unavailable or when the post is vacant. Till date, three presidents have been appointed as acting presidents. Here is a list of all the presidents and acting presidents against their tenure. Image source - www.mapsofindia.com   Here are some important Amendments to the Constitution that you should note.

Amendment	Year	Details
7	1956	Reorganisation of states on linguistic basis and abolition of Class A, B, C and D states and introduction of Union Territories.
9	1960	Adjustments to Indian territory as a result of an agreement with Pakistan.
10	1961	Dadra, Nagar and Haveli included in the Indian Union as a Union Territory on the acquisition from Portugal.
12	1961	Goa, Daman and Diu included in the Indian Union as a Union Territory on the acquisition from Portugal.
13	1963	The state of Nagaland formed with special protection under Article 371A.
14	1962	Pondicherry incorporated into the Indian Union after transfer by France.
21	1967	Sindhi added as a language in the 8th schedule.
26	1971	Privy purse paid to former rulers of princely states abolished.
36	1975	Sikim included as an Indian state.
42	1976	Fundamental Duties prescribed, India became the Socialist Secular Republic.
44	1978	Right to Property deleted from the list of fundamental rights.
52	1985	Defection to another party after election made illegal.
61	1989	Voting age reduced from 21 to 18.
71	1992	Konkani, Manipuri and Nepali added as languages in the Eighth Schedule.
73	1993	Introduction of Panchayati Raj, an addition of Part IX to the Constitution.
74	1993	Introduction of Nagarpalikas and Municipalities.
86	2002	Free and compulsory education to children between 6 and 14 years.
92	2003	Bodo, Dogri, Santhali and Maithli added to the list of recognised languages. Service Tax introduced.
8,23,45,62, 79 and 95	1960, 1970, 1980, 1989, 2000 and 2010	Extension of reservation of seats for SC/ST and nomination of Anglo-Indian members in Parliament and State Assemblies.
96	2011	Substituted Odia for Oriya in the Eighth Schedule to the Constitution
97	2012	Introduction of Part IXB in the Constitution pertaining to Co-operative Societies
101	2016	Introduction of Goods and Services Tax (GST)

 

The 42nd amendment was the most comprehensive amendment which had 59 clauses and carried out so many changes that it has been described as a "Mini Constitution".
The 52nd amendment was the only amendment to be unanimously adopted by the Parliament.

  Schedules: Schedules are lists in the Constitution that categorise and tabulate bureaucratic activity and policy of the Government.

The first schedule contains the list of states and union territories and their territories.
The second schedule contains provisions as to the President, Governors of States, Speaker and the Deputy Speaker of the House of the People and the Chairman and the Deputy Chairman of the Council of States and the Speaker and the Deputy Speaker of the Legislative Assembly and the Chairman and the Deputy Chairman of the Legislative Council of a State, the Judges of the Supreme Court and of the High Courts and the Comptroller and Auditor-General of India.
The third Schedule contains the Forms of Oaths or Affirmations.
The fourth Schedule contains provisions as to the allocation of seats in the Council of States.
The fifth Schedule contains provisions as to the Administration and Control of Scheduled Areas and Scheduled Tribes.
The sixth Schedule contains provisions as to the Administration of Tribal Areas in the States of Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram.
The seventh Schedule contains the Union list, State list and the concurrent list.
The eighth Schedule contains the list of recognised languages.
The ninth Schedule contains provisions as to validation of certain Acts and Regulations.
The tenth Schedule contains provisions as to disqualification on ground of defection.
The eleventh Schedule contains the powers, authority and responsibilities of Panchayats.
The twelfth Schedule contains the powers, authority and responsibilities of Municipalities.

  Here is a quick summary of the Articles of the Constitution:

Article 12 –35	Specify the Fundamental Rights available
Article 36-51	Specify the Directive Principles of state policy
Article 51A	Specifies the Fundamental Duties of every citizen
Article 80	Specifies the number of seats in the Rajya Sabha
Article 81	Specifies the number of seats in the Lok Sabha
Article 343	Hindi as official language
Article 356	Imposition of President’s Rule in states
Article 368	Amendment to the Constitution
Article 370	Special status to Kashmir
Article 395	Repeals India Independence Act and Government of India Act, 1935