{"id":374764,"date":"2026-10-30T19:20:29","date_gmt":"2026-10-30T13:50:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/?p=374764"},"modified":"2026-10-30T19:20:29","modified_gmt":"2026-10-30T13:50:29","slug":"for-federalism-to-be-truly-cooperative-revive-the-inter-state-council","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/for-federalism-to-be-truly-cooperative-revive-the-inter-state-council\/","title":{"rendered":"For federalism to be truly cooperative, revive the Inter-State Council"},"content":{"rendered":"

Source:<\/strong> The post \u201cFor federalism to be truly cooperative, revive the Inter-State Council\u201d<\/strong> has been created based on “For federalism to be truly cooperative, revive the Inter-State Council\u201d <\/strong>published in \u201cIndian Express\u201d<\/strong> on 30th September 2026.<\/p>\n

UPSC Syllabus: <\/strong>GS 2- Governance<\/p>\n

Context: <\/strong>India is a country with great diversity. Different states have different languages, cultures, economic conditions and political interests. Therefore, the Central Government cannot make every important decision without consulting the state, especially with regard to issues like delimitation. In this context, India needs to revive the Inter-State Council to strengthen cooperative federalism and improve relations between the Centre and the states,<\/p>\n

About Inter-State Council<\/strong><\/h2>\n
    \n
  1. Constitutional basis: <\/strong>Article 263 of the Indian Constitution empowers the President to establish an Inter-State Council when it is considered to serve the public interest.<\/li>\n
  2. Establishment: <\/strong>The Inter-State Council was formally established in 1990 on the recommendation of the Sarkaria Commission, which examined Centre-State relations.<\/li>\n
  3. Main objective:<\/strong> The Council aims to promote coordination between the Centre and the States by providing a common platform to discuss matters of shared interest.<\/li>\n
  4. Dispute resolution:<\/strong> The Council can inquire into and advise on disputes between States, discuss subjects of common interest and make recommendations for better coordination of policies and action.<\/li>\n
  5. Role in federalism:<\/strong> The Council provides an institutional mechanism through which State governments can communicate their concerns to the Centre and participate in discussions on national policy issues.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Why is the Revival of the Inter-State Council Necessary?<\/strong><\/h2>\n
      \n
    1. Strengthening Centre-State trust: <\/strong>Regular meetings can reduce misunderstandings between the Centre and the States and help build relationships based on mutual respect and cooperation.<\/li>\n
    2. Promoting cooperative federalism: <\/strong>The Council can ensure that the Centre and the States jointly discuss and address issues that require coordinated action rather than relying on unilateral decisions.<\/li>\n
    3. Addressing centralised decision-making:<\/strong> The revival of the Council can provide States with an opportunity to express their views before major national policies affecting their interests are finalised.<\/li>\n
    4. Resolving political differences:<\/strong> The Council can provide a formal platform for dialogue between governments belonging to different political parties and reduce unnecessary political confrontation.<\/li>\n
    5. Addressing complex governance challenges:<\/strong> Issues such as taxation, public health, environmental protection, internal security and resource sharing require coordination between the Centre and the States.<\/li>\n
    6. Building consensus on delimitation:<\/strong> Delimitation can affect the distribution of parliamentary representation among States. The Council can facilitate consultation with State governments before decisions are taken on such a significant constitutional issue.<\/li>\n
    7. Improving implementation of national schemes:<\/strong> State governments are responsible for implementing many national policies. Their participation in policy discussions can help ensure that schemes reflect regional needs and administrative realities.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      Reason behind Inter-State Council Remaining Ineffective<\/strong><\/h2>\n
        \n
      1. Irregular meetings: <\/strong>The Council has experienced prolonged gaps between meetings, which have weakened its ability to function as a continuous forum for consultation.<\/li>\n
      2. Limited institutional autonomy:<\/strong> The Council has functioned under the administrative control of the Union Home Ministry, limiting its independent role in setting the national agenda.<\/li>\n
      3. Weak influence on policy decisions:<\/strong> The Council has not acquired sufficient institutional authority and prominence to effectively influence major legislative and policy decisions affecting State interests.<\/li>\n
      4. Preference for unilateral decisions: <\/strong>Successive governments have often relied on centralised policymaking or informal negotiations instead of regular institutional consultation with States.<\/li>\n
      5. Declining trust between governments<\/strong>: Inadequate consultation has contributed to tensions between the Centre and States, particularly where different political parties govern them.<\/li>\n
      6. Lack of continuous deliberation:<\/strong> The absence of a systematic process of consultation prevents governments from discussing emerging issues and resolving disagreements before they become major political or constitutional disputes.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

        Measures Suggested for Strengthening the Council<\/strong><\/h2>\n
          \n
        1. Institutionalise regular meetings:<\/strong> The Council should meet at fixed and predictable intervals, with the Prime Minister, relevant Union Ministers and Chief Ministers participating in discussions on important national issues.<\/li>\n
        2. Ensure greater institutional autonomy: <\/strong>The Council’s Secretariat should be strengthened as an independent statutory authority with adequate administrative capacity and technical expertise.<\/li>\n
        3. Promote consultation before major decisions: <\/strong>The Centre should consult State governments on significant policy reforms and constitutional changes that may affect their powers, finances or political representation.<\/li>\n
        4. Strengthen dispute resolution: <\/strong>The Council should be used more effectively to facilitate negotiations on inter-State disputes involving natural resources, infrastructure and revenue sharing.<\/li>\n
        5. Improve policy coordination: <\/strong>The Council should provide a platform for evaluating the impact of national schemes on States and identifying practical solutions to implementation problems.<\/li>\n
        6. Ensure equal participation:<\/strong> All States should have a meaningful opportunity to present their concerns, irrespective of the political party governing them, so that the Council remains an inclusive federal institution.<\/li>\n
        7. Promote evidence-based discussions: <\/strong>Technical experts and relevant officials should assist the Council in examining complex issues and developing practical recommendations based on facts and regional requirements.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

          Conclusion:<\/strong> The Inter-State Council can play an important role in transforming cooperative federalism from a stated objective into an effective governance practice. Its revival through regular meetings, greater autonomy and meaningful consultation can strengthen Centre-State relations, improve policy coordination and protect the interests of India’s diverse States.<\/p>\n

          Question: <\/strong>\u201cCooperative federalism in India requires institutionalised consultation between the Centre and the States rather than centralised decision-making.\u201d In this context, examine the role of the Inter-State Council under Article 263 of the Constitution and suggest measures to make it more effective.<\/p>\n

          Source:<\/strong> Indian Express<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

          Source: The post \u201cFor federalism to be truly cooperative, revive the Inter-State Council\u201d has been created based on “For federalism to be truly cooperative, revive the Inter-State Council\u201d published in \u201cIndian Express\u201d on 30th September 2026. UPSC Syllabus: GS 2- Governance Context: India is a country with great diversity. Different states have different languages, cultures,… Continue reading For federalism to be truly cooperative, revive the Inter-State Council<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10320,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1230],"tags":[300,212,10500],"class_list":["post-374764","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-9-pm-daily-articles","tag-governance","tag-gs-paper-2","tag-indian-express","entry"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","views":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/374764","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10320"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=374764"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/374764\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=374764"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=374764"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=374764"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}