The philosophy and administration of the distribution of powers between Centre and State is required to be re- assessed.
How the answer moves
The flow snapshot — the routes in, the body, the counter-view and the routes out.
Route 1 distribution of powers = hallmark of Indian federalism → reconciles national unity with local autonomy
Route 2 Centre-tilt justified by Partition / princely integration / fissiparous fears → those conditions no longer hold
Austin: design as a blend of centralisation + decentralisation → tilt rooted in 1947 context → conditions changed since 1950 → education / environment / health / migration / digital need joint action → over-centralisation weakens State initiative → administrative friction: Governor, central agencies, GST → Kothari: centralisation under single-party dominance
reassessment ≠ weakening the Union → corrective is consultation, not dilution of central authority
Route 1 Sarkaria / Punchhi / NCRWC + Bommai converge → States gain flexibility in non-national matters, Union intact
Route 2 recalibration, not rupture → balance restored within a cooperative federal spirit
Model answer
Handwritten, in the form it would be written in the examination hall.
