UPSC Key: Hezbollah, Great Nicobar Project and Back channel diplomacy

Key Points to Ponder:

• Hezbollah-know in detail

• What are the reasons of conflict between Israel and Hezbollah?

• Why is Israel attacking Lebanon again?

• The 2024 attacks on Lebanon had also been to target Hezbollah, after which a ceasefire was agreed to. How has the needle moved from there?

• What has been the Lebanon government’s response so far?

• Where could the situation go from here?

• Hezbollah and Iran’s Proxy War Strategy-connect the dots

Key Takeaways:

• The U.S. president announced a ceasefire in the six-week-old Iran conflict late on Tuesday, just hours before a deadline after which he threatened to destroy Iran’s entire civilisation.

• In Pakistan, authorities were preparing for the first round of U.S.-Iran talks, locking down parts of the capital Islamabad.
But there was no sign Iran was lifting its near-total blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, which has caused the worst-ever disruption to global energy supplies. It cited Israel’s ongoing attacks on Lebanon as a key sticking point.

• Netanyahu, whose government rebuffed an offer for direct talks with Lebanon last month, said in a statement he had given instructions to start peace talks as soon as possible, which would include disarming Iran-aligned armed group Hezbollah.

• An hour before Netanyahu’s statement, Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said he was working on a diplomatic track that was starting to be seen “positively” by international actors.

Do You Know:

• On February 28, 2026, US and Israeli forces launched a sweeping military campaign against Iran — codenamed Operation Epic Fury (US assault) and Operation Lion’s Roar (Israeli) — targeting military installations, intelligence headquarters, and senior leadership. The strikes killed Khamenei, Iran’s Supreme Leader for nearly four decades, sending shockwaves through the region and global markets.

• Hezbollah, Iran’s most powerful regional proxy, refused to stay put. On March 1, Hezbollah claimed responsibility for firing rockets at northern Israel — the first such attack since the November 2024 ceasefire — calling it “revenge for the blood of the Supreme Leader”.

• Israel’s military said it was striking targets of Hezbollah across Lebanon after the group launched missiles and drones toward Israel in retaliation for Khamenei’s killing.

• Hezbollah, a Shia Islamist Lebanese political organisation, has functioned as Iran’s primary proxy since its formation in 1982, with Tehran providing an estimated $700 million to $1 billion annually in funding, weapons, training, and political support through the IRGC, as per Euronews.

• For Israel, neutralising Hezbollah isn’t just military strategy — it’s about cutting off Tehran’s long arm on its northern border.

• Israel and Hezbollah agreed to a ceasefire in November 2024 after more than a year of cross-border fighting. The truce required both sides to halt hostilities, with Lebanon responsible for preventing armed groups from attacking Israel, and Israel committed to ending offensive operations. The Times of Israel That agreement is now effectively dead.

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍Why Israel launched attacks on Lebanon, hours after ceasefire

Previous year UPSC Prelims Question Covering similar theme:
1) Which one of the following countries of South-West Asia does not open out to the Mediterranean Sea? (UPSC CSE, 2015)
(a) Syria
(b) Jordan
(c) Lebanon
(d) Israel

The Ideas Page

Pakistan lacks the leverage

Preliminary Examination: Current events of national and international importance

Mains Examination: General Studies II: Bilateral, regional and global groupings and agreements involving India and/or affecting India’s interests.

What’s the ongoing story: Raza Rumi Writes-Few expected Pakistan to succeed in shaping the April 8 ceasefire announcement, which has, for now, slowed the momentum of conflict in West Asia.

Key Points to Ponder:

• What is back-channel diplomacy?

• Pakistan as a mediator in USA-Iran war-what you know about the same?

• Pakistan’s geopolitical stature after Islamabad’s back-channel engagement-analyse

• The present hybrid civilian-military governance model in Pakistan and its impact on their foreign policy-discuss

• “To view Islamabad’s role as a proactive assertion of influence would, however, be misleading”-Decode

• How India has reacted?

Key Takeaways:

• Islamabad’s back-channel engagement helped secure a tentative pause and open space for diplomacy. The immediate effect is a likely easing of hostilities, offering relief not only to the Iranian people but also to a global economy already under strain from energy shocks caused by what was, in many ways, an unnecessary conflict.

• Pakistan’s strategic position, too, sharply limits its room for manoeuvre. The 2025 defence agreement with Saudi Arabia creates expectations of alignment in the event of escalation, a scenario fraught with domestic risk.

• Pakistan’s sectarian landscape has been volatile in the past, and any overt positioning in a Saudi-Iran confrontation could inflame tensions.

• At the same time, Pakistan cannot afford an adversarial relationship with Iran. Its western border is already strained due to instability in Afghanistan. Adding hostility with Tehran would create a two-front security challenge, even as relations with India remain tense. The prospect of being encircled by unstable or hostile neighbours is strategically untenable.

• It is within these overlapping constraints that Pakistan’s diplomatic activism must be seen. Islamabad functioned less as a formal mediator, more a facilitator, maintaining communication between adversaries and coordinating with regional actors. The objective was limited but clear: Prevent escalation to a point where Pakistan would be forced into choices it cannot sustain.

• A critical enabler of this role has been Pakistan’s working relationship with the current US administration. Islamabad has maintained close contact with Washington, and its leadership has established a degree of trust with President Donald Trump and his inner circle.

Do You Know:
Shubhajit Roy Writes-

• Pakistan has emerged as a key mediator between US and Iran with Army Chief Field Marshal Asim Munir and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif playing pivotal roles in brokering the two-week ceasefire.

• More than two weeks of “intense, largely unseen diplomacy” preceded the announcement, said leading Pakistan daily Dawn. According to its report, Islamabad moved quickly after the conflict erupted on February 28. Within days of the first strikes, Pak officials began activating diplomatic channels across multiple capitals.

• The most visible phase of Pakistan’s effort came on March 29-30, the report said, when Foreign Ministers from Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Turkey met in Islamabad. Led by Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, these consultations focused on preventing further military escalation and developing a framework to initiate US-Iran talks.

• By early April, the report said, Islamabad circulated a “ceasefire framework” proposing an immediate halt to hostilities. This included de-escalation around key maritime routes.

• Although delays persisted and differences remained sharp — particularly over regional security arrangements and maritime access — mounting military and political pressure created space for compromise. As deadlines loomed and fears of a broader regional war intensified, Pakistan’s proposal began gaining traction and led to the April 7 ceasefire.

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍Unexpected but welcome positioning

📍A post-Iran war West Asia order can open strategic space for India

Politics

Public morality must govern matters of faith: Centre to SC on Sabarimala

Preliminary Examination: Current events of national and international importance.

Mains Examination: General Studies I: Salient features of Indian Society, Social empowerment

What’s the ongoing story: Underlining that public morality, not constitutional morality, must be the governing standard in matters of faith and that the Supreme Court’s “essential religious practices test” is unworkable, the Centre Thursday concluded its arguments before the 9-judge Constitution Bench reviewing the 2018 ruling, which held that barring the entry of women in the Sabarimala temple was unconstitutional.

Key Points to Ponder:

• Sabarimala Temple case-know in detail

• What is the concept of public morality?

• What is constitutional morality?

• What is “Essential Religious Practices” doctrine in Indian constitutional law?

• How does Essential Religious Practices balance the right to freedom of religion and other fundamental rights?

• What was the Supreme Court’s ruling in the Sabarimala temple case?

• What are the constitutional provisions related to religious freedom?

• What Articles 14, 15, 25 and 51A(e) of the Constitution of India says?

• “Article 25 is a balance between what was existing and what has to be done in future”-Analyse

Key Takeaways:

• “Public morality is the governing standard, not constitutional morality as interpreted in earlier cases… determination of essential religious practices is unworkable in the Indian religious landscape. Given the diversity and plurality, the principle of essential religious practice cannot be uniformly applied,” Additional Solicitor General K M Nataraj said.

• Justice B V Nagarathna, one of the judges on the bench, said, “Everybody must have access to temples and mutts, and denominational temples keeping any section out will not be in the best interests of Hinduism.”

• Senior Advocate C S Vaidyanathan, appearing for the Nair Service Society, sought to highlight the need for religious denominations to have complete autonomy under Article 26 (b) in deciding what rites, ceremonies, and practices are essential according to the tenets of the religion, as was held in the landmark 1954 judgment in the Shirur Mutt case.

• Additional Solicitor General Vikramjit Banerjee, also appearing for the Centre, pitched for a “swadeshi and Indic approach to constitutional interpretation…by grounding constitutional rights in India’s own civilizational heritage” than based on Western jurisprudence. He urged the court to use the 1950 Hindu version of the Constitution for the exact meaning of the expression ‘religious denomination’ in Article 26.

Do You Know:

• In the 2018 Sabarimala ruling, the majority verdict held that the devotees of Ayyappa do not constitute a “separate religious denomination”, while Justice Indu Malhotra’s dissenting view held that Sabarimala temple satisfies the requirements of being a separate religious denomination, holding that such practices are protected by Article 25. Article 25 guarantees freedom of conscience and free profession, practice and propagation of religion.

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍Supreme Court: Can decide on superstitious practices; Centre disagrees

Previous year UPSC Prelims Question Covering similar theme:
2) Which one of the following categories of Fundamental Rights incorporates protection against untouchability as a form of discrimination? (UPSC CSE, 2020)
a) Right against Exploitation
b) Right to Freedom
c) Right to Constitutional Remedies
d) Right to Equality

Previous year UPSC Mains Question Covering similar theme:
📍How is the Indian concept of secularism different from the western model of secularism? Discuss. (2016)

15th Finance Commission period set a record with 94.98% funds release for rural bodies

Preliminary Examination: Economic and Social Development-Sustainable Development, Poverty, Inclusion, Demographics, Social Sector Initiatives, etc.

Mains Examination: General Studies II: Appointment to various Constitutional posts, powers, functions and responsibilities of various Constitutional Bodies.

What’s the ongoing story: As the Sixteenth Finance Commission’s five-year award period kicked in from April 1, a closer look at past commissions reveals a clear and rising trend: rural local bodies (RLBs), including gram, block, and district panchayats, are receiving more funds than ever before, with release of grant peaking at a historic high of 94.98 per cent under the last Commission.

Key Points to Ponder:

• What is the Finance Commission?

• What are the functions of the Finance Commission?

• Who appoints the Finance Commission and what are the qualifications for Members?

• Article 280 of the Constitution says what?

• How are the recommendations of Finance Commission implemented?

• 15th Finance Commissions and grants to rural local bodies-know in detail

• Sixteenth Finance Commission-What you know about this?

• What are the changes in fiscal federalism in India subsequent to the implementation of the Goods and Services Tax (GST)?

• “The 122nd Constitutional Amendment of 2016 giving the Union and states concurrent powers of indirect taxation has been the most far-reaching change from a fiscal standpoint, since the setting up of the First Finance Commission in 1951”-Analyse the statement

• What do you understand by both vertical and horizontal devolution?

• What changes the 16th Finance Commission should implement?

• Article 275 and Article 282-Compare

Key Takeaways:

• The data available with the Ministry of Panchayati Raj shows that the Fifteenth Finance Commission term (2020-26), which ended on March 31, also saw five states, Assam, Kerala, Mizoram, Tripura and Uttar Pradesh, receiving 100 per cent of RLB grants allocated to them.

• The data show that the Fifteenth Finance Commission recommended a total grant of Rs 2,97,555 crore for rural local bodies during its award period (2020-26), including Rs 60,750 crore allocated during the interim period (2020-21). Out of this, Rs 2,82,632 crore (94.94 per cent) was released to the RLBs till March 31, the highest since the 10th Finance Commission.

• The Finance Commission began awarding grants to rural local bodies from the 10th Finance Commission onward. The corresponding figures for release stood at 91 per cent during the 14th Finance Commission and 90.5 per cent during the 13th Finance Commission.

• The development is significant, as the 16th Finance Commission has recommended a grant of Rs 4.35 lakh crore to rural local bodies for its award period (2026-27 to 2030-31). Of the Rs 4.35 lakh crore grant, Rs 3.48 crore will be the basic grant, Rs 43,524 crore the rural local body performance grant, and Rs 43,524 crore the state performance grant.

• Of the total grant, 90 per cent will be given to gram panchayats, while block and district panchayats will each receive 10 per cent. Among the states, the grant will be distributed based on each state’s projected rural population for 2026 and its total area.

Do You Know:

• The Finance Commission is constituted by the President under article 280 of the Constitution, mainly to give its recommendations on distribution of tax revenues between the Union and the States and amongst the states themselves. The Commission’s work involves redressing the vertical imbalances between the taxation powers and expenditure responsibilities of the Centre and the States respectively and equalisation of all public services across the states.

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍Knowledge Nugget |16th Finance Commission Report: Key highlights for UPSC and other competitive exams

Previous year UPSC Prelims Question Covering similar theme:
3) Consider the following: (UPSC CSE 2023)
1. Demographic performance
2. Forest and ecology
3. Governance reforms
4. Stable government
5. Tax and fiscal efforts
For the horizontal tax devolution, the Fifteenth Finance Commission used how many of the above as criteria other than population area and income distance?
(a) Only two
(b) Only three
(c) Only four
(d) All five

Previous year UPSC Mains Question Covering similar theme:
📍Discuss the recommendations of the 13th Finance Commission which have been a departure from the previous commissions for strengthening the local government finances. (2013)

Nation

Draft master plan: Tourism, infra push for greenfield city on Gr Nicobar Island

Main Examination: General Studies III: Conservation, environmental pollution and degradation, environmental impact assessment and Infrastructure: Energy, Ports, Roads, Airports, Railways etc.

What’s the ongoing story: CITING TOURISM as the “backbone” for the growth of Great Nicobar Island and its primary economic driver, the Andaman and Nicobar Islands administration has outlined the proposed development of a greenfield coastal city that will rest on the pillars of an airport, a transshipment port, tourism and entertainment hub, and allied servicing industry.

Key Points to Ponder:

• Map Work-Andaman and Nicobar, Great Nicobar Island, Barren Island, Ross Island, Eastern most and southern most point

• The ‘draft master plan for Great Nicobar Island Development Area, 2047-what you know about the same?

• What are the issues related to the Great Nicobar Island Development Area Project?

• Analyse the trade-offs between development and conservation in the Great Nicobar Island Project.

• How the Great Nicobar Project can enhance India’s maritime security?

• Examine the impact of the Great Nicobar Project on the Shompen and Nicobarese tribes.

• What is the conservation status of leatherback sea turtle, long-tailed macaque, coconut crab and Nicobar megapode?

• What do you understand by the term ‘Environmental Impact Assessment’ (EIA)?

• Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and Environment Protection Act, 1986-How they are related with each other?

• Why Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is Important?

• How many islands are there in Andaman and Nicobar?

• Know the names of Eastern most and southern most point in the Andaman and Nicobar island?

• Name the water body that separates Andaman Islands from the Nicobar Islands

• What is special about Barren Island?

• What is special about Ross Island?

Key Takeaways:

• The Public Works Department of the islands has sought suggestions and objections on the ‘draft master plan for Great Nicobar Island Development Area – 2047’, and as per sources, a notification to this effect has been published locally. The report did not specify which agency had prepared it.

• The draft master plan primarily focuses on the integrated township component of the Rs 81,000-crore Great Nicobar Island (GNI) mega infrastructure project.

• An international airport, a transshipment port at Galathea Bay, a gas and solar power plant and defence-related plans are the other key parts of the project that is proposed to make the island an economic and defence hub. A linear, multi-nodal urban corridor stretching around 35-km from north-south along GNI’s eastern coast from Campbell Bay to Indira point has been proposed for urbanisation.

• Of the total 166-sq-km area required for all components of the GNI project, the new greenfield city will take up the largest chunk. This will comprise 9.51 sq km land for mixed-use development covering hotels, retail and offices; 8.68 sq km for parks and open spaces; 5.95 sq km for residential use and 1.12 sq km for industry.

• Agricultural land measuring 3.46 sq km has been conserved, with provisions allowing eco-resorts and farmstays alongside traditional coconut and areca nut cultivation.

• A big chunk of 66.53 sq km will be reserved as no-felling zone, as per conditions laid down by the Environment Ministry while granting clearances.

Do You Know:

• The islands’ 8,000-8,500 odd population is spread over the seven revenue villages — Campbell Bay, Govind Nagar, Joginder Nagar, Vijay Nagar, Laxmi Nagar, Gandhi Nagar and Shastri Nagar — on the eastern coast. As part of the road development, a new trunk road is proposed.

• For economic growth, a tourism and entertainment hub, a port-linked finance hub, a wellness hub for promoting yoga, naturopathy and ayurveda, and a knowledge hub are envisaged. Singapore, Busan, Dubai and Hong Kong have been mentioned as reference points for the development of a finance hub to complement the port-linked activities. “The establishment of banking and insurance services will be essential to support port activities as well as meet financial services needs of the incoming population,” the report said.

• Annual tourist arrivals are projected to grow from 98,000 in 2029 to 7.35 lakh by 2047 and over one million by 2055. To accommodate them, the draft plan proposes resort clusters and beachfront developments along six beaches, including a continuous six-km stretch near the proposed airport. A gaming and entertainment hub, wellness retreats, eco-tourism trails and community-run homestays are also proposed.

• The Greater Nicobar island is occupied by the Shompen and Nicobarese tribes. The project area falls near two national parks – Galathea Bay National Park and Campbell Bay National Park. The Greater Nicobar region is home to leatherback sea turtles and other important species such as Nicobar macaque, Nicobar megapode and saltwater crocodiles and rare and endemic plant species such as tree ferns and orchids. The project was given a go-ahead
keeping in mind the strategic importance of the port to be developed.

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍Development of Great Nicobar: strategic imperative and ecological concerns

Previous year UPSC Prelims Question Covering similar theme:
4) Which one of the following pairs of islands is separated from each other by the ‘Ten Degree Channel’? (UPSC CSE, 2014)
(a) Andaman and Nicobar
(b) Nicobar and Sumatra
(c) Maldives and Lakshadweep
(d) Sumatra and Java

Explained

In Odisha clashes between police & tribals, bauxite mining in focus

Preliminary Examination: Economic and Social Development

Mains Examination: General Studies II: Conservation, environmental pollution and degradation, environmental impact assessment.

What’s the ongoing story: Clashes between rural tribal communities and police near Odisha’s Rayagada district left at least 40 police personnel and 25 residents injured on Tuesday.

Key Points to Ponder:

• Bauxite mining in Odisha-know in detail

• Bauxite mining in Odisha-What is the issue?

• What is Bauxite?

• Map Work-Sijimali, Niyamgiri Hill Range

• Why tribals are opposing bauxite mining?

• What you know about Dongria Kondh Tribe?

• What are the key features of the Forest Rights Act (FRA), 2006?

Key Takeaways:

• The immediate trigger for the violence was the construction of a 3-km approach road leading to the Sijimali bauxite mine in Kashipur, officials said. But the opposition to the road reflects a long-simmering discontent over the bauxite project, ever since the mine was handed over to Vedanta Ltd in 2023 through an auction.

• The project’s approval has been contentious. The district administration has stated that Gram Sabhas (meetings comprising all adults in a village) were held in all eight affected villages on December 8, 2023, under the Forest Rights Act, and that the villages’ residents gave their “unanimous approval”. Vedanta has also submitted a proposal to the Centre, seeking clearances for mining.

• The residents, however, alleged that the Gram Sabhas were conducted fraudulently and their signatures were forged. They have held protests against the project over concerns that it would endanger their livelihoods.

• Vedanta, meanwhile, says it has received Stage-1 forest clearance from the Union government and is targeting commissioning the project next year. Stage-1 clearance is a conditional approval, where the company must comply with compensatory afforestation, deposit funds for diversion of forest land, etc.

Do You Know:

• Sijimali is part of the Eastern Ghats hill ranges and is interspersed with valleys. The bauxite reserve, spread over 1,500 hectares, covers Rayagada and Kalahandi districts. With an estimated reserve of 311 million tonnes of high-grade bauxite, Sijimali is located close to Vedanta’s alumina refinery at Lanjigarh in Kalahandi district.

• Alumina is refined from bauxite ore and used to produce aluminium, which is instrumental in making everything from soda cans to aircraft. Aluminium’s strength, lightness and conductivity allow for a multiplicity of uses. It is also the most abundant metal in the Earth’s crust, and the third most common element, after oxygen and silicon.

• According to the Indian Bureau of Mines’ 2022 Yearbook, Odisha alone accounts for 41% of India’s bauxite resources, and was the leading producer in 2021-22, comprising about 73% of the total production. Beyond bauxite, Odisha has some of the richest mineral deposits in the country, including high-grade iron ore, coal, nickel, gemstones and graphite, together accounting for nearly 17% of India’s total mineral reserves.

• Vedanta had earlier faced rejection in its bid to mine bauxite from the nearby eco-sensitive Niyamgiri hill, inhabited by the Dongria Kondhs, a Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group which worships Niyam Raja as the God of the Niyamgiri forest.

• Vedanta and the state-owned Odisha Mining Corporation had formed a joint venture to mine the bauxite reserve for the Lanjigarh alumina refinery. The project ran into rough weather after the Centre refused Stage-II forest clearance in 2010 for diverting 660 hectares of forest land. In 2013, the Supreme Court ruled that the mining project required clearance from the Gram Sabhas. Later that year, all 12 Gram Sabhas rejected the plan.

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍Goldman Environmental Prize: Green Nobel for face of Niyamgiri protests

Previous year UPSC Prelims Question Covering similar theme:
5) Which of the following minerals are found in a natural way in the State of Chhattisgarh? (UPSC CSE, 2008)
1. Bauxite
2. Dolomite
3. Iron ore
4. Tin
Select the correct answer using the code given below:
Code:
(a) 1, 2 and 3 only
(b) 1 and 3 only
(c) 2 and 4 only
(d) 1, 2, 3 and 4

6) Consider the following minerals: (UPSC CSE, 2020)
1. Bentonite
2. Chromite
3. Kyanite
4. Sillimanite
In India, which of the above is/are officially designated as major minerals?
(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 4 only
(c) 1 and 3 only
(d) 2, 3 and 4 only

As Puducherry votes, how its status as a Union Territory differs from Delhi, J&K

Preliminary Examination: Indian Polity and Governance-Constitution, Political System, Panchayati Raj, Public Policy, Rights Issues, etc.

Mains Examination: General Studies II: Functions and responsibilities of the Union and the States, issues and challenges pertaining to the federal structure, devolution of powers and finances up to local levels and challenges therein.

What’s the ongoing story: Despite its UT status, Puducherry has a legislative assembly and a chief minister. This is a distinction it shares with only two other UTs in India.

Key Points to Ponder:

• Union Territories in India-know in detail

• Map Work– Puducherry

• Know more about Puducherry

• The 69th Constitutional Amendment Act of 1991 provided a special status to the Union Territory of Delhi-what was that ‘special status’?

• Puducherry Legislative assembly and Delhi Legislative assembly-compare and contrast

Key Takeaways:

• The Treaty of Cession, which established the de jure, or formal legal transfer, of the territories of Puducherry, Yanam, Mahe and Karaikal from France to India was signed on May 28, 1956. In practice, India enjoyed de facto or administrative control of Puducherry since November 1, 1954. However, this treaty was not legally ratified until August 1962.

• The administrative distinction of providing Puducherry with a legislature reflected India’s commitment to the Treaty while continuing the French practice of maintaining Puducherry’s representative assembly. This special status is enshrined in Article 239A, which provides for local legislatures and a council of ministers in Puducherry.

Map of Puducherry, including Mahe, Yanam and Karaikal

• The President also has the power to nominate members to the Puducherry Assembly, a provision that has had political implications in the past.

• Only two other UTs presently enjoy similar representative status: Delhi since 1992, and Jammu and Kashmir since 2019.

Do You Know:

• Union territories are governed under Part VIII of the Constitution, comprising Articles 239 to 242. This section entrusts the administration of UTs to the Indian President, via appointed administrators. Thus, most UTs, including Chandigarh, Daman & Diu and Dadra & Nagar Haveli, and the island territories of the Andaman & Nicobar and Lakshadweep, have no elected legislature, and are governed by administrators.

• However, the passage of the Government of Union Territories Act 1963 constituted Puducherry as a UT, and provided it with a legislature.

• Delhi was elevated to the status of National Capital Territory (NCT) under the Constitution (69th Amendment) Act, 1991, which came into force in 1992. The Act introduced Article 239AA, which provides for a legislative assembly, with the power to make laws on subjects in the State and Concurrent lists, barring public order, police and land.

• In 2019, Article 370 of the Constitution, which granted the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir special status, was abrogated. In its place came the 2019 Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, which bifurcated the former state into two UTs: Jammu & Kashmir, with a legislature, and Ladakh, without a legislature.

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍CM Rangasamy interview: ‘Puducherry can see development only if the party ruling the Centre is part of its govt’

Previous year UPSC Prelims Question Covering similar theme:
7) With reference to Pondicherry (now Puducherry), consider the following statements: (UPSC CSE, 2010)
1. The first European power to occupy Pondicherry were the Portuguese.
2. The second European power to occupy Pondicherry were the French.
3. The English never occupied Pondicherry.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 and 3 only
(c) 3 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3

 

PRELIMS ANSWER KEY

1.(b)  2.(d)  3.(b)  4.(a)  5.(d) 6.(d) 7.(a)

  

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