Revision summary
Cooperation runs through the GST Council, All-India Services and disaster law. Competition appears in investment races and NITI-style indices after higher tax devolution. Confrontation shows in CBI consent withdrawals, GST compensation fights and 2020 farm-law resistance. Delhi’s LG–government dispute is executive confrontation inside a Union Territory with a legislature. Indian federalism is all three at once; no single word captures 2014–20 practice.
Model answer
Introduction
Indian federalism is not a frozen list of Articles 245–263. It is a daily mix of cooperation in shared subjects, competition for investment and rankings, and confrontation when party and fiscal interests collide. All three have shaped the Union of States, especially after coalition decline and GST.
Body
Cooperation
- The GST Council under Article 279A is cooperative federalism in a fiscal form: Union and States vote on rates and the compensation bargain.
- All-India Services, the Inter-State Council, and disaster response under the Disaster Management Act, 2005, force joint working even when governments differ.
- NITI Aayog replaced the Planning Commission’s one-way plan with a think-tank and index culture; the cooperative claim is consultation, though States still contest the Union’s agenda-setting.
- COVID-19 in 2020 showed both: States ran hospitals and lockdowns; the Union used the Epidemic Diseases Act, 1897, and the DM Act as national frames.
Competition
- Competitive federalism is visible in ease-of-doing-business tables, health and education indices, and States bidding for electronics and automobile plants.
- The Fourteenth Finance Commission’s 42 per cent devolution widened untied space in which States could compete on their own priorities.
- Competition is healthy when it raises service delivery; it is hollow when rankings hide the Union’s hold on cesses and CSS design.
Confrontation
- GST compensation delay, CBI general-consent withdrawals by Andhra Pradesh and West Bengal, and the 2020 farm-law protests (States such as Punjab legislating against the Union package) are confrontation inside the same Constitution.
- Article 356 is rarer than in the 1970s–80s, but Lieutenant Governor versus elected government in Delhi, and Governor–government friction in several States, keep a confrontational executive federalism alive.
- The Supreme Court’s NCT Delhi line on collaborative federalism is itself a judicial attempt to civilise confrontation.
How far they have shaped the federation
- Cooperation built the working machinery; competition changed the language of reform; confrontation decides the political limits of the Centre. India’s federation is cooperative in design, competitive in growth politics, and confrontational whenever a strong Union meets Opposition States.
Flow diagram
flowchart TD CO[Cooperation GST disaster AIS] --> F[Indian federation] CP[Competition indices investment] --> F CN[Confrontation CBI farm GST dues] --> F
Conclusion
- Cooperation, competition and confrontation have jointly shaped Indian federalism: GST and disaster law as joint work, indices and investment as State rivalry, and consent, compensation and farm laws as conflict. The nature of the federation is therefore a moving bargain, not a single adjective.
Quick related
Students also ask
-
The judicial systems in India and UK seem to be converging as well as diverging in the recent times. Highlight the key points of convergence and divergence between the two nations in terms of their judicial practices.
Next question on this syllabus topic (2020 · Q4). View answer →
-
Is Indian federalism only cooperative?
The Constitution leans Union-strong and invites cooperation. Practice also includes competition and open confrontation.
-
Did GST end Centre–State conflict?
It created a joint table. Compensation and cess disputes show the table does not abolish conflict.
PYQ trend
When UPSC asked this
Related PYQs from other years, newest first. Open a question to read it.
-
2020 · Q1 · GS II · 10 marks
"There is a need for simplification of procedure for disqualification of persons found guilty of corrupt practices under the Representation of peoples Act" Comment. -
2020 · Q4 · GS II · 10 marks
The judicial systems in India and UK seem to be converging as well as diverging in the recent times. Highlight the key points of convergence and divergence between the two nations in terms of their judicial practices. -
2020 · Q13 · GS II · 15 marks
The strength sustenance of local institutions in India has shifted from their formative phase of 'Functions, Functionaries and Funs' to the contemporary stage of 'Functionality'. Highlight the critical challenges faced by local institutions in terms of their functionality in recent times. -
2020 · Q14 · GS II · 15 marks
Rajya Sabha has been transformed from a 'useless stepney tyre' to the most useful supporting organ in past few decades. Highlight the factors as well as the areas in which this transformation could be visible. -
2019 · Q2 · GS II · 10 marks
"The Central Administration Tribunal which was established for redressal of grievances and complaints by or against central government employees, nowadays is exercising its powers as an independent judicial authority." Explain. -
2019 · Q3 · GS II · 10 marks
What are the methods used by the Farmers organizations to influence the policy- makers in India and how effective are these methods? -
2019 · Q6 · GS II · 10 marks
Despite Consistent experience of High growth, India still goes with the lowest indicators of human development. Examine the issues that make balanced and inclusive development elusive. -
2019 · Q8 · GS II · 10 marks
Implementation of information and Communication Technology (ICT) based Projects / Programmes usually suffers in terms of certain vital factors. Identify these factors, and suggest measures for their effective implementation.
More from this topic
Q18 · UPSC Mains 2025 · GS II · 15 marks
The National Commission for Protection of Child Rights has to address the challenges faced by children in the digital era. Examine the existing policies and suggest measures the Commission can initiate to tackle the issue.
Governance and Policy
Harms: grooming, bullying, addictive design, data profiling, deepfakes, influencer labour, and exclusion without devices. Law: POCSO, IT rules, JJ Act, DPDP 2023 parental consent, NEP caution on ed-tech. NCPCR can inquire, recommend and move courts under the 2005 Act. Measures: age-assurance, school device rules with offline equity, POCSO e-evidence protocol, ed-tech data audits, 1098 integration, influencer-work codes, privacy-by-default for minors. The Commission should regulate design, not become a meme censor.
Q17 · UPSC Mains 2025 · GS II · 15 marks
"In contemporary development models, decision-making and problem-solving responsibilities are not located close to the source of information and execution defeating the objectives of development." Critically evaluate.
Governance and Policy
The quote names a split: knowledge at the bottom, decisions at the top, execution in between. CSS, SPVs and parallel bodies bypass 73rd/74th institutions that the Constitution empowered. 2nd ARC and Punchhi already diagnosed fragmentation of the local State. The critique fits toilets, housing and MGNREGA planning; it fits less for vaccines, tax and defence. Repair: subsidiarity, untied local finance, elected control of SPVs, shared MIS with the Gram Sabha.
Q15 · UPSC Mains 2025 · GS II · 15 marks
What are environmental pressure groups? Discuss their role in raising awareness, influencing policies and advocating for environmental protection in India.
Governance and Policy
Environmental pressure groups organise to change ecological decisions of State and firms. Awareness: Chipko, Silent Valley, CSE and climate networks. Policy: EPA, FRA, NGT, EIA contests, PESA and mining consent. Advocacy: Mehta cases, Godavarman, Niyamgiri, Narmada and later climate-rights litigation. Limits: urban bias versus FRA communities, science errors, FCRA chill; they are one constitutional voice, not the ministry.
Toppers' copies
Toppers' copies for this question will be uploaded soon.