PESA in the Scheduled Areas of Chhattisgarh

Prerequisites

• Three-Tier Panchayati Raj in Chhattisgarh: the ordinary system that PESA modifies
• Tribes of Chhattisgarh: Gond, Halba, Oraon, Kanwar, Baiga and the other communities of the Scheduled Areas
• Local Government in India: Article 243M, which keeps Part IX out of Scheduled Areas unless Parliament extends it

The Hook: A Gram Sabha Under a Mahua Tree

Why it matters: about 30% of Chhattisgarh’s population is Scheduled Tribe (Census 2011), and most of the tribal north and south are Fifth Schedule areas. PESA is a Prelims favourite (dates, Gram Sabha powers) and a core Mains topic in the governance of Bastar and Surguja.

Step 1: The Fifth Schedule (पाँचवीं अनुसूची)

• Article 244(1) and the Fifth Schedule govern the administration of Scheduled Areas in all states except Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram (those four have the Sixth Schedule).
• The President declares Scheduled Areas (para 6). For Chhattisgarh the current notification is the Scheduled Areas (States of Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand and Madhya Pradesh) Order, 2003.
• The Governor has special powers (para 5). The Governor may direct that a law of Parliament or the state does not apply, or applies with changes, and may make regulations for peace and good government, especially to stop the transfer of tribal land and to regulate money-lending.
• A Tribes Advisory Council (जनजाति सलाहकार परिषद) of up to 20 members, three-fourths of them ST MLAs, advises on tribal welfare (para 4).

Chhattisgarh’s Scheduled Areas

Step 2: PESA, 1996

Why it was needed

Article 243M says Part IX (the 73rd Amendment) does not apply to Fifth Schedule areas, but Parliament may extend it with exceptions and modifications (Art. 243M(4)(b)). The Bhuria Committee (1994–95), chaired by Dilip Singh Bhuria, recommended such an extension based on the tribal traditions of community self-rule. Parliament then passed the Panchayats (Extension to the Scheduled Areas) Act, 1996 (पंचायत उपबंध (अनुसूचित क्षेत्रों पर विस्तार) अधिनियम, 1996).

What PESA (Section 4) requires

1. Village and Gram Sabha

• A “village” is a habitation or a group of habitations, or a hamlet or a group of hamlets, that forms a community and manages its affairs according to its traditions and customs. It need not be a revenue village.
• Every such village has its own Gram Sabha.
• State laws must respect customary law, social and religious practices and traditional management of community resources.

2. Representation

• Seats are reserved in proportion to the community’s population, with at least half of all seats reserved for STs.
• Every chairperson post at all tiers (Sarpanch, Janpad Adhyaksh, Zila Adhyaksh) is reserved for STs.
• The state may nominate members of unrepresented STs to the intermediate and district tiers, up to one-tenth of the members.

3. Powers of the Gram Sabha

Step 3: Chhattisgarh’s PESA Rules, 2022

PESA does not work on the ground until each state frames rules. Chhattisgarh’s rules came 26 years after the Act.

Key features (as reported at notification):

• Gram Sabhas at the village or hamlet level, recognising the traditional community as defined by PESA.
• Tribal-majority quorum: half of the Gram Sabha members needed for a meeting must be from tribal communities, and one-fourth of those must be women.
• Gram Sabhas get the right to take decisions on village development and to settle local disputes through their own committees.
• Gram Sabha consent or consultation on land, minor minerals, minor forest produce, markets and intoxicants, following Section 4 of PESA.

Analysis for Mains: Has PESA Delivered?

Gains

1. Legal recognition of traditional self-rule: the Gram Sabha, not an official, is the primary decision-maker on resources.
2. Political representation: every chairperson post in the Scheduled Areas is held by an ST representative.
3. Livelihood link: ownership of minor forest produce matters in a state where tendu leaves, mahua and sal seeds support forest households.
4. Works with other laws: the Forest Rights Act, 2006 also puts the Gram Sabha at the centre of recognising individual and community forest rights.

Problems

1. Delay: rules came only in 2022, 26 years after the Act. For two decades PESA existed mostly on paper.
2. “Consultation” vs “consent”: PESA says the Gram Sabha must be consulted on land acquisition, which is weaker than consent. Disputes over how Gram Sabha resolutions were obtained, for example over coal blocks in the Hasdeo Arand forest of Surguja and Korba, have been widely reported and contested.
3. Conflict with sectoral laws: forest, excise, mining and land revenue laws were not always amended to match PESA.
4. Capacity and awareness: many Gram Sabhas lack records, staff and information. Officials, not villagers, often drive the agenda.
5. Left-Wing Extremism: in parts of south Bastar, insecurity long limited regular Gram Sabha functioning (the Union government declared Bastar Naxal-free on 19 May 2026; de-mining and rebuilding services are now the focus).

Judicial support: In Samatha v. State of Andhra Pradesh (1997) the Supreme Court protected Scheduled Area land from transfer to private mining companies. In the Niyamgiri case (2013) it left the decision on bauxite mining in Odisha to the local Gram Sabhas.

Way forward: amend sectoral laws, treat Gram Sabha consent as binding for land and minerals, give Gram Sabhas staff and funds, record customary boundaries, and monitor through the Governor’s annual report under the Fifth Schedule.

Memory Tricks

Don’t Confuse

Common Mistakes

Practice

These are original practice questions in CGPSC style, not previous-year questions.

Level 1: Foundation

1. PESA was enacted on ________ 1996.
2. Chhattisgarh’s PESA Rules were published in the Gazette on ________.
3. Part IX of the Constitution is kept out of the Scheduled Areas by Article ________.

Level 2: Prelims MCQs

Q1. Consider the following statements regarding PESA, 1996:

1. It extends Part IX of the Constitution to Fifth Schedule areas with modifications.
2. It reserves all chairperson posts of panchayats at every level in the Scheduled Areas for Scheduled Tribes.
3. It extends Part IXA (municipalities) to the Scheduled Areas.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

(a) 1 only (b) 1 and 2 only (c) 2 and 3 only (d) 1, 2 and 3

Q2. Match List-I (Subject) with List-II (Role of the Gram Sabha under PESA):

(a) A-2, B-1, C-4, D-3 (b) A-1, B-2, C-4, D-3 (c) A-2, B-4, C-1, D-3 (d) A-3, B-1, C-4, D-2

Q3. Chhattisgarh’s PESA Rules were notified in the Gazette on:

(a) 24 December 1996 (b) 1 November 2000 (c) 8 August 2022 (d) 15 November 2022

Q4. The committee whose recommendations led to PESA, 1996 was chaired by:

(a) Balwant Rai Mehta (b) Ashok Mehta (c) Dilip Singh Bhuria (d) L. M. Singhvi

Level 3: Mains Answer Writing

Q1. What is PESA, and why did Chhattisgarh’s PESA Rules of 2022 matter? (60 words)

Q2. “PESA promised tribal self-rule, but implementation has lagged.” Examine with reference to Chhattisgarh. (150–200 words)

Quick Revision Table

Key Takeaways

What’s Next

• Urban Local Bodies in Chhattisgarh: the 74th Amendment, and why it has no PESA equivalent
• Tribes of Chhattisgarh: the communities PESA serves
• Forests, Wildlife, National Parks and Sanctuaries: minor forest produce and the forests of the Scheduled Areas
• Social Aspects of Chhattisgarh: the Mains GS-IV angle on tribal society