UPSC GS Paper II: Federalism, Inter-State Disputes, River Water, Boundary, GST Council

Must?Know

• Article 262 – Empowers Parliament to adjudicate inter-state river water disputes; excludes Supreme Court jurisdiction; basis for River Boards Act, 1948 and Inter-State River Water Disputes Act (ISRWD), 1956.
• Inter-State River Water Disputes Act, 1956 – Allows Central Government to set up tribunals; tribunal awards have same force as Supreme Court decrees; e.g., Cauvery Water Dispute Tribunal (1990) established under this.
• Cauvery Water Dispute – Involves Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, and Puducherry; tribunal final order in 2007, modified by Supreme Court in 2018 to increase Tamil Nadu’s share to 404.25 TMC.
• Krishna Water Disputes Tribunal – First tribunal (1969); award revised by KWDT-II in 2010; allocated water among Maharashtra, Karnataka, Telangana, and Andhra Pradesh.
• Ravi and Beas Water Dispute – Punjab, Haryana, and Rajasthan; unresolved; Supreme Court in 2022 upheld Centre’s mediation role but did not grant Haryana riparian status.
• Article 263 – Empowers President to establish Inter-State Councils for coordination; basis for Sarkaria Commission (1983) recommendation leading to Inter-State Council in 1990.
• Inter-State Council – Established in 1990 under Article 263; chaired by PM; includes CMs of all states; meets irregularly; reactivated after Punchhi Commission (2010).
• Punchhi Commission (2010) – Reviewed Centre-State relations; recommended strengthening Inter-State Council; suggested permanent tribunal for river disputes.
• River Boards Act, 1948 – Enables creation of River Boards for regulation and development of inter-state rivers; never implemented; superseded by ISRWD Act, 1956.
• Mahanadi Water Dispute – Between Chhattisgarh and Odisha; tribunal constituted in 2018; first interim report submitted in 2020; concerns dams in upper Chhattisgarh affecting Odisha’s flow.
• Vansadhara Water Dispute – Between Andhra Pradesh and Odisha; tribunal formed in 2010; final award in 2017 allocated 139 TMC to Andhra and 125 TMC to Odisha.
• Godavari Water Dispute Tribunal – Part of Bachawat Tribunal (1969); allocated 760 TMC to Maharashtra, 560 to Andhra Pradesh, 275 to Karnataka, 90 to Madhya Pradesh, 10 to Odisha.
• Article 3 – Empowers Parliament to alter state boundaries, area, or name; requires President to refer bill to concerned state legislature for views (not binding); used in Telangana creation (2014).
• Berubari Union Case (1960) – Supreme Court ruled that ceding territory to foreign country requires constitutional amendment under Article 368; led to 9th Amendment (1960) for Indo-Pak agreement.
• Indus Waters Treaty (1960) – Brokered by World Bank; allocates Sutlej, Beas, Ravi to India; Chenab, Jhelum, Indus to Pakistan; dispute resolution via Permanent Indus Commission and neutral experts.
• Sir Creek Dispute – Boundary dispute between Gujarat (India) and Sindh (Pakistan); involves tidal estuary and maritime boundary; unresolved; India claims mid-channel, Pakistan claims eastern edge.
• Line of Actual Control (LAC) – Not inter-state but affects federal coordination; Arunachal Pradesh (claimed by China) involves state and Centre in border management.
• GST Council – Established under Article 279A (inserted by 101st Amendment, 2016); apex body for GST policy; comprises Union Finance Minister (Chair), Union Minister of State for Revenue, and Finance Ministers of all states.
• GST Council Voting – Decisions require 3/4th majority; Centre has 1/3rd weightage, states collectively 2/3rd; no state can be outvoted by others alone.
• GST Compensation Cess – Levied on luxury and sin goods to compensate states for revenue loss during first five years (2017–2022); extended via parliamentary approval.
• GST Rate Slabs – Four main slabs: 5%, 12%, 18%, 28%; special rates for gold (3%) and rough diamonds (0.25%); exempted items include milk, education, healthcare.
• GST Implementation Date – 1 July 2017; midnight session in Parliament; replaced 17 indirect taxes including VAT, excise, service tax.
• GST Constitutional Basis – 101st Constitutional Amendment Act, 2016; introduced Articles 246A, 269A, 279A; gives concurrent power to Parliament and state legislatures on GST.
• GST and Federalism – Dual GST model reflects cooperative federalism; states retain power to tax petroleum products (excluded from GST), alcohol, electricity.
• Narmada Water Dispute – Among Gujarat, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan; tribunal award (1979) allocated 8.75 MAF to Gujarat, 0.25 to Rajasthan, 0.50 to Maharashtra, 0.50 to MP; Sardar Sarovar Dam central to dispute.

Difficulty Level

Intermediate – Requires integration of constitutional provisions, tribunal mechanisms, and evolving fiscal federalism; moderate frequency in prelims and mains.

Common UPSC Traps

Trap: River water dispute tribunals can be appealed in the Supreme Court – Fact: Article 262 and ISRWD Act, 1956 bar SC jurisdiction; tribunal awards are final and binding (e.g., Cauvery Tribunal award, 2007).
Trap: GST Council decisions are binding on states by majority vote – Fact: GST Council operates by consensus and 3/4th majority; but implementation depends on state legislatures enacting laws (e.g., state GST Acts).
Trap: Inter-State Council is a constitutional body – Fact: It is statutory, established by presidential order under Article 263; not a permanent constitutional institution like Parliament.
Trap: Article 3 allows Parliament to change state boundaries without consulting the state – Fact: President must refer bill to state legislature for views (e.g., Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2014), though not binding.

Practice MCQs

Question: Which of the following is NOT a feature of the Inter-State River Water Disputes Act, 1956?
A) It empowers the Central Government to set up tribunals.
B) Tribunal awards are enforceable as decrees of the Supreme Court.
C) Appeals against tribunal awards lie directly to the Supreme Court.
D) The Act was enacted under the provisions of Article 262 of the Constitution.
Answer: C
Explanation: Article 262 and the ISRWD Act, 1956 bar jurisdiction of the Supreme Court; no appeal lies against tribunal awards.
Why others fail: Option D is correct as Article 262 is the constitutional basis; C is factually false and hence the correct answer.

Question: The GST Council is established under which constitutional provision?
A) Article 246A
B) Article 269A
C) Article 279
D) Article 279A
Answer: D
Explanation: Article 279A was inserted by the 101st Constitutional Amendment Act, 2016, specifically to establish the GST Council.
Why others fail: Article 246A deals with legislative power on GST, not institutional structure; hence A is tempting but incorrect.

Question: The Vansadhara River Water Disputes Tribunal delivered its final award in 2017. Which two states were involved?
A) Karnataka and Tamil Nadu
B) Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu
C) Andhra Pradesh and Odisha
D) Telangana and Maharashtra
Answer: C
Explanation: The Vansadhara dispute is between Andhra Pradesh and Odisha; tribunal constituted in 2010, award in 2017.
Why others fail: Option A refers to Cauvery dispute; common confusion due to multiple southern river disputes.

Question: Which of the following is correct regarding the River Boards Act, 1948?
A) It has been used to resolve the Cauvery dispute.
B) It provides for permanent tribunals for river disputes.
C) It has never been implemented by the Central Government.
D) It was enacted under Article 3 of the Constitution.
Answer: C
Explanation: Despite being enacted in 1948, the River Boards Act has never been operationalized; river disputes are resolved via ISRWD Act, 1956.
Why others fail: Option A is false as Cauvery was resolved via tribunal under ISRWD Act; common mix-up.

Question: The Punchhi Commission was related to:
A) Centre-State relations
B) Fiscal federalism
C) Inter-State migration
D) Border disputes
Answer: A
Explanation: The Punchhi Commission (2010) was set up to review Centre-State relations and recommend institutional mechanisms like strengthening the Inter-State Council.
Why others fail: Option B is tempting due to GST context, but the commission’s mandate was broader federal structure.

Question: Under the Indus Waters Treaty, 1960, which rivers are allocated fully to India?
A) Indus, Jhelum, Chenab
B) Sutlej, Beas, Ravi
C) Ravi, Chenab, Jhelum
D) Sutlej, Indus, Beas
Answer: B
Explanation: The treaty allocates the eastern rivers—Sutlej, Beas, Ravi—to India; western rivers to Pakistan.
Why others fail: Option D includes Indus, which is allocated to Pakistan; common confusion due to river geography.

Question: Which of the following is NOT a function of the GST Council?
A) Recommending taxes to be subsumed under GST
B) Deciding on exemption limits
C) Resolving inter-state boundary disputes
D) Framing model GST laws
Answer: C
Explanation: Inter-state boundary disputes are resolved via constitutional mechanisms (Article 263) or tribunals, not GST Council.
Why others fail: Option A and B are actual functions; C is unrelated but may be confused due to "inter-state" term.

Last?Minute Revision

• Article 262 bars SC jurisdiction in inter-state river disputes.
• ISRWD Act, 1956 used for Cauvery, Mahanadi, Vansadhara tribunals.
• Cauvery Tribunal final award: 2007; SC modified in 2018.
• GST Council voting: 3/4th majority required; Centre 1/3rd, states 2/3rd weight.
• 101st Constitutional Amendment (2016) introduced GST.
• GST implemented on 1 July 2017.
• River Boards Act, 1948 never implemented.
• Punchhi Commission: 2010; Centre-State relations.
• Sarkaria Commission: 1983; recommended Inter-State Council.
• Inter-State Council established: 1990.
• Article 3: Parliament can alter state boundaries; President refers to state legislature.
• Berubari Case: 1960; territory cession needs constitutional amendment.
• 9th Amendment: 1960; ratified Berubari agreement with Pakistan.
• Indus Waters Treaty: 1960; brokered by World Bank.
• Eastern rivers (Sutlej, Beas, Ravi) allocated to India.
• No appeal against river tribunal awards to SC.
• Mahanadi Tribunal: 2018.
• Vansadhara Award: 2017.
• GST does not apply to alcohol, petroleum, electricity.
• GST Compensation Cess: 2017–2022; extended beyond.
• Article 279A: GST Council established.
• President can set up Inter-State Council under Article 263.
• Sir Creek dispute: India-Pakistan; maritime boundary.
• GST Council Chair: Union Finance Minister.
• Verify from standard source: Exact TMC allocations in Krishna Tribunal II.