Constitutional Officers

About the Finance Commission of India (FCI)

• The Finance Commission in India is a quasi-judicial body constituted by the President of India under the provisions of the Constitution of India.
  • Since it is established directly under the provisions of the Constitution, it is a Constitutional Body.
• It is not a permanent body and the President of India constitutes the Finance Commission every fifth year or at such earlier times as he/she considers necessary.
• The primary function of the Finance Commission revolves around making recommendations on the distribution of financial resources between the Union Government and the State Governments.

• The Planning Commission was set up by a Resolution of the Government of India in March 1950.
• Jawaharlal Nehru was the first Chairman of the Planning Commission.

The Prime Minister of India is the ex-officio chairman of NITI Aayog.

Composition of NITI Aayog

The composition of the NITI Aayog is as follows.

Chairperson of NITI Aayog

The Prime Minister of India is the ex-officio chairman of NITI Aayog.

Governing Council of NITI Aayog

The Governing Council of the NITI Aayog comprises of:

• Chief Ministers of all the States,
• Chief Ministers of the Union Territories with Legislatures (i.e. Delhi, Puducherry and Jammu and Kashmir) and
• Lt. Governors of the Union Territories without Legislatures.

Regional Councils of NITI Aayog

• Regional Councils of the NITI Aayog are formed for a specific tenure to address specific issues and contingencies impacting more than one state or region.
• The Chairperson of the NITI Aayog i.e. the Prime Minister of India convenes a Regional Council as and when needed.
• A Regional Council comprises the Chief Ministers of the States and Lt. Governors of the Union Territories (UTs) lying in a particular region.
• Regional Councils are chaired by the Chairperson of the NITI Aayog or his/her nominee.

Special Invitees to NITI Aayog

The Prime Minister of India nominates Experts, Specialists, and Practitioners with relevant domain knowledge as special invitees to the NITI Aayog.

About NITI Aayog (National Institution for Transforming India)

• The NITI Aayog (National Institution for Transforming India) is the premier policy ‘Think Tank’ of the Government of India (GoI), playing a pivotal role in shaping the strategic long-term policies and programs for the country.
• NITI Aayog serves as a dynamic platform, providing both directional and policy inputs to the Government of India and offers relevant technical advice to the Centre and States.
• The Core Mission of NITI Aayog includes providing critical directional and strategic input into the development process and being the incubator of ideas for development.

The Governor of each State shall appoint a person who is qualified to be appointed a Judge of a High Court to Advocate-General of the State.

Apart from this, under Article 315, there is a provision for the setting up of a Public Service Commission for the Union and for each State.

Hence, both options (a) and (c) of this question are correct.

A common feature of the All India Services is that the members of these services are recruited by the Union government, but their services are placed under State cadres, and they serve both under the State and the Centre.

• One or more All India services can be created by the resolution of the Council of State.
• This resolution is supported by not less than two thirds of members present and voting.
• The creation of All India Services as provided in Article 312.