Autonomous District Councils

In News

• A tribal council in Meghalaya has joined the list of individuals and organisations in opposing the State government’s deal with Assam to resolve a 50-year-old boundary dispute.

About Autonomous District Councils

• Constitution
  • The Sixth Schedule of the Constitution of India allows for the formation of autonomous administrative divisions which have been given autonomy within their respective states.
• Distribution 
  • Most of these autonomous district councils are located in North East India but two are in Ladakh, a region administered by India as a union territory.
  • Presently, 10 Autonomous Councils in Assam, Meghalaya, Mizoram and Tripura are formed by virtue of the Sixth Schedule with the rest being formed as a result of other legislation.
• Executive and legislative powers
  • Land management
  • Forest management
  • Water resources
  • Agriculture and cultivation
  • Formation of village councils
  • Public health
  • Sanitation
  • Village and town level policing
  • Appointment of traditional chiefs and headmen
  • Inheritance of property
  • Marriage and divorce
  • Social customs
  • Money lending and trading
  • Mining and minerals
• Judicial powers
  • Autonomous district councils have powers to form courts to hear cases where both parties are members of Scheduled Tribes and the maximum sentence is less than 5 years in prison.
• Taxation and revenue
  • Autonomous district councils have powers to levy taxes, fees and tolls on: building and land, animals, vehicles, boats, entry of goods into the area, roads, ferries, bridges, employment and income and general taxes for the maintenance of schools and roads.

Source: TH