Explain the structure and salient features of the Lok Sabha.
Answers
Answer:
Members of Rajya Sabha shall be elected by means of a sole transferable vote by the elected members of the State Legislative Assemblies in keeping with the proportional representation system. Both Houses of Parliament would authorize it within a defined timeline
Explanation:
The Lok Sabha, or House of the People, is the lower house of India's bicameral Parliament, with the upper house being the Rajya Sabha. Members of the Lok Sabha are elected by adult universal suffrage and a first-past-the-post system to represent their respective constituencies, and they hold their seats for five years or until the body is dissolved by the President on the advice of the council of ministers. The house meets in the Lok Sabha Chambers of the Sansad Bhavan, New Delhi.
The maximum strength of the House allotted by the Constitution of India is 552 (Initially, in 1950, it was 500). Currently, the house has 543 seats which is made up by the election of up to 543 elected members and at a maximum. Between 1952 and 2020, 2 additional members of the Anglo-Indian community were also nominated by the President of India on the advice of Government of India, which was abolished in January 2020 by the 104th Constitutional Amendment Act, 2019.[2][3] The Lok Sabha has a seating capacity of 550.[4]
A total of 131 seats (24.03%) are reserved for representatives of Scheduled Castes (84) and Scheduled Tribes (47). The quorum for the House is 10% of the total membership. The Lok Sabha, unless sooner dissolved, continues to operate for five years from the date appointed for its first meeting. However, while a proclamation of emergency is in operation, this period may be extended by Parliament by law.[5][6]
An exercise to redraw Lok Sabha constituencies' boundaries is carried out by the Boundary Delimitation Commission of India every decade based on the Indian census, last of which was conducted in 2011.[7] This exercise earlier also included redistribution of seats among states based on demographic changes but that provision of the mandate of the commission was suspended in 1976 following a constitutional amendment to incentivise the family planning programme which was being implemented.[8] The 17th Lok Sabha was elected in May 2019 and is the latest to date.[9]
The Lok Sabha has its own television channel, Lok Sabha TV, headquartered within the premises of Parliament.[10]
As of 26 January 2020, the Lok Sabha is composed of 543 members [23] See the table below for details
State/Union Territory Type No. of constituencies[24]
Andaman and Nicobar Islands Union Territory 1
Andhra Pradesh State 25
Arunachal Pradesh State 2
Assam State 14
Bihar State 40
Chandigarh Union Territory 1
Chhattisgarh State 11
Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu Union Territory 2
Delhi National Capital Territory 7
Goa State 2
Gujarat State 26
Haryana State 10
Himachal Pradesh State 4
Jammu and Kashmir Union Territory 5
Jharkhand State 14
Karnataka State 28
Kerala State 20
Ladakh Union Territory 1
Lakshadweep Union Territory 1
Madhya Pradesh State 29
Maharashtra State 48
Manipur State 2
Meghalaya State 2
Mizoram State 1
Nagaland State 1
Odisha State 21
Puducherry Union Territory 1
Punjab State 13
Rajasthan State 25
Sikkim State 1
Tamil Nadu State 39
Telangana State 17
Tripura State 2
Uttarakhand State 5
Uttar Pradesh State 80
West Bengal State 42
Total 543