Fifth Schedule

Definition

The schedule that provides for the administration and control of Scheduled Areas and Scheduled Tribes in States other than the four north-eastern States covered by the Sixth Schedule.

Key points

• It draws from Article 244(1) and applies to Scheduled Areas in States such as Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Odisha, Madhya Pradesh, and others.
• The Governor has special powers, including the power to direct that a law of Parliament or the State legislature shall not apply, or shall apply with modifications, to a Scheduled Area.
• A Tribes Advisory Council is set up in each State with Scheduled Areas to advise on tribal welfare.
• The President declares which areas are Scheduled Areas.
• The Provisions of the Panchayats (Extension to the Scheduled Areas) Act, 1996, known as PESA, extends Panchayati Raj to these areas with tribal safeguards.

Why it matters for CAPF

The Fifth-versus-Sixth Schedule distinction, the Governor's special powers, and PESA are common in polity and in the tribal and left-wing-extremism security context.

Common confusion

Fifth Schedule (Scheduled Areas in most States, Tribes Advisory Council, Governor's powers) versus Sixth Schedule (autonomous councils in four north-eastern States); the Sixth Schedule has elected councils, the Fifth does not.

Parent note

the schedules of the constitution