General Compendium-2

” The governor of the state shall set up the Finance Commission within the period of one year that begins with the seventy- third amendment act of the Indian Constitution, 1992 and after that at the end of every five years. The Finance Commissions in the States usually comprises of the chairman, member secretary, and other members. State Finance Commissions receive grants from the Finance Commission that is set up by the central government”.

2. What are Functions of State Finance Commissions?
1. Review the economic condition of the various Panchayati raj institutions and municipal bodies of State.
2. Boost the financial condition of the various municipal bodies and Panchayati raj institutions in the state
3. Allot funds to the various Panchayati raj institutions and municipal bodies in the state from the Consolidated Fund of the State
4. Arbitration between the central and the state governments with regard to issues that are of financial nature
5. Transfer of funds that are granted by the central government to the state government
6. Distribution of funds between various municipal bodies and Panchayati raj institutions that are there within the state and the state government the total proceeds of taxes, fees, tolls, and duties that are charged by the state government
7. Determination of taxes, tolls, duties, and fees that may be levied by the various Panchayati raj institutions and municipal bodies that are there within the state

3. Which sectors get Funds granted by State Finance Commission?
Administration of prisons , Health care services ,Public libraries ,Administration of districts ,Administration of police ,Elementary education ,Fire services ,Infrastructure development ,Training in computers for school children ,Fiscal administration ,Heritage protection.

4. In which state State Finance Commissions have been set up till now?
Andhra Pradesh , Assam , Bihar ,Kerala ,Nagaland ,Orisssa ,Tamil Nadu ,West Bengal ,Jammu & Kashmir ,Goa ,Gujarat ,Manipur ,Arunchal Pradesh ,Himachal Pradesh

5. What is Financial Emergency Under Article 360?
If the President is satisfied that there is an economic situation in which the financial stability or credit of India is threatened, he or she can declare financial emergency. Such an emergency must be approved by the Parliament within two months. It has never been declared. Such a situation had arisen but was avoided by selling off of the gold assets of India. It remains enforced till the President revokes it. In case of a financial emergency, the President can reduce the salaries of all government officials, including judges of the Supreme Court and High Courts. All money bills passed by the State legislatures are submitted to the President for his approval. He can direct the state to observe certain principles (economy measures) relating to financial matters. The phrase Emergency period used loosely, when referring to the political history of India, often refers to the third and the most controversial of the three occasions.
Related Link : http://indiacode.nic.in/coiweb/fullact1.asp?tfnm=00%20464

6. What is Falcon?
FALCON is a submarine telecommunications cable connecting India and several countries in the Persian Gulf. The cable is operated by India’s Flag Telecom, a fully-owned subsidiary of Reliance Communications.

7. What is COBE?
The Cosmic Background Explorer (COBE) or Explorer 66, was a satellite dedicated to cosmology. Its goals were to investigate the cosmic microwave background radiation (CMB) of the universe and provide measurements that would help shape our understanding of the cosmos. This work provided supporting evidence for the big-bang theory of the universe; it showed that the CMB was a near-perfect black body spectrum and that it had very faint anisotropies. Two of COBE’s principal investigators, George Smoot and John Mather, received the Nobel Prize in Physics in 2006 for their work on the project.

Related Posts