Urban local bodies
Also called: Municipalities, Nagarpalikas · Topic: Urban Local Government: Municipalities and Cities · NCERT: Class 6, Ch 12 "Grassroots Democracy – Part 3: Local Government in Urban Areas"; Class 11, Ch 8 "Local Governments"
Meaning
Urban local bodies (ULBs) are elected bodies that govern towns and cities. The 74th Constitutional Amendment Act, 1992 created them, and it came into force on 1 June 1993. It added Part IXA (Arts. 243P-243ZG) and the Twelfth Schedule, a list of 18 city functions. Art. 243Q provides three types: municipal corporations for larger urban areas, municipal councils for smaller ones, and nagar panchayats for transitional areas. ULBs bring government closer to people. This is called participatory democracy.
Example
Class 11 (around 2005) counted more than 100 corporations, about 1,400 municipalities and more than 2,000 nagar panchayats. Today there are about 4,800 or more ULBs.
Don't confuse with
- Special-purpose agencies: water boards, housing boards and Smart City SPVs do some city work. They answer to the state government, not to voters through an elected council.