UPSC Prelims 2024 Q70: North Eastern Council Composition — Explained

The North Eastern Council (NEC) was established by the North Eastern Council Act, 1971. Subsequent to the amendment of NEC Act in 2002, the Council comprises which of the following members?

1. Governor of the Constituent State

2. Chief Minister of the Constituent State

3. Three Members to be nominated by the President of India

4. The Home Minister of India

Select the correct answer using the code given below:

  1. 1, 2 and 3 only
  2. 1, 3 and 4 only
  3. 2 and 4 only
  4. 1, 2, 3 and 4

Answer: (a) 1, 2 and 3 only

Statement-wise explanation

  • 1: correct — The North Eastern Council Act, 1971, as amended in 2002, names the Governors of the member states as members of the Council. There are eight member states: Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim and Tripura. Sikkim joined as the eighth state through the NEC (Amendment) Act passed in December 2002.
  • 2: correct — The Chief Ministers of the eight member states sit on the Council alongside their Governors. This was true under the original 1971 Act and stayed after the 2002 amendment. Including both the Governor and the Chief Minister reflects the NEC's start as an advisory body that later became a regional planning body.
  • 3: correct — The 2002 amendment provides for three members to be nominated by the President of India. The same amendment lets the President nominate the Chairman of the Council, and the Chairman does not have to be one of the other members.
  • 4: incorrect — The Act does not list the Union Home Minister as a member. In June 2018 the Union Cabinet decided that the Home Minister would be the ex-officio Chairman, with the DoNER Minister as Vice-Chairman. The Home Minister holds the chair through the President's power to nominate a Chairman, not as a statutory member. So in law the members are only the Governors, the Chief Ministers and the three nominees.

How to eliminate

This question can only be solved by knowing the Act. Logic alone will not get you there. Statement 4 is the trap. Aspirants who have seen headlines like 'Home Minister chairs NEC plenary' tend to tick it. Separate the chairman from the members. Since 2018 the Home Minister chairs the NEC through a Cabinet decision under the President's power to nominate a Chairman. He is not a member under the Act. Once 4 is out, only one option is left that does not contain it, and it covers Governors, Chief Ministers and three Presidential nominees. The fact to remember: NEC members = Governors + Chief Ministers of the 8 NE states + 3 nominated by the President. The Chairman (the Union Home Minister since 2018) is nominated separately.

Know more

North Eastern Council (NEC): a statutory regional body

  • Law: North Eastern Council Act, 1971 (an Act of Parliament). The NEC is statutory, not constitutional.
  • Headquarters: Shillong, Meghalaya.
  • 2002 amendment: added Sikkim as the 8th member state, provided for 3 members nominated by the President, and let the President nominate the Chairman. It also changed the NEC from an advisory body into a regional planning body, so it can draw up a regional plan for the North East.
  • 2018 Cabinet decision: the Union Home Minister became ex-officio Chairman and the Minister of DoNER became Vice-Chairman.
Position Who Source of the position
Members Governors of the 8 NE states NEC Act (as amended 2002)
Members Chief Ministers of the 8 NE states NEC Act (as amended 2002)
Members 3 persons nominated by the President NEC (Amendment) Act, 2002
Chairman Union Home Minister Nominated by President; Cabinet decision, June 2018
Vice-Chairman Union Minister, DoNER Cabinet decision, June 2018

Do not confuse it with the Zonal Councils. The five Zonal Councils (1957) were set up under the States Reorganisation Act, 1956. The Union Home Minister is their chairman by statute, and they are advisory bodies. The NEC is a separate law covering the North East, and it can plan and fund regional projects. The North Eastern Zonal Council was added to the Zonal Councils by the NEC Act itself, but the NEC now does that role.

Where it fits: Zonal Councils, the NEC and the Inter-State Council (Article 263) are all forums for cooperative federalism. Compare them by the law that created each one, who chairs it, and whether it is advisory or a planning body. UPSC tests these differences.

NCERT Concepts to Revise

  • North Eastern Council: The whole question turns on what the NEC Act, 1971, and its 2002 amendment list as the Council's membership.
  • Zonal councils: Zonal Councils have the Home Minister as statutory chairman. Knowing this helps you weigh how the NEC treats the Home Minister.
  • Inter-State Council: Another Centre-State coordination forum. Comparing its composition sharpens recall of which body includes whom.

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