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Two distinct constitutional regimes for tribal administration — the Fifth Schedule for Scheduled Areas in most states, the Sixth Schedule for tribal areas in four North Eastern states.
The Constitution provides two separate systems for governing tribal areas, and the choice between them depends on geography. The Fifth Schedule, under Article 244(1), governs the administration and control of Scheduled Areas and Scheduled Tribes in any state other than Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram. The Sixth Schedule, under Article 244(2), governs the administration of tribal areas in those four North Eastern states. The difference between them is not merely geographic but structural: the Fifth Schedule operates through the Governor and an advisory council within the ordinary state administration, while the Sixth Schedule creates Autonomous District Councils that possess their own legislative, executive, judicial and financial powers. In short, the Fifth Schedule protects; the Sixth Schedule devolves.
Type: ConceptFifth Schedule — the Governor may direct that a law of Parliament or the state legislature shall not apply, or shall apply with modifications, to a Scheduled Area
Fifth Schedule — the Governor must submit an annual report to the President on the administration of Scheduled Areas
Tribes Advisory Council — every Fifth Schedule state has a TAC of up to twenty members, of whom about three-fourths are Scheduled Tribe members of the state Legislative Assembly
Sixth Schedule — creates Autonomous District Councils and Regional Councils with real self-governing powers
Autonomous District Council composition — up to thirty members, of whom not more than four are nominated by the Governor and the rest are elected, with a five-year term
ADC powers — may make laws on subjects such as land, forests other than reserved forests, shifting cultivation, village administration, inheritance and marriage, subject to the Governor's assent
ADC finances — may levy and collect certain taxes and royalties, giving them an independent revenue base
ADC judicial powers — may constitute village and district councils to try certain disputes between tribal parties
Frequency: Regularly asked in UPSC Prelims polity and in questions on tribal governance and the North East
| Aspect | Fifth Schedule | Sixth Schedule |
|---|---|---|
| Constitutional basis | Article 244(1) | Article 244(2) |
| Where it applies | Scheduled Areas in states other than Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram | Tribal areas in Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram |
| Principal institution | Tribes Advisory Council | Autonomous District Councils and Regional Councils |
| Nature of the body | Advisory only | Legislative, executive, judicial and financial powers |
| Composition | Up to 20 members, about three-fourths ST members of the Legislative Assembly | Up to 30 members, not more than 4 nominated by the Governor, five-year term |
| Revenue powers | None of its own | May levy and collect specified taxes and royalties |
| Role of the Governor | May modify or bar the application of laws; reports annually to the President | Gives assent to Council laws and oversees their functioning |
| Application of PESA, 1996 | Applies | Does not apply |
The two Schedules embody different answers to the same question: how should a constitutional order accommodate communities with distinct land systems, customary law and social organisation. The Sixth Schedule's answer was institutional autonomy — councils that make their own laws on land, forests and inheritance, and raise their own revenue — which reflected the specific negotiating position of the North Eastern hill communities at the time of independence. The Fifth Schedule's answer was protective supervision, entrusting the Governor with discretionary power to shield Scheduled Areas from laws that might harm them, advised by a council of legislators. In practice the Fifth Schedule's protections have been criticised as under-used: the Governor's power to modify laws is exercised rarely, and Tribes Advisory Councils meet infrequently, which is why land alienation and displacement remain acute in Fifth Schedule states. The PESA Act of 1996 was an attempt to close part of that gap by empowering the Gram Sabha directly, and its uneven implementation is a standard example in answers on tribal governance.
Fifth Schedule: Article 244(1); Sixth Schedule: Article 244(2)
Sixth Schedule applies to Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram only
Ten states have Fifth Schedule areas, including Jharkhand, Odisha, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh
Fifth Schedule body: Tribes Advisory Council, up to 20 members, purely advisory
Sixth Schedule body: Autonomous District Council, up to 30 members with 4 nominated by the Governor, five-year term
ADCs have law-making, judicial and taxation powers; TACs have none
The President declares Scheduled Areas; the Governor reports annually to the President
PESA, 1996 applies to Fifth Schedule areas only
Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram. Tribal areas in every other state are dealt with under the Fifth Schedule.
The Fifth Schedule provides protective supervision through the Governor and an advisory council, while the Sixth Schedule creates Autonomous District Councils with genuine legislative, judicial, executive and financial powers.
A body in each Fifth Schedule state with up to twenty members, of whom about three-fourths are Scheduled Tribe members of the state Legislative Assembly. It advises on tribal welfare but has no legislative power.
No. The Panchayats (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act, 1996 extends Part IX of the Constitution to Fifth Schedule areas only.
The President, by order. The Governor of the state then has power to make regulations for such areas and must report annually to the President on their administration.