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The Seventh Schedule divides law-making powers between the Union and the States through three lists — Union, State and Concurrent.
The Seventh Schedule of the Indian Constitution, read with Article 246, distributes legislative powers between the Union Parliament and the State Legislatures. It contains three lists: the Union List (List I) on which only Parliament can legislate, the State List (List II) reserved for state legislatures, and the Concurrent List (List III) on which both can legislate. If a Union and a State law on a Concurrent subject conflict, the Union law generally prevails. This division is the backbone of India's federal structure.
Type: Constitutional ProvisionUnion List (List I) — subjects of national importance such as defence, foreign affairs, atomic energy, currency and railways; only Parliament legislates.
State List (List II) — subjects of local importance such as police, public health, agriculture and land; state legislatures legislate.
Concurrent List (List III) — subjects such as criminal law, marriage, education and forests; both Parliament and states can legislate.
Repugnancy rule — on Concurrent subjects, the central law prevails over a conflicting state law (Article 254).
Residuary powers — subjects not in any list belong to Parliament (Article 248).
Frequency: Very frequently tested in UPSC Prelims and SSC — one of the most exam-relevant schedules.
Article 246
Distributes legislative subjects via the three lists of the Seventh Schedule
Article 248
Vests residuary legislative powers in Parliament
Article 254
Central law prevails over a repugnant state law on Concurrent subjects
The Seventh Schedule operationalises Indian federalism by clearly demarcating who can make laws on what. Disputes over Centre-State powers — from GST to education policy — are frequently settled by referring to which list a subject falls under, making it a living, often-litigated part of the Constitution.
Seventh Schedule + Article 246 = division of legislative powers.
Three lists: Union (I), State (II), Concurrent (III).
Defence, foreign affairs, railways = Union List.
Police, public health, agriculture = State List.
Education, forests, criminal law = Concurrent List; residuary powers = Parliament.
Three — the Union List, the State List and the Concurrent List.
Article 246 distributes legislative powers through the three lists of the Seventh Schedule.
Parliament (the Union) has residuary powers under Article 248 for subjects not listed in any of the three lists.
On Concurrent List subjects, the Union law generally prevails over a conflicting state law under Article 254.