Government of India



Government of India

The government of India or the central government is the governing authority of the country which governs it as per the Constitution of India. The official name of the Indian government is Union Government of India. The government carries out its operation from New Delhi, the capital city of the nation. The entire Republic of India comes within the purview of the central government. The Republic of India comprises 29 states and 7 union territories of the country. The Indian government is democratic in nature.

Branches of the Indian Government

The central government of India comprises three distinctive branches that are as follows:
  • The Executive
  • The Legislative
  • The Judiciary

Executive

Comprising the President, the Vice President, the Prime Minister and the Cabinet Ministers of India, the Executive branch of the nation's government is entirely responsible for the daily administration of the bureaucracies of the different states and union territories of India.

Being the Head of State, the President of India heads the country's government. As per the Article 53 (1) of the Constitution of India, an Indian President has the authority to exercise the vested executive and constitutional powers directly or via the subordinate officers. As mentioned in Article 74 of the Indian Constitution, the country's President acts in accordance with the advice of the Prime Minister of the Republic, who is the head of the government. The Prime Minister is appointed by the President though. Apart from the Prime Minister, the President even appoints Council of Ministers as well as numerous other high ranking government officials after consultation with the Prime Minister.

The President is de jure Commander in Chief of the Indian Armed Forces.

The Vice President, who occupies the second rank in the government hierarchy after the rank of the President, is vested with the legislative power to act as Rajya Sabha's Chairperson. The Vice President can work as an acting President of India in case of resignation, removal or death of the President. The maximum tenure for an acting President is just 6 months though.

Legislature

This branch of Indian government is commonly known as Parliament consisting of the President of India, the Rajya Sabha (The Upper House or the "Council of States"), and the Lok Sabha. The parliamentary form of government is said to be bicameral because of these two houses. In Rajya Sabha, members get elected indirectly whereas in Lok Sabha members are directly elected. Based on the Westminster System prevalent in the United Kingdom (U K), this form of government enjoys supremacy but its laws are subject to judicial review by the Supreme Court of India. The members of cabinet, including the Prime Minister and the Council of Ministers, are either members of Parliament (MP) or elected thereto within six months of assuming office.

The members of the legislative government have twofold responsibilities: collective and individual. As per the collective responsibility, the Prime Minister of India along with his or her Council of Ministers is liable for any policy failure within the government.

However, according to the individual responsibility, every member of the Ministers' Council has to take charge of more than one assigned portfolio or ministry.

Vice President

India's current Vice President is Mohd. Hamid Ansari. He was appointed as the Vice President of India on 11 August 2007 and is still holding the prestigious position.

Prime Minster

The current Honorable Prime Minister of India is Narendra Modi. He took charge of the office of India's Prime Minister on 26 May 2014.

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Last Updated on : November 11, 2014