Decentralisation
When power is taken away from Central and State governments and given to local governments it is called decentralisation
Need for Decentralisation
(i) India is a vast country with a huge population and hence, it is not possible to rule the country by a single Government or state governments.
(ii) Even the states in India are internally very diverse and hence, there is a need for power sharing within the state too.
(iii) Large number of problems and issues are best solved at the local level.
(iv) People have better knowledge of problems in their localities and hence, have better ideas on where to spend money and how to manage things more efficiently.
(v) Besides, at the local level it is possible for the people to directly participate in decision making that helps to inculcate a habit of democratic participation.
(vi) Forming local government is the best way to realise one important principle of democracy, namely local self-government. 

(i) In 1992, the Indian Constitution was amended to make the third-tier of democracy more powerful and effective.
(ii) It is constitutionally mandatory to hold regular elections for local government bodies.
(iii) Seats are reserved for the Scheduled Castes and Tribes and Other Backward Classes.
(iv) At least one-third of all positions are reserved for women.
(v) The State Election Commission of every state conducts panchayat and municipal elections.
(vi) The state governments are required to share some powers and revenue with local government bodies.
(vii) The nature of sharing varies from state to state.

(i)In 1992, the Indian Constitution was amended to make the third-tier of democracy more powerful and effective.
(ii)It is constitutionally mandatory to hold regular elections for local government bodies.
(iii)Seats are reserved for the Scheduled Castes and Tribes and Other Backward Classes.
(iv)At least one-third of all positions are reserved for women.
(v)The State Election Commission of every state conducts panchayat and municipal elections.
(vi)The state governments are required to share some powers and revenue with local government bodies.
(vii)The nature of sharing varies from state to state.

It is practiced in India by
(a) Organizing linguistic states
(b) Developing a language policy
(c) Re-structuring the State-Centre relations
(a) Organizing Linguistic States
(i) The creation of Linguistic States was the first and a major test for democratic politics in our country.
(ii) This was done to ensure that people who spoke the same language lived in the same State.
(iii) Some States were created not on the basis of language but to recognize differences based on culture, ethnicity or geography. 
(iv) It has actually made the country, more united.
(v) It has also made administration easier.
(vi) These include States like Nagaland, Uttarakhand and Jharkhand.
(b) Developing a Language Policy
(i) A second test for Indian federation is the language policy.
(ii) Our Constitution did not give the status of national language to any one language.
(iii) Hindi is the official language of the Union of India.
(iv) 21 languages are recognized as Scheduled Languages by the Constitution.
(v) Examinations for the central government posts may be taken by the candidates in any of the scheduled languages.
(vi) Each state has its own official language.
(vii) According to the Constitution, English as an official language was supposed to be discontinued in 1965. However, due to opposition by non-Hindi speaking states, both English and Hindi are being continued for official purposes
(viii) Promotion does not mean that the Central Government can impose Hindi on States where people speak a different language.
Re-structuring the Centre-State Relations
(i) Restructuring the Centre-State relations is one more way in which federalism has been strengthened in practice.
(ii) The constitutional arrangement for sharing power work in reality depends to a large extent on how the ruling parties and leaders follow these arrangements.
(iii) Rise of a number of regional parties and establishment of coalition governments led to a new culture of power sharing and respect for the autonomy of the state governments. 

It is practiced in India by
(a) Organizing linguistic states
(b) Developing a language policy
(c) Re-structuring the State-Centre relations
(a) Organizing Linguistic States
(i) The creation of Linguistic States was the first and a major test for democratic politics in our country.
(ii) This was done to ensure that people who spoke the same language lived in the same State.
(iii) Some States were created not on the basis of language but to recognize differences based on culture, ethnicity or geography. 
(iv) It has actually made the country, more united.
(v) It has also made administration easier.
(vi) These include States like Nagaland, Uttarakhand and Jharkhand.
(b) Developing a Language Policy
(i) A second test for Indian federation is the language policy.
(ii) Our Constitution did not give the status of national language to any one language.
(iii) Hindi is the official language of the Union of India.
(iv) 21 languages are recognized as Scheduled Languages by the Constitution.
(v) Examinations for the central government posts may be taken by the candidates in any of the scheduled languages.
(vi) Each state has its own official language.
(vii) According to the Constitution, English as an official language was supposed to be discontinued in 1965. However, due to opposition by non-Hindi speaking states, both English and Hindi are being continued for official purposes
(viii) Promotion does not mean that the Central Government can impose Hindi on States where people speak a different language.
Re-structuring the Centre-State Relations
(i) Restructuring the Centre-State relations is one more way in which federalism has been strengthened in practice.
(ii) The constitutional arrangement for sharing power work in reality depends to a large extent on how the ruling parties and leaders follow these arrangements.
(iii) Rise of a number of regional parties and establishment of coalition governments led to a new culture of power sharing and respect for the autonomy of the state governments. 

(i) The Constitution originally provided for a two-tier system of government, the Union Government (Central Government) and the State governments.
(ii) A third tier of federalism was added in the form of Panchayats and Municipalities.
(iii) These different tiers enjoy separate jurisdiction.
(iv) The Constitution provided a threefold distribution of legislative powers between the Union Government and the State Governments.
(v) Thus, it contains three lists.
(a) Union List
It includes subjects of national importance such as defence of the country, foreign affairs, banking, communications and currency. These are included in this list because we need a uniform policy on these matters throughout the country. The Union Government alone can make laws relating to the subjects mentioned in the Union List.
(b) State List
It contains subjects of State and local importance such as police, trade, commerce, agriculture and irrigation. The State Governments alone can make laws relating to the subjects mentioned in the State List.
(c) Concurrent List
It includes subjects of common interest to both the Union Government as well as the State Governments, such as education, forest, trade unions, marriage, adoption and succession.
Both the Union as well as the State Governments can make laws on the subjects mentioned in this list. If their laws conflict with each other, the law made by the Union Government will prevail. 

Five main features of Indian Constitution, 2019 which make India a federal country are given below
(i) Administration of subjects which are of national importance and require uniformity in administration are given in the hands of the Central Government, while subjects of the local importance or day-to-day administration are given to the states.
(ii) Both Centre and state governments enjoy their power independent of each other. Such a system exists in India, USA etc.
(iii) The fundamental provisions of the constitution cannot be unilaterally changed by one level of government. Such changes require the consent of both the levels of government.
(iv) The federal system has dual objectives i.e. to safeguard and promote unity of the country, while at the same time accommodate regional diversiry.
(v) Sources of revenue for each level of government are clearly specified to ensure its financial autonomy.

(i)There are two or more levels (or tiers) of government
(ii)Different tiers of government govern the same citizens, but each tier has its own jurisdiction in specific matters of legislation, taxation and administration
(iii)The jurisdictions of the respective levels or tiers of government are specified in the constitution. So the existence and authority of each tier of government is constitutionally guaranteed.
(iv)The fundamental provisions of the constitution cannot be unilaterally changed by one level of government. Such changes require the consent of both the levels of government.
(v)Courts have the power to interpret the constitution and the powers of different levels of government. The highest court acts as an umpire if disputes arise between different levels of government in the exercise of their respective powers.
(vi)Sources of revenue for each levels of government are clearly specified to ensure its financial autonomy.