JKSSB Panchayat Secretary key terms

The electoral constituency at the lowest tier of Jammu and Kashmir's Panchayati Raj system, from which a Halqa Panchayat is constituted and its members are directly elected by village voters.

The village-level unit of local self-government in Jammu and Kashmir, established under the Jammu and Kashmir Panchayati Raj Act, 1989, covering one or more villages and consisting of elected Panchs and a Sarpanch.

The directly elected head of a Halqa Panchayat in Jammu and Kashmir, who presides over its meetings, signs its resolutions, and exercises executive authority over its functions and funds.

An elected member of a Halqa Panchayat in Jammu and Kashmir, chosen from a territorial ward, who votes on Panchayat resolutions and may chair its committees.

The intermediate tier of Panchayati Raj in Jammu and Kashmir, headed by a directly elected Chairperson, coordinating Halqa Panchayats within a development block; it replaced the earlier Block Development Committee structure.

The district-level elected body created in Jammu and Kashmir in 2020 under the Jammu and Kashmir Panchayati Raj (Amendment) Act, 2019, chaired by a directly elected Chairperson and supervising planning and development at district level.

The assembly of all registered voters of a village or group of villages within a Halqa Panchayat area, which meets to consider development plans, social audits, and reports of the Panchayat.

A territorial subdivision of a Halqa Panchayat or urban local body, each electing one member; delimitation of wards is carried out by the prescribed authority before Panchayat elections.

A participatory review in which Gram Sabha members examine the records, expenditure, and outcomes of Panchayat schemes to hold elected representatives accountable and flag irregularities.

The list of 29 subjects, including agriculture, minor irrigation, rural housing, drinking water, and poverty alleviation, that the Constitution directs States to devolve to Panchayats under Article 243G.

The system of rural local self-government in India, constitutionally recognised by the Seventy-third Amendment, organised in three tiers in most States and two tiers in Jammu and Kashmir after 2020.

The Constitution (Seventy-third Amendment) Act, 1992, which inserted Part IX and Articles 243 to 243O, granting constitutional status to Panchayats and mandating elections, reservations, and a State Finance Commission.

The constitutional provision empowering State legislatures to endow Panchayats with powers and responsibilities for preparing and implementing plans for economic development and social justice, as devolved through law.

A body constituted every five years by the Governor under Article 243I to review the financial position of Panchayats and recommend the distribution of State revenues between the State and local bodies.

The constitutional requirement under Articles 243D and 243T that seats in Panchayats and municipalities be reserved for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in proportion to population, and not less than one-third for women.

The former constitutional provision that gave Jammu and Kashmir special autonomous status; it was abrogated on 5 August 2019 by Presidential Order, and the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019 followed.

The parliamentary statute that split the former State of Jammu and Kashmir into two Union Territories, Jammu and Kashmir with a legislature and Ladakh without one, effective 31 October 2019.

The Union Territory created on 31 October 2019, comprising the Jammu and Kashmir divisions, governed under the Government of Union Territories Act, 1963 with a Lieutenant Governor and a Legislative Assembly.

A provision inserted into the Constitution in 1954 by Presidential Order defining permanent residents of Jammu and Kashmir and their special rights; it ceased to operate with the abrogation of Article 370 in 2019.

A person treated as a permanent resident of the former State of Jammu and Kashmir under the 1927 State subject laws and Article 35A, entitled to certain property and employment protections.

An Indo-Aryan language of the Jammu region, written in the Dogra script historically and Devanagari today, listed in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution and a widely spoken language of the Union Territory.

A Dardic language spoken mainly in the Kashmir Valley, written in the Perso-Arabic script, and included in the Eighth Schedule of the Indian Constitution.

A people and former ruling dynasty of Jammu, whose rulers under Gulab Singh established the princely State of Jammu and Kashmir through the Treaty of Amritsar in 1846.

The agreement by which the British East India Company sold Kashmir to Maharaja Gulab Singh of Jammu for 75 lakh Nanakshahi rupees, creating the princely State of Jammu and Kashmir.

The legal document signed by Maharaja Hari Singh on 26 October 1947, acceding Jammu and Kashmir to India in respect of defence, external affairs, and communications, following the Pakistani tribal invasion.

A major river rising at Verinag in the Kashmir Valley, flowing through Srinagar and Wular Lake and then into Pakistan, joined by tributaries such as the Lidder and Sindh.

A Himalayan river formed by the union of the Chandra and Bhaga streams in Himachal Pradesh, flowing through the Jammu region and Punjab into Pakistan; the world's highest railway arch bridge spans it at Bakkal.

One of the largest freshwater lakes in Asia, located in the Bandipora district of the Kashmir Valley and fed by the Jhelum, important for fisheries and flood regulation.

A famous lake in Srinagar known for houseboats and floating gardens, divided into the Hazratbal, Bod Dal, and Nagin basins, and central to Kashmir's tourism economy.

A Himalayan mountain range running through the Jammu and Kashmir region, separating the Kashmir Valley from the Jammu plains and containing passes such as Banihal and Pir Panjal.

A mountain pass in the Pir Panjal Range linking the Kashmir Valley with Jammu, historically the main road route and now served by the Jawahar Tunnel and the Banihal-Qazigund rail link.

A high mountain range in the far north of Jammu and Kashmir containing K2 and the Siachen Glacier; the Karakoram Pass lies on the historic trade route to Central Asia.

A set of justiciable rights guaranteed in Part III of the Constitution, including equality, freedom of speech, life and personal liberty, and constitutional remedies, enforceable through writs.

Guidelines in Part IV of the Constitution directing the State towards social and economic welfare goals; they are not enforceable in courts but are fundamental in governance.

A formal written order of a court, such as habeas corpus, mandamus, certiorari, prohibition, or quo warranto, issued under Article 32 or 226 to protect legal and constitutional rights.

The power of courts to examine laws and executive actions for conformity with the Constitution and to declare them void when they violate its provisions.

The doctrine from Kesavananda Bharati v. State of Kerala (1973) holding that Parliament cannot amend the Constitution in a way that destroys its essential features.

A formal change to the Constitution made under Article 368 by Parliament, requiring a special majority and, for federal provisions, ratification by at least half the State legislatures.

Eleven moral obligations of citizens listed in Article 51A, inserted by the Forty-second Amendment in 1976, including respecting the Constitution, the national flag, and the environment.

The Right to Information, conferred by the Right to Information Act, 2005, giving citizens a statutory right to seek information from public authorities, subject to defined exemptions and time limits.