Reason and ordinance: The National Food Security Bill
Distilled Policy Brief
- Under the Constitution, the executive may issue an ordinance when Parliament is not in session and immediate action is needed; the President promulgates it on the advice of the Council of Ministers, and the ordinance must be laid before Parliament within six weeks, after which Parliament may pass it as law or let it lapse.
- Supreme Court judgments in the 1980s reaffirmed that ordinance power is an exceptional measure for emergent situations, and data show a decline in its use from a peak of 34 ordinances in 1993 to 16 ordinances during the 15th Lok Sabha (2009‑2013).
🎯 Prelims High-Yield Examination Points
Ordinance‑making power of the executive under the Constitution and its procedural safeguards.
⚖️ Mains Analytical & Syllabus Linkages
Evaluate the constitutional balance between legislative supremacy and executive ordinance power in the context of the National Food Security Bill.
🎯 UPSC Prelims Practice Drill
Which of the following statements about the ordinance‑making power of the Union executive, as described in the passage, is correct?
- [A] An ordinance can be promulgated only when both Houses of Parliament are in session.
- [B] The ordinance must be laid before Parliament within six weeks of the first sitting of the session after its promulgation.
- [C] Supreme Court judgments have held that the ordinance power may be used for routine legislative matters.
- [D] The highest number of ordinances was issued during the 15th Lok Sabha (2009‑2013).
▶ Reveal Official Answer & Analytical Explanation
The text states that an ordinance must be laid before Parliament within six weeks of its first sitting, after which Parliament may pass it as law or let it lapse. The other options contradict the passage: ordinances are issued when Parliament is not in session, the Supreme Court limited their use to emergent situations, and the peak number of ordinances was in 1993, not during the 15th Lok Sabha.
🏛️ Historical Twin PYQ Anchor (2021)
Consider the following statements regarding the "National Clean Air Programme (NCAP)": 1. It is implemented by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change. 2. Central Pollution Control Board acts as the sole regulatory executive body.