Also: Union List, State List, Concurrent List, three lists
Definition
The schedule of the Constitution that divides law-making subjects between Parliament and the state legislatures through three lists (Union, State and Concurrent), read with Article 246.
A federation needs a clear answer to the question "who may make laws on what?". The framers took the three-list design from the Government of India Act 1935, which had a Federal List, a Provincial List and a Concurrent List, but changed two important things. Under the 1935 Act, residuary subjects were left to the Governor-General's discretion. The Constitution instead gave residuary power firmly to Parliament (Article 248 and Entry 97 of List I), a choice influenced by the partition-era concern for a strong Centre. The framers also widened the Union List to include defence, foreign affairs, currency, railways and major taxes, which made India's federation lean towards the Centre from the start.
The original lists had 97, 66 and 47 entries respectively. The numbering has since changed through amendments, and some entries now stand deleted, so the "current count" depends on whether you count entry numbers or surviving subjects. What matters for the exam is the direction of change: subjects have generally moved out of the State List, never the other way round.
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