How many Delimitation Commissions have been constituted by the Government of India till December 2023?
Answer & explanation
Answer: (d) Four
Why not the tempting option · UPSC's key is (d), the count the Election Commission and NCERT both give: 1952, 1963, 1973 and 2002. A Delimitation Commission was also constituted on 6 March 2020 under section 3 of the Delimitation Act, 2002, for Jammu and Kashmir (and at first four north-eastern States, dropped in 2021), which a strict reader might add as a fifth; but the official count treats the four nation-wide Commissions as 'the' Delimitation Commissions, and 'five' is not offered. In the exam, answer four, and know the 2020 Jammu and Kashmir Commission separately.
NCERT lists four Delimitation Commissions in India, set up in 1952, 1963, 1973 and 2002, so the count is four. It also draws attention to the long interval between the third (1973) and the fourth (2002).
- ✓ (d) The four Commissions are those of 1952, 1963, 1973 and 2002. The last one worked under the Delimitation Act, 2002, which repealed the earlier Delimitation Act, 1972.
- ✗ (c) Three undercounts. The 2002 Commission is the fourth, after those of 1952, 1963 and 1973.
- • note Separate from this count: a notification under section 3 of the Delimitation Act, 2002 (S.O. 1015(E), 6 March 2020) set up a Commission for Jammu and Kashmir and, at first, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur and Nagaland; those four States were dropped by a notification of 3 March 2021. The Election Commission's own count of four covers the nation-wide Commissions.
Remember · Delimitation Commissions: 1952, 1963, 1973 and 2002, four in all; Article 82 mandates the establishment of a Delimitation Commission.
📘 Read it in NCERT: Class 9 Understanding Society: India and Beyond, Ch 7 (practise this chapter)
Sources
- NCERT Class 9 · Understanding Society: India and Beyond, Chapter 7 “Article 82 of the Constitution of India mandates the establishment of a Delimitation Commission. India has had four Delimitation Commissions—in 1952, 1963, 1973, and 2002.”
- Election Commission of India, Delimitation (Delimitation website) ↗ “In India, such Delimitation Commissions have been constituted 4 times – in 1952 under the Delimitation Commission Act, 1952, in 1963 under Delimitation Commission Act, 1962, in 1973 under Delimitation Act, 1972 and in 2002 under Delimitation Act, 2002.”
- Delimitation Act, 2002, section 12 (repeal of the Delimitation Act, 1972) ↗ “The Delimitation Act, 1972 (76 of 1972), is hereby repealed. … in the notification of the Government of India in the Ministry of Law and Justice (Legislative Department), number S.O. 1015(E), dated the 06th March, 2020”
Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2024, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 1 Oct 2026 (how we verify). ·