Fifth Schedule
Special provisions for the administration and control of Scheduled Areas and Scheduled Tribes (outside the Northeast). · Article 244(1)
Gives Governors special powers over the administration of "Scheduled Areas" — regions with substantial tribal populations — including the power to modify how central and state laws apply there, or to prohibit/restrict land transfers to protect tribal land ownership.
Establishes Tribes Advisory Councils in relevant states, made up mostly of tribal-community representatives, to advise the Governor on tribal welfare and administration.
- This is separate from the Sixth Schedule, which covers a distinct set of tribal areas specifically in Assam, Meghalaya, Mizoram and Tripura with a different (more autonomous, council-based) governance structure.
A key legal foundation behind tribal land-rights protections in central and peninsular India — if you're dealing with a tribal land or governance issue outside the Northeast, this Schedule (alongside PESA, a related law) is usually the relevant framework.
Related article
The core constitutional article this Schedule is issued under
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