Scope of the Expression "State" in Civil Services Provisions
Official heading: “Interpretation”
- Source edition
- The Constitution of India (as on 1 May 2026)
- Source locator
- Part XIV, Article 308, printed page 173
- Last human source-link check
- Not yet checked
- Last human legal review
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1. In One Sentence
Defines the territorial scope of the expression "State" for the civil services provisions in Part XIV.
2. What It Means in Everyday Language
Article 308 provides an interpretative definition for Part XIV of the Constitution.
It originally clarified that the expression "State" did not include the State of Jammu and Kashmir for the purposes of Part XIV civil services.
Following the Constitution (Application to Jammu and Kashmir) Order, 2019 and the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019, the constitutional framework of Part XIV applies universally across India.
3. Practical Illustrative Example
A government employee examines whether service regulations enacted under Part XIV apply equally across all Indian States.
4. Important Limits, Qualifications & Exceptions
Article 308 supplies the interpretative boundary for civil service provisions in Part XIV.
- Part XIV definitions: Governs the terms used across public services and Public Service Commissions.
- Historical amendment: Modified by the Constitution (Seventh Amendment) Act, 1956 to reflect state reorganization.
- Universal contemporary application: Applies uniformly to public services across all States and Union Territories.
5. Operative Constitutional Text
6. Sources & Historical Assembly Deliberations
Assembly quotations are withheld until wording, dates, and attribution have been checked against the primary record.
- •Government of India (Legislative Department, Ministry of Law and Justice) • Part XIV, Article 308, printed page 173 • Human source-link check pending
Primary PDF accessed and transcribed with AI assistance on 14 October 2026. Formatting and amendment annotation markers are omitted; operative wording is retained. This is not human legal review. Later amendments and commencement notifications have not been comprehensively checked.