PESA Act 1996 Objectives

The PESA Act 1996 was enacted to extend the provisions of Part IX of the Constitution (Panchayats) to Scheduled Areas. Its key objectives are: providing self-governance to tribal communities through gram sabhas, recognizing traditional tribal customs and laws, and protecting tribal people from exploitation. However, creating autonomous regions in tribal areas is NOT an objective of PESA. The Act operates within the framework of panchayati raj and does not create autonomous regions or separate political entities. Autonomous regions require constitutional amendments and would fundamentally alter India's federal structure. PESA focuses on empowering gram sabhas and local governance within the existing constitutional framework. Options (a), (b), and (d) are all explicitly stated objectives of PESA. > PESA empowers gram sabhas but does NOT create autonomous regions — it works within constitutional panchayati raj framework. Answer: (c).