The State Government

Nagpur is the correct answer because it is recognized as the winter capital of the state of Maharashtra. It is the auxiliary/ supplementary capital of the state where the winter session of Maharashtra legislature takes place. On the other hand, the budget and monsoon session takes place in the capital of Maharashtra, i.e. Mumbai.

President is the correct answer because he is the ceremonial head of the state and is vested with the power of appointing governors of all states, based on the advice of the council of ministers and Prime Minister. Governors, in turn, appoint the Chief Minister of their respective state.

Governor is the correct option. The governor of any state exercises both legislative and executive powers. He has both the authority to call for special sessions and to put them off upon his own discretion.

Similar to the President at the union level, the governor is the nominal head of the states at the state level. He is appointed by the President on the advice of the council of ministers and the Prime Minister. He performs executive as well as legislative functions.

• He has the right to call for special session of the state legislature and to issue an ordinance when the legislature is not in session.

• He has the power to dissolve the state legislative assembly.

• Once the bill gets the assent of the governor, it turns into a law.

Chief Minister is the executive head of the state and leader of the council of ministers. He performs the following core functions:

• He assigns portfolios to the ministers.

• He is entrusted with the tedious task of accommodating all parties in the alliance when no clear majority is obtained.

• He is responsible for the working of efficient administration and fosters cooperation and coordination between departments.

• He also frames policies according to the welfare needs of the people.

The Speaker holds the position of authority and presides in Vidhan Sabha. He/she is elected by the members of Vidhan Sabha and performs the following functions:

• The Speaker supervises and guides the session of the legislative assembly.

• He/She conducts the business in-house, maintains discipline, and has the authority to punish members for their misconduct by suspending them from the house.

• The Speaker decides whether the introduced bill in the house is a money bill or not.

India has adopted a federal form of government in which there is a strong national government at the centre and powers are distributed to the state and local government.

The Constitution makers went ahead with the thought of federalism because of India's large size and diversity. India shares a rich religious, cultural, regional and linguistic heritage which is marked by difference and unique characteristics. It would have been impossible to govern this multiculturalism by complete centralization as it would have led to the breakdown of the union. That is why India adopted a federal system.

The Chief Minister is entrusted with the responsibility of assigning portfolios to the fellow council of ministers. While allocating the portfolios, the Chief Minister takes into account several considerations such as the political experience of the minister, awareness regarding the public opinion, field expertise, leadership qualities, and administrative skills. All these points help the Chief Minister to decide who will be able to govern better and implement welfare policies.

The government of Maharashtra has 288 elected members in the legislative assembly. Some of the ministers and their respective departments are given below:

• DEVENDRAFADNAVIS: He is the Chief Minister of the state of Maharashtra. And holds a number of portfolios. He heads the General administration department which includes management and organization of staff members, Home department which deals with the state police, criminal investigation system, anti-corruption bureau etc, Law and Judiciary related to justice in courts and many more.

• CHANDRAKANT PATIL: He heads the revenue and public works department which deals with taxation and construction of infrastructure respectively.

• PANKAJA GOPINATH MUNDE: He heads the rural, women and child development department. The aim is to provide facilities in rural areas and see the working of Panchayati Raj institutions as well as foster holistic development of woman and child through various schemes.

• CHANDRASHEKAR KISHANRAO: He mainly heads the energy department which deals with developing and promoting new and renewable sources of energy.

• BABANRAO DATTARAO LONIKAR: He heads the water supply and sanitation department which is concerned with providing clean and safe drinking water and health facilities.

• JAYKUMAR RAVAL: He heads the employment guarantee scheme (EDS) department and tourism department. EDS department deals with employment generation and implementation of MGNREGA scheme in the state.

• MAHADEV JAGANNATH JANKAR: He heads the department of animal husbandry, dairies development, and fisheries development which is responsible for dealing with matters such as livestock production and dairy development.

• VINOD SHRIDHAR TAWDE: He heads the department of school level, higher and technical education- providing quality education and building up new educational institutions, Marathi Bhasha- promotion of regional language, minorities’.