In this Part, unless the context otherwise requires,--(a)'Committee' means a Committee constituted under article 243S;(b)'district' means a district in a State;(c)'Metropolitan area' means an area having a population of ten lakhs or more, comprised in one or more districts and consisting of two or more Municipalities or Panchayats or other contiguous areas, specified by the Governor by public notification to be Metropolitan area for the purposes of this Part;(d)'Municipal area' means the territorial area of a Municipality as is notified by the Governor;(e)'Municipality' means an institution of self-government constituted under 243Q ;(f)'Panchayat' means a Panchayat constituted under 243B;(g)'population' means the population as ascertained at the last preceding census of which the relevant figures have been published.[Editorial comment-The Constitution (Seventy-fourth Amendment) Act, 1992, dealt with the devolution of power into the systems of Municipalities or Urban Local Governments. It mandated the setting up and devolution of powers to Urban local bodies (ULBs) or city governments as the lowest unit of governance in cities and towns. This landmark initiative of the Government of India was built upon the premise that all ‘power’ in a democracy rightfully belongs to ‘the people’. Power was mandated to be given to the people via the local bodies (referred to as municipalities), namely Municipal Corporations, Councils and Nagar Panchayats, which would have representatives that are elected regularly and have a decisive role in planning, provision and delivery of services. This Act prescribes institutional changes as well, with the setting up of Ward Committees, District Planning Committees and Metropolitan Planning Committees to coordinate planning across jurisdictions, as well as the setting up of State Election Commissions and State Financial Commissions. Effectively, this act gives ULBs a role much larger than just that of service providers that provide water, waste management, electricity, and so on.Also Refer]
