Directive Principles of State

Policy - DPSP
[UPSC Notes]
What is Directive Principles of State Policy?

The DPSP provide guidelines to the governing bodies of India. The DPSP has a primary
objective of creating better social and economic conditions for the citizens of a country to lead a
better life. Our constitution's economic and social democracy finds its footing here. They aim to
find socio-economic justice by establishing India as a welfare state.

• It was the Sapru Committee of 1945 suggested a set of justiceable rights and a set of
non-justiceable rights. The former turned out to be the Fundamental Rights that serve as
the backbone of a democracy like India, and the latter was the Directive Principles of
State Policy.
• They act as ‘instruments of instruction’, as enumerated in the Government of India Act of
1935.

The DPSP, though non-justiceable, aren’t less important. They serve as ideals to be kept in the
head while the Centre and State formulate policies for the country.

DPSP Highlights

DPSP Full-Form Directive Principles of State Policy

DPSP Articles Part IV of the constitution- Article 35 to

Article 51

DPSP Borrowed from Article 45 of the Irish Constitution

Basic concept behind Directive Principles of To create a welfare state

State Policy

Classification of Directive Principles of State Policy

The DPSP of the Indian Constitution are classified based on their ideological roots and the
objectives they chase. On these grounds mentioned above, they can be divided into three major
classifications.

• Socialistic Principles - Article 38, 39, 39A, 41, 42, 43, 43A and 47
• Gandhian Principles - Article 40, 43, 43B, 46, 47 and 48
• Liberal-Intellectual Principles - Article 44, 45, 48, 49, 50 and 51

DPSP Socialistic Principles

This directive is based on socialistic principles and its primary purpose is to provide socio-
economic justice to the masses by bridging the gaps created on the economic, social and
political fronts. Below are the articles that cover the socialistic principles of Directive Principles
of State Policy.

Socialistic Details
Principles of
DPSP

Article 39 The State shall work towards direct objectives concerning;

-Means of livelihood
-Ownership of material resources and control over it
-Avoiding concentration of wealth in a few hands
-Equal pay despite gender
-Health and strength of the workers
-Meaningful childhood and youth

Article 41 This article states that the State shall ensure the right to education, work
and public assistance despite unemployment, ill-health, disability, and old
age.

Article 42 This article states that the State should make arrangements that secure
humane conditions for work and assures maternity relief.

Article 43 This article states that the State is to provide a livable wage to its
workers, enabling them to have a decent standard of life.

Article 43A The State is to move towards securing workers' participation in the
management of the companies.

Article 47 This article guides the State to increase the nutritional level to work on
public health and uplift the standard of living of the masses
DPSP Gandhian Principles

The Gandhian Principles of Directive Principles of State Policy are true to their name and follow
the Gandhian ideology that the Indian independence struggle established. Below are the
articles that cover the Gandhian principles of DPSP

• Article 40: This article guides the State to fashion village panchayats into units of Self
Government.
• Article 43: This article guides the State to work on promoting cottage industries; on both-
individual and cooperative basis in rural parts of the country.
• Article 43B: This article indicates the State to promote the ideals of autonomy of
function, voluntary formation, and democratic control of cooperative
organisations.
• Article 46: This article shall guide the State to promote the educational and economic
interest of the marginalised section of the society (SCs, STs, etc.)
• Article 47: This article guides the State to work toward improving public health by
prohibiting alcohol and drugs that risk health and being.
• Article 48: This article guides against slaughtering calves, cows and other milch to
improve their breeds.

DPSP Liberal-Intellectual Principles

As the name suggests, this part of the Directive Principles of State Policy has been influenced
by the ideas of liberalism. Below are the articles that follow the liberal-intellectual principles;

• Article 44: This article guides the State to attempt to secure a Uniform Civil Code for
every citizen throughout the Indian territory.
• Article 45: This article asks the State to provide adequate early childhood care and
education for children till 6 years of age.
• Article 48: This article gives provisions for the better organisation of agriculture and
animal husbandry by advancing science.
• Article 48A: This article aims to protect, improve and safeguard the environment
and wildlife.
• Article 49: This article guides safeguarding every monument of historical interest and
value.
• Article 50: This article works toward separating the Judiciary from the Executive for the
smoother functioning of these systems.
• Article 51: This article wishes to work on international peace and security. For this, the
state shall practice the following:
• Maintaining honourable and just relations with other nations
• Encouraging respect for treaty obligations and international law.
• Promoting peace for international disputes by the cause of arbitration.
Fundamental Rights vs Directive Principles
Learn the difference between DPSP and FR in the constitution of India. The Sapru Committee
of 1945 made the suggestions for both; the DPSP and the Fundamental Rights. The differences
between them have been discussed below:
• The Directive Principles of State Policy is a non-justiceable part of the constitution which
means one cannot legally challenge their violation. On the other hand, the Fundamental
rights are legally binding, and their violation can cause legal trouble.
• Fundamental rights work on the micro-level while the DPSP has limitless cope as it
operates on a wider/macro level.
• DPSP is the idealistic branch which guides the conduct of the State for the maximum
betterment of the country and its masses before making and enacting the laws.
• While DPSP acts as an affirmative hand, fundamental rights are negative and prohibitive
in their approach as they work as limitations on the State.
• Despite their differences, DPSP and Fundamental Rights go hand in hand. And in no
way is the DPSP inferior to Fundamental rights.

Amendment in Directive Principles of State Policy (DPSP)

The Directive Principles of State Policy is an amendable section of the constitution as it has
undergone some work over the years. These amendments are discussed below:
• The 42nd Constitutional Amendment of 1976: This amendment brought a few changes
and additions to Part IV of the Indian constitution.
• Article 39A provided free legal aid to the poor
• Article 43A encouraged workers' participation in the management of the
companies
• Article 48A aimed to protect and preserve the environment

• The 44th Constitutional Amendment of 1978: This amendment added Section 2 to Article
38. This stated that the State shall make strides towards minimising the widening wage
gap, which is dependent on status, uneven opportunities and facilities. It also removed
the Right to Property as a Fundamental Right.

• The 86th Amendment Act of 2002: This amendment changed the subject matter that
was covered under Article 45 and made elementary education a fundamental right. This
was codified under the new Article 21A.

Conflicts Between Fundamental Rights and DPSP: Associated Cases

Owing to the nature of fundamental rights and DPSP, there have been some clashes between
them. These have been well-documented by the cases listed below:
• Champakam Dorairajan v the State of Madras (1951)
 • The Supreme Court states that in a situation where conflict between a
fundamental right and a directive principle, the fundamental right will take
precedence.
• It ruled that the DPSP must function as a subsidiary of the fundamental rights.
• Another significant result of this ruling was that the Parliament could amend the
fundamental rights.

• Golaknath v the State of Punjab (1967)

• In this case, the SC observed that the Fundamental Rights could not be
amended even if it was to accommodate the execution of DPSP.
• However, this was in contrast to its judgement in the Shankari Prasad case.

• Kesavananda Bharati v the State of Kerala (1973)

• The SC overruled the Golak Nath judgement and stated that the Parliament was
free to amend any part of the Indian constitution as long as it didn’t change the
‘basics’ of the structure.
• The Right to property (article 31) was withdrawn as a fundamental right.
• Minerva Mills v the Union of India (1980)
• In this case, the SC recapitulated its earlier judgement stating that the Parliament
can make amends in the constitution without comprising the ‘basic structure’ it
has.

Implementation of DPSP: Associated Acts and Amendments

In this article, we have continuously discussed how the Directive Principles of State Policy were
placed to guide the State governments to make laws keeping the betterment of the masses of
the country in mind. Below, we have listed the acts and reforms that have been passed in
alignment with the DPSP;
• Land Reforms: A majority of states have implemented land reform laws where the
population is involved in agrarian occupations so as to improve their living standard.
Measures like;
• Abolition of ‘middle men’ like Zamindars, Inamdar, Jagirdars, etc.
• Reforms in the field of tenancy (tenure security, fair rent prices, etc.)
• Surplus land distribution among the landless
• Promotion of cooperative farming

• Labour Reforms: Several acts have been passed to protect the rights of the labourers,
like;
• Minimum Wages Act of 1948
• Code on Wages of 2020
• Contract Labour Regulation and Abolition Act of 1970
• Child Labour Prohibition and Regulation Act (1986) was later renamed the Child
and Adolescent Labour Prohibition and Regulation Act, 1986 in 2016.
• Bonded Labour System Abolition Act of 1976
• Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act of 1957
 • The Maternity Benefit Act of 1961 and the Equal Remuneration Act of 1976 were
implemented to benefit female workers.

• Introduction of Panchayati Raj: The constitutional obligation under article 40 was

accomplished by the 73rd constitutional amendment in 1992.
• This amendment introduced the third tier of governance in the rural parts of the
country.
• This was introduced on the Village, Block and District levels in almost all parts of
the country.

• Cottage Industries: Cottage industries are a way to earn a meaningful income by taking
charge of the course of things. Promotion of this particular industry takes an important
place which is why government reforms are needed.
• Under article 43, the government has put in place several boards like Village
Industries Board, Khadi and Village Industries Commission, All India Handicraft
Board, Silk Board, Coir Board, etc.
• These bodies shall extend great help to cottage industries in matters regarding
finance and marketing.

• Education: This is a very important sector that aids in the country's future development
and its people.
• The 86th Constitutional Amendment introduced the Rights to Education Act of
2009, which made elementary education mandatory for children under 6 to 14
years of age.
• This made the right to education a fundamental right.

• Rural Area Development: multiple programmes have been undertaken to promise rural
development, like;
• Community Development Programme (1952)
• Integrated Rural Development Programme (1978-79)
• Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA-2006)

• Health and Environment: There are several schemes that protect the lives of people,
like;
• Pradhan Mantri Gram Swasthya Yojana (PMGSY) and National Rural Health
Mission (NRHM) were launched to accomplish the social responsibility of the
State.
• The Wildlife (Protection) Act of 1972, the Forest (Conservation) Act of 1980 and
the Environment (Protection) Act of 1986 were codified to preserve wildlife and
forests, respectively.
 • Water and Air Pollution Control Acts have been passed that have helped to set
up the Central Pollution Control Board.

• Heritage Preservation: India has had a rich history of numerous kingdoms prospering on
its territory. This has left a lasting legacy in the form of monuments, cultures, food, etc.
• Ancient and Historical Monument and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act of
1958 was enacted to safeguard monuments and objects of historic importance.