Urban Local Self-Government
ICSE Class 6 · History & Civics · Chapter 11
What this chapter covers
- Urban areas and metropolitan cities
- Major metropolitan cities of India
- The Municipal Corporation: composition
- Functions of municipal bodies
- Municipalities
Key definitions
Kolkata is the capital of West Bengal.
Mumbai is the capital of Maharashtra.
Chennai is the capital of Tamil Nadu.
Key points
- An urban area is a town or city where most people work in offices, shops, factories and services.
- Urban local self-government means that the people of a town or city choose representatives to run local matters.
- A metropolitan city has ten lakh (one million) people or more.
- Delhi, Kolkata, Mumbai and Chennai are the four major metropolitan cities of India.
- A Municipal Corporation looks after a large city.
- Each ward of a city elects one councillor for five years.
- The Mayor is the head of the Corporation and chairs its meetings.
- The Municipal Commissioner is appointed by the state government and carries out the Corporation's decisions.
- The Corporation provides water, sanitation, health care, schools, street lights, public works, fire services and care for mothers and babies.
- A municipality looks after a smaller town.
- Citizens help their city by keeping it clean, saving water and reporting problems.
Questions answered
What does the word "urban" mean?
"Urban" means of a town or a city, where most people work in offices, shops, factories and services rather than on farms.
What is a metropolitan city?
A metropolitan city is a very large city with a population of ten lakh (one million) or more.
Name the four major metropolitan cities of India and the state or territory each one is in.
Delhi (National Capital Territory of Delhi), Kolkata (West Bengal), Mumbai (Maharashtra) and Chennai (Tamil Nadu).
Which of the four cities lies on the west coast of India?
Mumbai, on the coast of the Arabian Sea.
What is a ward, and who represents it in the Municipal Corporation?
A ward is a small part of a city. The people of each ward elect one councillor to the Municipal Corporation.
Who is the Mayor? Give two of the Mayor's duties.
The Mayor is the head of the Municipal Corporation. The Mayor chairs the Corporation's meetings and welcomes important visitors to the city.
How is the Municipal Commissioner different from the Mayor?
The Mayor is an elected member who leads the Corporation's meetings. The Commissioner is not elected but appointed by the state government, and is the chief officer who carries out the Corporation's decisions.
Name any four functions of a Municipal Corporation.
Any four of: water supply, public health and sanitation, education, street lighting, public works, public security, and maternity and child welfare.