The committees and commissions have been playing a significant role in Indian history. The Estimates Committee is the first committee in Independent India and it was built for the first time in 1950. It contains 30 members who were selected every year by the members of the “Lok Sabha”. However, Charles Wood Despatch is the first commission in British ruled India. It was built in the year 1854 by Charles Wood, under the governance of Lord Dalhousie. Hunter Commission, Sadler Commission”, “Raleigh Commission”, etc. are some of the important commissions in British ruled India. The purpose of these commissions and committees was to bring changes and innovation in various systems such as education, famine, etc.

Commission and Committees: definition

“Commission” and “Committee” are member groups delegated by the government in order to bring the reformation in a particular sector. The Committees and Commissions India was delegated since British rule for the purpose of bringing administrative, social, and judicial reformation. The prime objective of the commissions is to execute the reformation in the system through passing Government bills.

Commissions and Committees in India under the British rule

The Britishers in India introduce various Commissions and Committees in order to bring reformation in the administrative and Judiciary system. The main Commissions and Committees under British rule are listed below.

- Charles Wood Despatch: Charles Wood Despatch introduced this Commission in the year 1854. Lord Dalhousie was the Governor-General at that time. Charles Wood Despatch commission brings a revolution in the education system. It promotes western education in the Indian education system. This is the reason Charles Wood is Called the “Magna Carta” of Indian education.

Hunter Commission: Hunter Commission was introduced in 1882. Lord Rippon was the Viceroy of India at that time. It was introduced with the purpose of introducing primary education among the people of India. The focus of this Commission was to resolve the challenges faced by Charles Wood Despatch.

Sadler Commission: Sadler Commission was introduced to investigate the condition and perspective of the “University of Calcutta”. It was delegated in 1917. There were two Indian members in this commission. The report presented by the two members gave a suggestion of establishing various intermediate colleges under the “University of Calcutta”.

Sapru Commission: “Sapru Commission” was introduced in1935. The main purpose of this commission was to bring reformation to the administration. This commission focuses light on the unemployment of India under British Rule.

Commissions and Committees in Independent India

There are 32 permanent Commissions and Committees in India. Moreover, 12 “Ad hoc”Commissions were introduced in Independent India overtime to bring reformation in the administrative, Judicial, and social system.

Permanent Commission of India:

Name of the Commissions/Committees	Formation year	Objective
“Election Commission”	1950	To conduct the election in India in both “Lok Sabha” and “Rajya Sabha”.
Law Commission	1951	To bring reformation in the laws of the Indian Constitution.
“National Commission” for “backward” classes	1993	To support the backward classes in India.
NHRC of India	1993	To maintain healthy operation in the system.
“Atomic Energy” Commission	1948	To bring technical changes in the generation of atomic energy. This commission focuses on the maintenance of ethical consideration.

Table 1: Commissions of India

Ad Hoc Commissions and Committees

Name of the Commissions and Committees	Formation year	Purpose of the committee or Commission
“State reorganization” commission	1955	This commission was introduced in order to perform the reorganisation of the boundaries of different states in India.
Khosla Commission	1970	This commission was introduced in order to investigate the mysterious death of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose.
Mandal commission	1979	This commission was delegated to identify the backward classes in India and to pass the reservation rule in the academy for those backward classes.

Table 2: Ad Hoc committees

Conclusion

This discussion in this section is based on the Commission and Committees of India and its role in Indian History. This topic is very important for SSC exams. The name of various committees and commissions and their formation year needs to be kept in mind from the exam point of view. Moreover, the purpose of the formation of the Ad hoc committees is very important.