SSC
The total number of Rajya Sabha seats allotted to Maharashtra is:
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Answer: Option A — 19
Detailed Solution
Maharashtra has 19 seats in the Rajya Sabha, the second-highest number after Uttar Pradesh.
States with the most Rajya Sabha seats:
- Uttar Pradesh: 31 seats.
- Maharashtra: 19 seats.
- Tamil Nadu: 18 seats.
- West Bengal: 16 seats.
- Bihar: 16 seats.
- Karnataka: 12 seats.
How seats are allotted:
- Seats in the Rajya Sabha are allotted to states and Union territories mainly on the basis of population, as given in the Fourth Schedule of the Constitution.
- Smaller states, such as Goa, Sikkim, Mizoram, Nagaland, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya and Tripura, have one seat each.
Election of members:
- Members are elected by the elected members of the state Legislative Assembly through the single transferable vote.
- Voting is by open ballot, so party members must show their ballot to the party's authorised agent.
Term:
Members are elected for six years, and one-third retire every two years.
Maharashtra's representation in Parliament:
- Maharashtra has 48 seats in the Lok Sabha, the second-highest after Uttar Pradesh.
- Its Legislative Assembly has 288 seats, and its Legislative Council has 78 seats.
Total strength of the Rajya Sabha:
The present strength is 245: 233 elected and 12 nominated by the President.
Fourth Schedule:
The Fourth Schedule can be changed by Parliament by law, for example when new states are created, as happened when Telangana was formed and seats were divided between it and Andhra Pradesh.
Union territories in the Rajya Sabha:
Delhi has 3 seats, Jammu and Kashmir has 4 seats and Puducherry has 1 seat.
Why not the other options?
- ✗16 is the number for West Bengal and Bihar.
- ✗18 is the number for Tamil Nadu.
- ✗31 is the number for Uttar Pradesh.
Quick tip
Remember: Rajya Sabha seats: Uttar Pradesh 31, Maharashtra 19, Tamil Nadu 18, West Bengal and Bihar 16 each.
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Parliament — Preparation
This question tests your understanding of Parliament, a key topic in the General Knowledge section. The detailed solution above uses a step-by-step approach to show the reasoning, and where available, a shortcut that helps you solve similar questions in under 90 seconds during the actual exam.
This topic covers the Parliament of India: the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, their composition, powers and officers, sessions, the law-making process, money bills, joint sittings, parliamentary committees, and devices such as question hour, zero hour and the various motions. Typical questions ask about the maximum strength of each house, the minimum age for members, who certifies a money bill (the Speaker), who presides over a joint sitting, and which committee is chaired by a member of the opposition (the Public Accounts Committee, by convention). Note the special powers of the Rajya Sabha under Articles 249 and 312. Practise the Parliament questions below, written in the style of the general awareness sections of exams such as SSC, banking, railways, CUET GAT, MAH CET and CLAT. Each question comes with a detailed explanation that adds related facts, so every question helps you revise more than one point.