Important Committees and Commissions of India: Quick Answer
This note lists 30 important committees and commissions of India, from the Radhakrishnan Commission of 1948 to the Rohini Commission and the Srikrishna data-protection committee of 2017, each with its year, chairperson and purpose, as of 7 November 2026. The most-asked names are the Mandal Commission (1979) for 27% OBC reservation, the Sarkaria Commission (1983) for Centre–State relations, the Kothari Commission (1964) for the 10+2+3 education structure, the Santhanam Committee (1962) that led to the Central Vigilance Commission, and the Shah Commission (1977) that probed the Emergency.
🔥 Key Exam Takeaway: Learn committees as year + chairperson + one-line purpose. The three pairs that cause the most errors are Sarkaria (1983) vs Punchhi (2007) — both Centre–State relations; Gadgil (2011) vs Kasturirangan (2012) — 100% vs 37% of the Western Ghats as ecologically sensitive area; and the two Srikrishna committees — Telangana (2010) and data protection (2017). Banking committees (Narasimham, Bimal Jalan, Malegam, Tarapore) are NOT in this list — they belong to the banking notes.
Why is the year sometimes different in different books? Because some books give the year a committee was set up and others give the year its report came out. The Gadgil panel was set up in 2010 and reported in 2011; the Kasturirangan group was set up in 2012 and reported in 2013; the Sachar Committee was set up in 2005 and reported in 2006. This note gives the year exams most commonly cite as the table year and states both the set-up year and the report year in the purpose column wherever the two differ. This page is as of 7 November 2026.
Committee or Commission — What Is the Difference?
Exams use the two words almost interchangeably, but the distinction is real and occasionally asked. A commission is usually set up by a statute or by the government to inquire into a specific matter or to perform a continuing function — the Sarkaria Commission and the Shah Commission were inquiry commissions, and the Finance Commission is a constitutional body. A committee is usually an ad hoc group of experts set up by a government resolution to study a problem and recommend a course of action — the Kothari Commission is called a commission but the Balwant Rai Mehta Committee is called a committee, and there is no strict rule. For exam purposes, remember the name and year as given; the label (committee or commission) is part of the name, not a separate fact to memorise.
The Complete List (1948–2017)
| # | Committee / Commission | Year | Chairperson | Theme | What it did / why it matters |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Radhakrishnan Commission (University Education Commission) | 1948 | Dr S. Radhakrishnan | Education | First education commission of independent India; recommended university education reform and the setting up of the UGC |
| 2 | Fazl Ali Commission (States Reorganisation Commission) | 1953 | Fazl Ali | States reorganisation | Recommended reorganising states on linguistic lines; led to the States Reorganisation Act, 1956 |
| 3 | Balwant Rai Mehta Committee | 1957 | Balwant Rai Mehta | Panchayati Raj | Recommended a three-tier Panchayati Raj system ("democratic decentralisation"); first adopted in Rajasthan (Nagaur, 1959) |
| 4 | Santhanam Committee (Committee on Prevention of Corruption) | 1962 | K. Santhanam | Anti-corruption | Recommended a central vigilance body; led to the Central Vigilance Commission (1964). Report submitted 1964 |
| 5 | Kothari Commission (Education Commission) | 1964 | D. S. Kothari | Education | Recommended the 10+2+3 structure and a common school system; basis of the National Policy on Education, 1968. Report 1966 |
| 6 | First Administrative Reforms Commission | 1966 | Morarji Desai (later K. Hanumanthaiah) | Administrative reform | Recommended the Lokpal and Lokayukta; submitted 20 reports between 1966 and 1970 |
| 7 | Swaran Singh Committee | 1976 | Swaran Singh | Fundamental Duties | Recommended adding Fundamental Duties to the Constitution; the 42nd Amendment (1976) added 10 duties (it had suggested 8) |
| 8 | Ashok Mehta Committee | 1977 | Ashok Mehta | Panchayati Raj | Recommended a two-tier Panchayati Raj system and constitutional status for panchayats (accepted later, in the 73rd Amendment) |
| 9 | Shah Commission | 1977 | J. C. Shah | Emergency inquiry | Inquired into the excesses of the Emergency (1975–77), including misuse of MISA and the sterilisation programme. Report 1978 |
| 10 | Mandal Commission (Second Backward Classes Commission) | 1979 | B. P. Mandal | Reservation | Recommended 27% reservation for OBCs in government jobs and education. Report 1980; implemented 1990 |
| 11 | Sarkaria Commission | 1983 | R. S. Sarkaria | Centre–State relations | Reviewed Centre–State relations and made 247 recommendations; favoured a strong Centre with cooperative federalism. Report 1988 |
| 12 | L. M. Singhvi Committee | 1986 | L. M. Singhvi | Panchayati Raj | Recommended constitutional recognition and protection for Panchayati Raj institutions; paved the way for the 73rd Amendment, 1992 |
| 13 | Liberhan Commission | 1992 | M. S. Liberhan | Babri Masjid inquiry | Inquired into the demolition of the Babri Masjid (6 December 1992). Report submitted 2009 |
| 14 | Vohra Committee | 1993 | N. N. Vohra | Criminalisation of politics | Studied the nexus between criminals, politicians and bureaucrats; its report was tabled in Parliament in 1995 |
| 15 | Malimath Committee | 2000 | V. S. Malimath | Criminal justice reform | Recommended reforms in the criminal justice system, including a shift towards an inquisitorial element. Report 2003 |
| 16 | Venkatachaliah Commission (National Commission to Review the Working of the Constitution) | 2000 | M. N. Venkatachaliah | Constitutional review | Reviewed the working of the Constitution after 50 years; recommended no basic-structure change. Report 31 March 2002 |
| 17 | Kelkar Task Force (Task Force on Implementation of the FRBM Act, 2003) | 2004 | Vijay Kelkar | Fiscal reform | Recommended how to implement the fiscal consolidation targets of the FRBM Act, 2003; reported July 2004 |
| 18 | Ranganath Misra Commission (National Commission for Religious and Linguistic Minorities) | 2004 | Ranganath Misra | Minorities | Recommended 10% reservation for Muslims and 5% for other minorities within the OBC quota, and delinking SC status from religion. Report 2007 |
| 19 | Swaminathan Commission (National Commission on Farmers) | 2004 | M. S. Swaminathan | Agriculture | Recommended farmer welfare measures including the C2+50% formula for MSP; submitted five reports between 2004 and 2006 |
| 20 | Sachar Committee | 2005 | Rajinder Sachar | Minorities | Studied the social, economic and educational condition of Muslims in India; found them worse off than most other groups. Report 2006 |
| 21 | Second Administrative Reforms Commission | 2005 | Veerappa Moily | Administrative reform | Produced 15 reports on ethics in governance, e-governance, RTI, disaster management and more (2005–2009) |
| 22 | Punchhi Commission | 2007 | Madan Mohan Punchhi | Centre–State relations | Revisited Centre–State relations after Sarkaria, covering the Governor's role, Article 356 and inter-state councils. Report 2010 |
| 23 | Tendulkar Committee | 2009 | Suresh Tendulkar | Poverty estimation | Recommended a new methodology for estimating poverty (per-capita consumption, delinked from calorie norms) |
| 24 | Srikrishna Committee (Committee for Consultations on the Situation in Andhra Pradesh) | 2010 | B. N. Srikrishna | Telangana | Examined the demand for a separate Telangana state; submitted its report on 30 December 2010 |
| 25 | Gadgil Committee (Western Ghats Ecology Expert Panel) | 2011 | Madhav Gadgil | Environment | Recommended declaring the entire Western Ghats an Ecologically Sensitive Area, in three zones. Set up 2010; report 31 August 2011 |
| 26 | Kasturirangan Committee (High-Level Working Group on Western Ghats) | 2012 | K. Kasturirangan | Environment | Reviewed the Gadgil report and recommended ESA status for only 37% of the Western Ghats. Set up August 2012; report April 2013 |
| 27 | Justice Verma Committee (criminal law amendments) | 2012 | J. S. Verma | Criminal law | Recommended amendments to criminal law for quicker trial and enhanced punishment in sexual-assault cases; led to the Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2013. Report 23 January 2013 |
| 28 | Lodha Committee | 2015 | R. M. Lodha | Sports governance | Recommended structural reforms in the BCCI after the IPL spot-fixing scandal, including term limits and a cooling-off period. Report 2016 |
| 29 | Rohini Commission (sub-categorisation of OBCs) | 2017 | G. Rohini | Reservation | Examined sub-categorisation of the OBC list so that reservation benefits reach the most backward groups. Report submitted July 2023 |
| 30 | B. N. Srikrishna Committee (data protection) | 2017 | B. N. Srikrishna | Data protection | Recommended a data-protection framework for India; led to the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023. Report July 2018 |
Also know these six (asked less often, but they appear in options): the Dhar Commission (1948) and the JVP Committee (1948) — the two earlier commissions on states reorganisation before Fazl Ali; the Thakkar Commission (1984) — probed the assassination of Indira Gandhi; the G. V. K. Rao Committee (1985) — administrative arrangements for rural development and poverty alleviation; the Dinesh Goswami Committee (1990) — electoral reforms; and the Rangarajan Committee (2012) — a second poverty-estimation methodology after Tendulkar (report 2014).
Records and Firsts
| Record | Answer |
|---|---|
| Most recommendations by any commission in this list | Sarkaria Commission — 247 recommendations (report 1988) |
| First education commission of independent India | Radhakrishnan Commission, 1948 |
| Longest-running commission in this list | Liberhan Commission — about 17 years (1992–2009); the Sarkaria Commission ran over 4 years (1983–88) |
| Most reports by one commission | First Administrative Reforms Commission — 20 reports; Second ARC — 15 reports |
| Largest reservation recommendation | Mandal Commission — 27% for OBCs (report 1980, implemented 1990) |
| Committee that created the CVC | Santhanam Committee (1962) — Central Vigilance Commission set up in 1964 |
| Committee behind the 10+2+3 system | Kothari Commission (1964) |
| First committee on Fundamental Duties | Swaran Singh Committee (1976) — suggested 8 duties; the 42nd Amendment added 10 |
| Sharpest Gadgil vs Kasturirangan contrast | Gadgil: 100% of the Western Ghats as ESA; Kasturirangan: 37% |
| Committee behind the DPDP Act, 2023 | B. N. Srikrishna Committee on data protection (2017) |
The Sarkaria number is worth fixing in memory: 247 recommendations, submitted in January 1988 after the commission was set up in June 1983. Punchhi, set up in 2007, was asked to look at the same subject — Centre–State relations — twenty-four years later, because the issues had changed: the Governor's role, President's Rule under Article 356, and the working of inter-state councils had all become more contested.
Common Mistakes
1. "Sarkaria and Punchhi are the same commission." No. Both dealt with Centre–State relations, but Sarkaria is 1983 (R. S. Sarkaria, 247 recommendations, report 1988) and Punchhi is 2007 (Madan Mohan Punchhi, report 2010). If a question says "which commission recommended 247 recommendations", the answer is Sarkaria.
2. "There is one Verma Committee." There are two, both from 2012, both chaired by Justice J. S. Verma — the same judge doing two different jobs. Justice J. S. Verma's committee (December 2012) recommended criminal-law amendments after the December 2012 Delhi case and led to the Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2013. A separate Justice J. S. Verma Commission on teacher education (2012) dealt with teacher-education reform. The criminal-law one is the one in the table and the one exams ask about.
3. "There is one Srikrishna Committee." There are two, both chaired by Justice B. N. Srikrishna. The 2010 committee examined the Telangana demand (constituted 3 February 2010, report 30 December 2010). The 2017 committee wrote India's data-protection framework (report July 2018, leading to the DPDP Act, 2023). There is also a third, older one — the Justice Srikrishna Commission of 1992 that inquired into the Bombay riots — which is why the year is the only safe way to tell them apart.
4. "There is one Kasturirangan Committee." There are two as well. The 2012 High-Level Working Group on the Western Ghats (37% ESA) is in the table. A later Kasturirangan Committee (2017, report 2019) drafted the National Education Policy 2020. Same chairperson, different subject, different decade.
5. "The Santhanam Committee was set up in 1963." Some lists give 1963. The committee was appointed in 1962 and submitted its report in 1964; the CVC was set up in February 1964 on its recommendation. Use 1962.
6. "The Gadgil Committee is 2010." The panel was constituted in 2010 but its report — the thing exams cite — is dated 31 August 2011. Likewise the Kasturirangan group was constituted in August 2012 and reported in April 2013. This note uses 2011 and 2012 respectively and states both dates.
7. "The Sachar Committee is 2006." It was constituted in March 2005 and reported in November 2006. Use 2005 as the year, 2006 as the report year.
8. "The Mandal Commission implemented 27% reservation in 1979." The commission was appointed on 1 January 1979 and reported in 1980; the 27% OBC reservation was implemented in 1990 by the V. P. Singh government. Three different years, three different facts.
9. "The Kelkar Committee is a banking committee." The Kelkar Committee in this list is the 2004 Task Force on Implementation of the FRBM Act — fiscal reform, not banking. The banking committees (Narasimham 1991 and 1998, Bimal Jalan, Malegam, Tarapore) are deliberately excluded from this note and covered in the banking notes.
10. "The Vohra Committee was about police reform." No — the Vohra Committee (1993) studied the criminalisation of politics and the nexus between criminals, politicians and bureaucrats. Police reform is the Padmanabhaiah Committee (2000), which is not in the 30.
Memory Tricks
Chronology anchors — learn the decade, then the year: 1940s: Radhakrishnan (1948). 1950s: Fazl Ali (1953), Balwant Rai Mehta (1957). 1960s: Santhanam (1962), Kothari (1964), First ARC (1966). 1970s: Swaran Singh (1976), Ashok Mehta + Shah (1977), Mandal (1979). 1980s: Sarkaria (1983), Singhvi (1986). 1990s: Liberhan (1992), Vohra (1993). 2000s: Malimath + Venkatachaliah (2000), Kelkar + Ranganath Misra + Swaminathan (2004), Sachar + Second ARC (2005), Punchhi (2007), Tendulkar (2009). 2010s: Srikrishna Telangana (2010), Gadgil (2011), Kasturirangan + Verma (2012), Lodha (2015), Rohini + Srikrishna data (2017).
The three Panchayati Raj committees in order: Balwant Rai Mehta (1957) — three-tier system; Ashok Mehta (1977) — two-tier system; L. M. Singhvi (1986) — constitutional status. Remember "3–2–Constitution": three tiers, two tiers, then the Constitution.
Centre–State pair: Sarkaria 1983, Punchhi 2007 — "S before P, 83 before 07". Sarkaria has the number (247 recommendations); Punchhi has the Governor and Article 356 focus.
Western Ghats pair: Gadgil strict (100%), Kasturirangan soft (37%) — Gadgil came first and wanted everything protected; Kasturirangan reviewed him and cut it to 37%.
Poverty pair: Tendulkar 2009, Rangarajan 2012 — Tendulkar delinked poverty from calorie norms; Rangarajan revised the line upward in 2014.
Minorities pair: Ranganath Misra 2004, Sachar 2005 — Misra was a commission on religious and linguistic minorities (report 2007); Sachar studied the condition of Muslims (report 2006). Misra recommended reservation; Sachar documented backwardness.
Practice Questions
Q1. Which commission recommended 27% reservation for OBCs, and in which year was it appointed? A: The Mandal Commission, appointed on 1 January 1979 (report 1980; implemented 1990). It was chaired by B. P. Mandal.
Q2. Which committee's recommendations led to the setting up of the Central Vigilance Commission? A: The Santhanam Committee (1962), chaired by K. Santhanam. The CVC was set up in 1964.
Q3. Which commission made 247 recommendations on Centre–State relations? A: The Sarkaria Commission (1983), chaired by R. S. Sarkaria. Its report came in 1988.
Q4. Which two committees dealt with the Western Ghats, and what share of the Ghats did each want as ecologically sensitive area? A: The Gadgil Committee (2011) — the entire Western Ghats (100%); and the Kasturirangan Committee (2012) — only 37%.
Q5. Which committee recommended the 10+2+3 structure of education? A: The Kothari Commission (1964), chaired by D. S. Kothari. Its recommendations formed the basis of the National Policy on Education, 1968.
Q6. The Justice Verma Committee of 2012 is famous for what? A: Recommending amendments to criminal law for quicker trial and enhanced punishment in sexual-assault cases, leading to the Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2013. Do not confuse it with the separate Verma Commission on teacher education of the same year.
Q7. Which commission inquired into the excesses of the Emergency? A: The Shah Commission (1977), chaired by Justice J. C. Shah. It reported in 1978.
Q8. Which committee studied the social, economic and educational condition of Muslims in India? A: The Sachar Committee (constituted March 2005, report November 2006), chaired by Justice Rajinder Sachar.
Q9. Which commission examined the demand for a separate Telangana state, and when was it constituted? A: The Srikrishna Committee (Committee for Consultations on the Situation in Andhra Pradesh), constituted on 3 February 2010, report 30 December 2010. Do not confuse it with the 2017 Srikrishna data-protection committee.
Q10. Which committee recommended constitutional status for Panchayati Raj institutions? A: The L. M. Singhvi Committee (1986). Its recommendation was realised in the 73rd Constitutional Amendment, 1992.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q1. What is the difference between a committee and a commission? A commission is usually set up by statute or to inquire into a specific matter; a committee is usually an ad hoc expert group set up by government resolution to study a problem and recommend action. In practice the labels are part of the body's name — learn the name as given.
Q2. Why do some books give a different year for the same committee? Because some give the year the committee was set up and others give the year its report was submitted. This note uses the year exams most commonly cite in the table and states both years in the purpose column where they differ (Gadgil 2010/2011, Kasturirangan 2012/2013, Sachar 2005/2006, Mandal 1979/1980).
Q3. Which committees are most important for SSC and banking exams? Mandal (1979), Sarkaria (1983), Kothari (1964), Santhanam (1962), Shah (1977), Balwant Rai Mehta (1957), Punchhi (2007), Gadgil (2011) and Kasturirangan (2012), and the Justice Verma Committee (2012). These ten account for most of the questions asked.
Q4. Are banking committees like Narasimham in this list? No. Banking and financial-sector committees (Narasimham, Bimal Jalan, Malegam, Tarapore, Kelkar's fiscal-consolidation committee of 2012) are covered in the banking notes. The Kelkar Committee in this list is the 2004 Task Force on Implementation of the FRBM Act.
Q5. What did the Punchhi Commission recommend about the Governor? It revisited the Governor's role, the use of President's Rule under Article 356, and the working of inter-state councils — the subjects Sarkaria had covered in 1983, updated for the coalition era.
Q6. What is the Rohini Commission? Set up in October 2017 under Justice G. Rohini to examine sub-categorisation of the OBC list, so that reservation benefits are shared more evenly among OBC groups. It submitted its report in July 2023.
Q7. Which committee led to the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023? The B. N. Srikrishna Committee on data protection (2017, report July 2018) — not the 2010 Srikrishna Committee on Telangana.
Practice Next
- Fundamental Rights: Articles 12 to 35 — the rights the Swaran Singh duties balance
- Directive Principles of State Policy and Fundamental Duties — the duties the Swaran Singh Committee recommended
- Important Articles of the Indian Constitution — Articles 356, 342 and the rest cited in this note
- Important Constitutional Amendments List — 42nd, 73rd, 74th and 89th Amendments
- 12 Schedules of the Indian Constitution Trick — the Fifth and Sixth Schedules behind the tribal committees
- President of India List 1950 to 2026 — the Presidents who appointed these commissions
- Sources of the Indian Constitution — borrowed features and the committees that shaped them
- Five Year Plans of India List — the planning context for the G. V. K. Rao and Kelkar committees
- Census 2011 India Key Facts — the population data behind the Mandal and Sachar findings
- Tribes of India and PVTG List — the 705 Scheduled Tribes and 75 PVTGs
- Bharat Ratna and Padma Awards List — the honours many of these chairpersons received
- Related list: Tribunals in India List
Test yourself: SSC CGL General Awareness Sectional Mock Test 01 More GK practice: SSC CHSL General Awareness Sectional Mock Test 01 SSC hub: Free SSC Mock Tests and banking hub: Free Bank Exam Mock Tests More free notes: All Study Notes
Sources: standard polity references (Laxmikanth's Indian Polity committee lists) for years, chairpersons and recommendations; Government of India / Rajya Sabha records for the Srikrishna Committee constitution date (3 February 2010) and the Venkatachaliah Commission dates (22 February 2000 – 31 March 2002); Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change records for the Gadgil (31 August 2011) and Kasturirangan (April 2013) reports. Banking committees excluded by design. Figures as of 7 November 2026. Where sources differ on a year (notably Santhanam 1962 vs 1963), the disagreement is stated in the Common Mistakes section rather than hidden.