Cooperative Federalism

Cooperative federalism is a model of intergovernmental relations in which the national (central) and sub-national (state/provincial) governments collaborate as partners in governing — sharing administrative responsibilities, pooling resources, and jointly designing and implementing policies. It contrasts with 'competitive federalism' (where states compete with each other for investment and talent) and with 'dual federalism' (where central and state spheres are strictly separate). In India, cooperative federalism is seen as necessary because most major policy challenges (health, education, agriculture, disaster management) require simultaneous central and state action.

• 1 NITI Aayog replaced Planning Commission (2015) specifically to promote cooperative federalism — Planning Commission's top-down approach was criticised as anti-federal
• 2 GST Council (Article 279A): Paradigm example — Centre and states jointly decide tax rates (Centre 1/3 vote; states 2/3 vote; super-majority required)
• 3 Finance Commission: Implements fiscal cooperative federalism through tax devolution (16th FC: 41%+ to states)
• 4 Inter-State Council (Article 263): Forum for cooperative federalism; rarely used
• 5 Disaster Management (NDMA-SDMA): Cooperative federal structure for disaster response
• 6 Aspirational Districts Programme: Centre-State collaboration for development of backward districts
• 7 Centrally Sponsored Schemes (CSS): Cooperative federal programmes — Centre sets policy, states implement with matching funds
• 8 Competitive federalism: States compete for FDI through Ease of Doing Business rankings; DPIIT facilitates
• 9 Critique of CSS: Often distorts state priorities; one-size-fits-all design doesn't suit diverse states

The GST Council, where any decision requires a super-majority ensuring both Centre and states agree, embodies cooperative federalism — no party can dominate. The Council has successfully resolved over 50 major rate revision rounds through consensus.