What does Article 48 of the Indian Constitution say?
Asked by: Herminio Reichel Jr. | Last update: June 15, 2026Score: 5/5 (55 votes)
Article 48 of the Indian Constitution, a Directive Principle of State Policy, directs the State to organize agriculture and animal husbandry scientifically, preserve and improve cattle breeds, and prohibit the slaughter of cows, calves, and other milch/draught cattle, while Article 48A (added later) mandates protecting and improving the environment and safeguarding forests and wildlife. These are guiding principles for policy, not directly enforceable in court, but reflect India's cultural values and commitment to ecological balance.
What is Article 48 in simple words?
Article 48, Constitution of India 1950
The State shall endeavour to organise agriculture and animal husbandry on modern and scientific lines and shall, in particular, take steps for preserving and improving the breeds, and prohibiting the slaughter, of cows and calves and other milch and draught cattle.
What are the key provisions of Article 48A?
Protection and improvement of environment and safeguarding of forests and wild life. The State shall endeavour to protect and improve the environment and to safeguard the forests and wild life of the country.
Why was article 48 introduced?
Article 48 is included as a “Directive Principle of State Policy”, meant to guide the Indian states in policy formation and its implementation, but could not be enforced in any court. All the states administered by the Government of India shall take measures for preserving and improving the breed.
How is Article 48 enforced?
The article allowed the Reich president to use the armed forces to compel any federal state to obey the lawful obligations placed on it by the Reich government.
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What was the main problem with Article 48?
Article 48 - This gave the president the power to act without parliament's approval in an emergency. However, it did not clearly define what an 'emergency' was, so the power was overused, which weakened Germans' confidence in democracy.
Who overused Article 48?
Hindenburg, not interested in the ins and outs of parliamentary politics, began to routinely use Article 48 to achieve his aims. The habit of ruling via decree rather than legislation weakened the power of the Reichstag as well as the public's confidence in the Weimar system. It also became a difficult habit to break.
Who decided when Article 48 was invoked?
But the president alone was to decide whether an emergency existed, and the first president of the Weimar Republic, Friedrich Ebert, invoked Article 48 to issue decrees 136 times, only occasionally in times of actual emergency. Dozens of political parties competed for the support of German citizens.
Do we have Hitler's DNA?
Yes, scientists have successfully analyzed Adolf Hitler's DNA from bloodstains on a sofa where he died, revealing genetic markers for conditions like Kallmann syndrome (linked to underdeveloped genitalia and puberty issues) and predispositions to certain neuropsychiatric traits, while also debunking rumors of Jewish ancestry, all detailed in a 2025 Channel 4 documentary. The DNA, extracted from a fabric swatch held by the U.S. for decades, was compared to living relatives, confirming its authenticity and providing insights into his biology, though researchers stress these findings don't explain his actions.
How do courts interpret Article 48A?
The conventional view of Rule 48(a) dismissals distinguishes between two types of motions to dismiss: (1) those where dismissal would benefit the defendant, and (2) those where dismissal might give the Government a tactical advantage against the defendant, perhaps because prosecutors seek to dismiss the case and then ...
What is the Article 48 Amendment?
Organisation of agriculture and animal husbandry. The State shall endeavour to organise agriculture and animal husbandry on modern and scientific lines and shall, in particular, take steps for preserving and improving the breeds, and prohibiting the slaughter of cows and calves and other milch and draught cattle.
Do animals have fundamental rights in India?
The Indian Constitution recognizes the sanctity of animal life and lays down the protection and treatment of animals with dignity as a fundamental duty of its citizens.
How does Article 48A affect future generations?
Article 48A of the Indian Constitution stands as a cornerstone of India's environmental governance. It mandates the State to protect, preserve, and improve the natural environment, including forests and wildlife, for the well-being of current and future generations.
What was the drawback of Article 48?
iii) Article 48 gave the President powers to impose emergency, suspend civil rights and rule by decree. iv) The system led to formation of twenty different cabinets for the duration of Weimar republic and gradually eroded the confidence of people in democratic means.
What did Article 48 allow the president to do?
Article 48 - This gave the president the power to act without parliament's approval in an emergency. However, it did not clearly define what an 'emergency' was, so the power was overused, which weakened Germans' confidence in democracy.
What did Article 48 of the New Constitution allow?
However, in the state of an emergency, Article 48 of the new constitution gave the president ultimate authority to rule by decree. There were two parliamentary houses in the Republic, the Reichstag and the Reichsrat . The chancellor was the leader of the Reichstag.
What was Hitler's view on Jesus?
Pre- vious scholarship has shown that Hitler was a firm believer in God and that he did have a positive view of Jesus even though he expressed only contempt for the Christianity of the established churches. However, the issue of whether Hitler considered Jesus divine has not been satisfactorily answered thus far.
Who saved the most Jews in WWII?
No single person saved the most Jews in WWII, but several individuals and groups rescued tens of thousands, with Raoul Wallenberg, Chiune Sugihara, Charles Lutz, and Wilfrid Israel saving vast numbers through diplomacy and protective documents, while the Danish resistance, Le Chambon-sur-Lignon villagers, and the Ładoś Group saved entire communities or thousands through organized resistance and clandestine operations.
What was bad about Article 48?
Another weakness was the increasingly frequent use of the emergency powers, established in the Constitution under Article 48. This enabled the President to rule by decree rather than consulting the Reichstag - the Chancellor would present laws to the President who would simply issue them.
What is fascism?
Fascism is a far-right, authoritarian political ideology characterized by extreme nationalism, a strong centralized government led by a dictator, militarism, and the suppression of opposition, prioritizing the nation or race above the individual and often using violence to achieve goals and maintain power. It emerged in the early 20th century, famously in Italy under Mussolini, and involves regimenting society, controlling industry, and fostering an obsessive unity under a single leader, rejecting democracy, liberalism, and communism.
Who used Article 48 the most?
By 1932 President Hindenburg had to use Article 48 to pass almost every law. It was against this backdrop that the events of 1932 and 1933 unfolded.
Did the Third Reich have a Constitution?
Although it was de facto set aside by the Enabling Act of 1933, the constitution remained legal-technically in effect throughout the Nazi era from 1933 to 1945 and also during the Allied occupation of Germany from 1945 to 1949.
What happened on January 30th, 1933?
On January 30, 1933, Adolf Hitler was appointed Chancellor of Germany by President Paul von Hindenburg, a pivotal event that marked the Nazis' rise to power and the beginning of Germany's transformation from a democracy into a one-party dictatorship, leading to radical racial policies and the persecution of Jews and political opponents, celebrated that night with a massive torchlight parade in Berlin.
What if Article 48 never existed?
I think that the absence of Article 48 might have made it much more difficult for the Nazis to rise to power. Even before Hitler was appointed Chancellor, the article had been invoked multiple times for what we're seen as purely political reasons, rather than the emergency measure it was supposed to be.