Page:White Paper on Indian States (1950).pdf/96

 Unions of States which included, at the time, Vindhya Pradesh. Each of these was reported upon. And it is with them that this Chapter is mainly concerned, although occasionally there will be a reference to Baroda also. All of them are hereinafter referred to as "States" except when any reference to a Union o States becomes specially necessary.

After the Committee's recommendations had been examined in detail by the Government of India, personal discussions and negotiations with representatives of States were commenced on the 26th September 1949 and concluded on the 9th October 1949. The agreed results of these negotiations were recorded in each case in the form of a short "Memorandum of Agreement".  

188. Meanwhile, the Constituent Assembly took up the Draft Constitution of India for second reading and embodied into it certain provisions designed to bring the States into the future Union of India on practically the same basis as the Provinces of India. The relevant provisions of the Constitution of India to which reference may be made in this connection are:—

These provisions furnished the necessary constitutional framework within which could be set the financial integration of the States with the rest of India at the federal level, on the lines recommended by the Indian States Finances Enquiry Committee. Those recommendations are explained in the following paragraphs.  

189. The fundamental basis of the Committee's approach was that financial integration must necessarily be viewed as merely an essential part of the general federal integration of India resulting from the fact that under the "Objectives" Resolution of the Constituent Assembly the Provinces and the States alike would be equal partners in the Union of India. 