The Indian Constitution is called a ‘living document’: Why?

A document that can be changed at any point of time, even after being finalised, is called a Living Document. And the greatest example of this is the Constitution of India. Yes, the document governing all of us is never ‘closed’. It’s always open to changes, and it’s us, the people of India, whose needs are reflected in the changes. That’s what makes the Indian Constitution a dynamic or a living document, always open to editing. This is in contrast to the Constitution of USA, and many other nations. Though it’s one of the shortest constitutions, changing the US Constitution is so difficult that it’s nearly impossible. But ours is a living document, open to changes, reflecting the spirit of the Republic of India.  

How did the authors of the Indian Constitution foresee it might need to be changed?   
People change over time. This is true for a country too. So, the founding father of the Constitution, Dr. B.R. Ambedkar, knew for certain that the huge document he was drafting with so much effort will not always remain acceptable. It took the Constituent Assembly almost 3 years to finalise it. And one of the processes detailed in it was how to change it in future.   

Given that the Indian democracy was just being formed, and our economy was that of a developing nation, changing the Constitution in a timely manner was deemed to be a prerequisite. Our society was also fated to undergo a lot of changes. All this can be reflected in the Constitution.  

How can the Indian Constitution be amended?  
Changing the Constitution is called amending it. So far, we have seen a lot of amendments made to our Constitution. There are 3 categories in which these amendments can be made:   

Simple majority: The first category passing the amendment in both houses of the parliament, following certain rules regarding the minimum number of attendees involved and procedures of passing it.   

Special majority: In this category, a higher number of members need to be present in both houses, and President’s approval is a must.  

Absolute majority: This category of amendments is difficult to pass. In addition to the special majority mentioned in the category above, the amendment should also be approved by at least 50% of state legislatures.