-TheWire.in Based on a militarised notion of ‘targeting’, such welfare policies deny citizens the right to basic services. In an incisive analysis on anti-poverty and other social security programmes, Professor Amartya Sen astutely asks why the notion of targeting, which is essentially a military concept, is so routinely invoked in analytical discourses on basic welfare rights for the people as well as in policy framing in this respect. Indeed, why would an...
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Uttar Pradesh's child death crisis -Ramanan Laxminarayan
-Livemint.com The Gorakhpur tragedy must be seen against the larger backdrop of public health failure in Uttar Pradesh The recent tragedy of more than 85 children and newborns who died in Gorakhpur has, not for the first time, put the spotlight starkly on the country’s ailing public health system. The lack of all things important to human settlements—sanitation, disease Surveillance, primary healthcare, tertiary hospitals, resources, life-saving equipment, political will and public health...
More »Privacy: Many-splendoured right which needs to be at forefront of civil liberties -Madhavi Goradia Divan
-Hindustan Times The judgment in Puttaswamy takes privacy far beyond the confines of Article 21 and weaves it into other fundamental rights such as the freedom of conscience, the freedom of assembly and the freedom of occupation. Fundamental rights were once described by the Supreme Court as “empty vessels into which each generation must pour its content in light of its experience” (PUCL v Union of India (2003) 4 SCC 399). Close to...
More »FAQ: What the Right to Privacy Judgment Means for Aadhaar and Mass Surveillance
-TheWire.in Does the right to privacy becoming a fundamental right mean the Aadhaar programme is unconstitutional or will be shut down? The Wire explains. New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Thursday (August 24) ruled that all Indians enjoy a fundamental right to privacy, a right that is protected under Article 21 of the constitution. But what does this mean for the government’s Aadhaar programme? Is it going to be shut down? How does...
More »Aadhaar rebels find ways to avoid PAN linkage -Namita Devidayal & Lubna Kably
-The Times of India MUMBAI: In a quiet display of dissent, numerous taxpayers across the country have opted to file their tax returns manually, via snail-mail, rather than get an Aadhaar card. Many others filed their returns online early, prior to June 30, when the Aadhaar linkage was not mandatory. "Technically you should be able to file online even if you don't have an Aadhaar card, but the e-filing system does not...
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