-Down to Earth   Most severely and consistently excluded groups are women, Adivasis, Muslims and the disabled, report confirms A recent report by a Delhi NGO undermines government claims on reaching welfare schemes to the needy and disadvantaged sections of society. The report, titled The India Exclusion Report 2013-14, says the government has failed miserably in providing equal access to public goods to the most disadvantaged groups. The report, prepared by Delhi-based Centre for...

It is dedicated to learning and educating about the process and politics of policy making in the government, and to enable people to participate in this process so the policies and laws being formulated are in public interest. Sambhaavnaa aims to strengthen Indian democracy by holding the government accountable to the people and protecting their Fundamental Rights. It is committed to bringing this vision to the public policy making process...

-The Hindu   ‘Need to ascertain adequacy of existing safeguards against wrong convictions' The Law Commission has called for a reassessment of the need for the death penalty. In a consultation paper released on Friday, the Commission said: "At this juncture, an exhaustive study on the subject would be a useful and salutary contribution to the cause of public debate on this issue. Such a study will also provide a definitive research-backed orientation to...

-The Business Standard   Policy must target faster growth in labour-intensive sectors It was reported on Wednesday that a sample of large manufacturing companies saw their workforce grow at an average rate of almost three per cent every year over the past decade. Putting aside technical niceties such as the representativeness of the sample, to the extent that the companies covered are mostly market leaders in their respective sectors, this statistic is very...

-The Hindu   Where prison facilities are not equipped to deal with the specific needs of persons with disabilities, arrest and detention in custody should be a measure of last resort We have a slew of cases around prisoners' rights that emphasise their right to dignity and their right against cruel and degrading punishment, which have been understood to violate the right to life, guaranteed by Article 21 of the Indian Constitution. In...