Fundamental Rights of the citizens of India
The
Constitution offers all citizens, individually and collectively, some basic
freedoms. These are guaranteed in the Constitution in the form of six broad
categories of Fundamental Rights, which are justifiable. Article 12 to 35
contained in Part III of the Constitution deal with Fundamental Rights. These
are:
- Right
to equality, including equality before law, prohibition of discrimination on
grounds of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth, and equality of
opportunity in matters of employment.
- Right
to freedom of speech and expression, assembly, association or union, movement,
residence, and right to practice any profession or occupation (some of these
rights are subject to security of the State, friendly relations with foreign
countries, public order, decency or morality).
- Right
against exploitation, prohibiting all forms of forced labour, child labour and
traffic in human beings.
- Right
to freedom of conscience and free profession, practice, and propagation of
religion.
- Right
of any section of citizens to conserve their culture, language or script, and
right of minorities to establish and administer educational institutions of
their choice; and
- Right
to constitutional remedies for enforcement of Fundamental Rights.
Fundamental duties of the citizens of India
The
following are the Fundamental Duties prescribed by the "Constitution
of the nation" under PART [IV-A] to its every citizen:
- To abide by the Constitution and respect its
ideals and institutions, the National Flag and the National Anthem.
- To cherish and follow the noble ideals which
inspired our national struggle for freedom.
- To uphold and protect the sovereignty, unity
and integrity of India.
- To defend the country and render national
service when called upon to do so.
- To promote harmony and the spirit of common
brotherhood amongst all the people of India transcending religious, linguistic
and regional or sectional diversities; to renounce practices derogatory to the
dignity of women.
- To value and preserve the rich heritage of our
composite culture.
- To protect and improve the natural environment
including forests, lakes, rivers and wild life, and to have compassion for
living creatures.
- To develop the scientific temper, humanism and
the spirit of inquiry and reform.
- To safeguard public property and to abjure
violence.
- To
strive towards excellence in all spheres of individual and collective activity
so that the nation constantly rises to higher levels of endeavor and
achievement.
The Directive Principles of State Policy (DPSP)
The Directive Principles of State Policy (DPSP) are a set of
guidelines and principles laid down in the Constitution of India to guide the
government in its decision-making process. These principles are
non-justifiable, meaning that they cannot be enforced by a court of law, but
they are considered fundamental in the governance of the country. In this
article, we will be discussing the Directive Principles of State Policy and their
importance in shaping the policies and actions of the government.
1. The origin of Directive Principles of State Policy
The Directive Principles of State Policy were inspired by
the Irish Constitution of 1937, which laid down a set of principles for the government
to follow in its decision-making process. The framers of the Indian
Constitution believed that these principles were essential for the welfare and
development of the people and the nation as a whole.
2. The main principles
The Directive Principles of State Policy are divided into
three categories: social, economic, and political. The main principles include:
• The State shall strive to promote the welfare of the
people by securing and protecting as effectively as it may a social order in
which justice, social, economic and political, shall inform all the
institutions of the national life.
• The State shall, in particular, strive to minimize the
inequalities in income, and endeavor to eliminate inequalities in status,
facilities, and opportunities, not only amongst individuals but also amongst
groups of people residing in different areas or engaged in different vocations.
• The State shall, in particular, direct its policy towards
securing that the ownership and control of the material resources of the
community are so distributed as best to subserve the common good.
3. The role of Directive Principles of State Policy
The Directive Principles of State Policy serve as a guiding
light for the government in its decision-making process. They provide a framework
for the government to follow in order to promote the welfare and development of
the people and the nation as a whole. They also serve as a check on the
government's actions, ensuring that they are in line with the principles of
social, economic, and political justice.
4. The implementation of Directive Principles of State
Policy
The implementation of Directive Principles of State Policy
is the responsibility of the government. However, the judiciary has the power
to review the actions of the government and ensure that they are in line with
the principles laid down in the Constitution. Additionally, the people also
have a role to play in ensuring that the government is implementing these
principles through their participation in the democratic process.
These principles serve as a framework for the government to
follow in order to promote the welfare and development of the people and the
nation as a whole. The implementation of these principles is the responsibility
of the government, but the judiciary and the people also have a role to play in
ensuring that they are being implemented effectively.
The Directive Principles of State Policy (DPSP) are a set of
guidelines and principles laid down in the Constitution of India to guide the
government in its decision-making process. These principles are
non-justifiable, meaning that they cannot be enforced by a court of law, but
they are considered fundamental in the governance of the country. In this
article, we will be discussing the specific Directive Principles of State
Policy outlined in articles 34 to 51 of the Indian Constitution.
- Article 38: State to secure a social order for the
promotion of welfare of the people.
(1) The State shall
strive to promote the welfare of the people by securing and protecting as
effectively as it may a social order in which justice, social, economic and
political, shall inform all the institutions of the national life.
(2) The State shall,
in particular, strive to minimize the inequalities in income, and endeavor to
eliminate inequalities in status, facilities and opportunities, not only
amongst individuals but also amongst groups of people residing in different
areas or engaged in different vocations.
- Article 39: Secure citizens
The State shall, in
particular, direct its policy towards securing—
(a) that the citizens, men and women equally, have the right
to an adequate means of livelihood;
(b) that the ownership and control of the material resources
of the community are so distributed as best to subserve the common good;
(c) that the operation of the economic system does not
result in the concentration of wealth and means of production to the common
detriment;
(d) that there is equal pay for equal work for both men and
women;
(e) that the health and strength of workers, men and women,
and the tender age of children are not abused and that citizens are not forced
by economic necessity to enter avocations unsuited to their age or strength; 1
(f) that children are given opportunities and facilities to
develop in a healthy manner and in conditions of freedom and dignity and that
childhood and youth are protected against exploitation and against moral and
material abandonment.
- Article
39A: Equal justice and free legal aid
The State
shall secure that the operation of the legal system promotes justice, on a
basis of equal opportunity, and shall, in particular, provide free legal aid,
by suitable legislation or schemes or in any other way, to ensure that
opportunities for securing justice are not denied to any citizen by reason of
economic or other disabilities.
- Article *40: Organization of village panchayats.(Part 9 Article 243)
The State
shall take steps to organize village panchayats and endow them with such powers
and authority as may be necessary to enable them to function as units of
self-government.
- Article
41: Right to work, to education and to public assistance in certain cases.
The State
shall, within the limits of its economic capacity and development, make
effective provision for securing the right to work, to education and to public
assistance in cases of unemployment, old age, sickness and disablement, and in
other cases of undeserved want.
- Article
42: Provision for just and humane conditions of work and maternity relief
The State
shall make provision for securing just and humane conditions of work and for
maternity relief.
- Article
43: Living wage, etc., for workers.
The State
shall endeavor to secure, by suitable legislation or economic organization or
in any other way, to all workers, agricultural, industrial or otherwise, work,
a living wage, conditions of work ensuring a decent standard of life and full
enjoyment of leisure and social and cultural opportunities and, in particular,
the State shall endeavor to promote cottage industries on an individual or
co-operative basis in rural areas.
- Article 43A:
Participation of workers in management of industries
The State
shall take steps, by suitable legislation or in any other way, to secure the
participation of workers in the management of undertakings, establishments or
other organizations engaged in any industry.
- Article 44:
Uniform civil code for the citizens.
The State
shall endeavor to secure for the citizens a uniform civil code throughout the
territory of India.
- Article *45:
Provision for free and compulsory education for children
The State
shall endeavor to provide, within a period of ten years from the commencement
of this Constitution, for free and compulsory education for all children until
they complete the age of fourteen years.
- Article 46:
Promotion of educational and economic interests of Scheduled Castes, Scheduled
Tribes and other weaker sections.
The State
shall promote with special care the educational and economic interests of the
weaker sections of the people, and, in particular, of the Scheduled Castes and
the Scheduled Tribes, and shall protect them from social injustice and all
forms of exploitation.
- Article 47:
Duty of the State to raise the level of nutrition and the standard of living
and to improve public health The State shall regard the raising of the
level of nutrition and the standard of living of its people and the improvement
of public health as among its primary duties and, in particular, the State
shall endeavor to bring about prohibition of the consumption except for
medicinal purposes of intoxicating drinks and of drugs which are injurious to
health.
- Article 48:
Organization of agriculture and animal husbandry
The State
shall endeavor to organize 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.
- Article 48A:
Protection and improvement of environment and safeguarding of forests and wild
life
The State
shall endeavor to protect and improve the environment and to safeguard the
forests and wild life of the country.
- Article 49:
Protection of monuments and places and objects of national importance.
It shall be
the obligation of the State to protect every monument or place or object of
artistic or historic interest, 2 [declared by or under law made by Parliament]
to be of national importance, from spoliation, disfigurement, destruction,
removal, disposal or export, as the case may be.
- Article 50:
Separation of judiciary from executive
The State shall take steps to separate the
judiciary from the executive in the public services of the State.
- Article 51:
Promotion of international peace and security
(a) Promote
international peace and security;
(b) Maintain
just and honorable relations between nations;
(c) Foster
respect for international law and treaty obligations in the dealings of
organized peoples with one another; and
(d) Encourage
settlement of international disputes by arbitration.
