We have come far from the independence era and it has been 66+ years of democracy in the country. Democracy, by definition implies equal rights and opportunity for citizens and equal treatment in the eyes of the law. However, the equality aspect from the ‘India Shining’ story is suspiciously missing from the horizon.
Youth Ki Awaaz in collaboration with Centre For Equity Studies organized a hangout to discuss the rising inequality in the country. The Centre launched the India Exclusion Report 2013-14, to be released on 25th June 2014 and the discussion with an eminent panel revolved around pertinent questions about the role of governance policy and how certain communities and classes have been left out from the inclusivity ideal that the government began with.
The discussion started with voicing issues around inclusive education and the impact of Right to Education in changing the conditions for children of the country. Harsh Mander who is the Special Commissioner to the Supreme Court of India in the Right to Food case and the Director of Centre for Equity Studies (CES) in New Delhi, led the discussion around the missing links in the systems that change destinies of some and discriminate others. Kiran Bhatty, who is a Senior Fellow at the Centre for Policy Research (CPR) in New Delhi, highlighted the narrow focus of policies and also pointed towards the need to refrain from generic statements and promises.