Spastic Society Project
The HRC has been associated with the Spastic Society of India (SSOI), Mumbai. As part of the ADAPT (Able Disabled All People Together) initiative of the SSOI, HRC recently undertook the Access Audit Project. A social access audit was conducted in government buildings and hotels in Pune. The law ensures accessibility for disabled people to government buildings and hotels. This project sought to review the implementation of this law.
The HRC has also completed the Will Project with the Spastic Society of India. Pamphlets were prepared to encourage people to bequeath a part of their estate to benefit disabled persons.
Yerwada Prison Project
The Yerwada prison project is one of the oldest projects undertaken by the HRC. The basic motive of the Yerwada Prison Project was to educate inmates at the jail and to enhance their knowledge of basic rights and options to legal recourse. The project involved the forming of core groups comprising of HRC members. They acted both as research cells and interactive groups, scouring the law for relevant provisions which may be applicable to these prisoners and interacting with them on a weekly or fortnightly basis. The inmates were informed of their basic rights and the recourses to law which were available to them while in prison. A vast majority of under-trials were unaware of the general provisions of law, the reasons and terms for their imprisonment and the charges under which they were detained. In many instances, the offences they were charged with; imposed on them only a few months of imprisonment, whereas they had been detained for years together. In order to resolve such issues the members of the Yerwada Prison Project held special Legal Aid Clinics for the prisoners. Case studies were conducted and the entire case history of the under-trial or prisoner was studied in detail and case specific legal provisions and statutes were analyzed so as to provide expeditious judicial decisions.
The Yerwada prison project is one of the oldest projects undertaken by the HRC. The basic motive of the Yerwada Prison Project was to educate inmates at the jail and to enhance their knowledge of basic rights and options to legal recourse. The project involved the forming of core groups comprising of HRC members. They acted both as research cells and interactive groups, scouring the law for relevant provisions which may be applicable to these prisoners and interacting with them on a weekly or fortnightly basis. The inmates were informed of their basic rights and the recourses to law which were available to them while in prison. A vast majority of under-trials were unaware of the general provisions of law, the reasons and terms for their imprisonment and the charges under which they were detained. In many instances, the offences they were charged with; imposed on them only a few months of imprisonment, whereas they had been detained for years together. In order to resolve such issues the members of the Yerwada Prison Project held special Legal Aid Clinics for the prisoners. Case studies were conducted and the entire case history of the under-trial or prisoner was studied in detail and case specific legal provisions and statutes were analyzed so as to provide expeditious judicial decisions.
Over the years the HRC has been working with the Yerwada Prison to help prisoners realize their basic, fundamental and elementary rights. Our emphasis has always been to visualize a human existence which centers not on mere survival, but living life to its fullest.
Pravda – The Human Rights Festival
The Human Rights Cell organized a National Human Rights Festival in February, 2004. It was titled “Pravda” - the Dawn which symbolizes change. The festival sought to facilitate a free exchange of experiences and networking of effective actions group with the view of establishing a national community dedicated to human rights.
It was a festival not only geared to disseminate knowledge and the understanding of international human right norms and their applications, but also to emphatically bolster the commitment of the HRC to this cause. The Festival was inaugurated on the 7th February 2004, in the presence of a number of luminaries and social activists in the arena of human rights. A brief discussion on human rights, followed by a live talk show between activists and the victims of atrocities became the highlight of the day. The day ended with a merchandise sale organized by assorted NGOs to gather funds for socially disadvantaged sections. The second day of the festival commenced with a workshop conducted by “Child Relief and You”. Local NGOs such as Akanksha, Janseva, Preet Mandir were also invited to initiate talks on impediments faced by the student community. It addressed firstly, the lack of clarity with respect to the concerned authorities who are to be approached during the course of field work activities and secondly, the lack of a uniform structure in networking and a reliable, efficient support system that could assist fieldwork and legal aid.
A play that was written, organized and directed by the members of the cell was staged. The play centered on the nexus between administrative and legal loopholes and its contribution to human rights violations.
The focal point of the festival was to provide a platform for the creation, promotion and strengthening of a national community, capable of expanding or merging into an international framework.
Bal Adhikar Sanrakshan
“Bal Adhikar Sanrakshan – From Perception to Reality”, is a national research project that brought forth issues such as child sexual abuse, child labour, juvenile delinquency, juvenile health, education and gender issues. It addressed various aspects of violations against children. Extensive research and fieldwork was carried on and data was compiled from various cities of India. The report was compiled by the members of HRC over a span of one year.
Flood Relief
In July 2005, continuous rainfall saw the occurrence of floods in the state of Maharashtra. The Human Rights Cell with the Center for Youth Development and Activities (CYDA) set out to help the people in the flood stricken areas of Panchet, Kohlapur, Solahpur and Sangli.
The CYDA entrusted the HRC with the task of distributing food to the people of the flood-affected areas. Along with food supplies, the members carried with them basic medicines, stoves, clothes and PVC sheets that would provide a temporary shelter and allow them to sustain themselves till further permanent rehabilitation measures are undertaken.
Cry Campaign
HRC has had the opportunity of being associated with the “Child Relief and You” (CRY) Foundation. HRC has contributed to the ongoing projects which included the Sunshine Pencils projects and the fundraising for the rehabilitation of underprivileged children, and so forth. CRY was also an active participant of the HRC festival “Pravda”, organized in February 2003. CRY has also conducted a workshop that elucidated its methodology of work. This was followed by a discourse on an effective approach towards fieldwork.