73RD AMENDMENT ACT

Panchayats have been the backbone of grass-root democracy in the Indian

villages since its beginning. 73rdAmendment Act, 1992 introduced the
three-tier Panchayati Raj system to ensure people’s participation in rural
reconstruction in general and that of women in particular.
Provisions for women in the 73 rd amendment act:
1. The Act provides for the reservation of not less than one-third of the
total number of seats for women (including the number of seats
reserved for the SCs and STs).
2. Further not less than one-third of the total number of offices of
chairpersons in the Panchayats at each level shall be reserved for
women. This would be rotated among different Panchayats at each
level.
Women empowerment through 73 rd Amendment Act: Women’s
experience of being involved with the PRl has transformed many of them.
They have gained a sense of empowerment by asserting control over
resources, officials & most of all, by challenging men. They have become
articulate & conscious of their power.
1. Political empowerment: The Act provides for the reservation of
not less than one-third of the total number of seats for women. It is
an attempt to ensure greater participation of women in election
process directly and indirectly. It would be the nursery of creating
women politicians for national politics. Even the participation of
common women citizens in various activities such as attending Gram
Sabha meeting, etc. has reportedly increased (68-78 percent).
2. Economic empowerment: Women are actively participating in
rural development as per their capacity right from labourers to
policy-makers. This empower them economically and help them in
being independent.
3. Decision-making: The participation of women as elected as well as
non-elected members are rising due to reservation for women. It acts
as pull factor for women to participate in meeting. They give their
suggestions for various works and problems faced by them. This
empower them and enable them to take decisions in different spheres
of life.
 4. Raise in voice: Despite their low- literacy level, they have been able
to tackle the political & bureaucratic system successfully. They have
used their elected authority to address, critical issues such as
education, drinking water facilities, family planning facilities, hygiene
& health, quality of healthcare & village development.
5. Empowerment of other women: Women are acting as an agent
of change in the society and raising voice against injustice and
atrocities. Women role has led to raise of voice by women against
domestic violence and other atrocities. Women is being empowered
to active participation and awareness of women about their rights
and power.
6. Reduction in violence against women: Domestic violence has
substantially declined due to women pradhan or sarpanch. These
women representatives take pro-actively take up such violence. The
victims also feel free to share their grievances to women
representatives.

What Is Sustainable
Development and Its
Importance?
Sustainable development is a practice performed by both developed

countries and developing countries. It aims to solve the issues we are

faced with today while leaving an opportunity for future generations to

solve their own issues.

Sustainable development considers environmental issues, economic

concerns, and social problems. The goal of focusing on these aspects of

human life is to ensure the prosperity of life on Earth for many

generations to come.
How Does Sustainable Development Help the Environment?
It’s essential to recognize the environmental impacts of development in order to

preserve the health of the planet in the future. Today, we are faced with climate
change as a result of unsustainable development practices. We must focus on

environmental sustainability moving forward.

Our industrial practices have resulted in increased greenhouse gas

concentrations and, as a result, global warming that harms Earth’s natural

habitats and human prosperity for the future. If our unsustainable development

continues, future generations will have to bear the environmental burden we

have created for them. Some of the environmental issues unsustainable

practices create include:

• Extreme weather patterns
• The devastation of ecosystems
• Lack of food
• Water scarcity
• Public health issues

Fortunately, sustainable development practices provide an outline for restoring

the health of the environment so that future generations may prosper. Climate

action involves understanding our environmental impacts as the first step in

creating more sustainable development at a global level.

We know our actions have caused global warming, so we now must develop

strategies to reduce our environmental impact. Transitioning to renewable

energy and clean energy and protecting our planet’s natural resources ensure

that future generations will have a healthy environment full of abundance and
prosperity.
How Does Sustainable Development Help the Economy?
Sustainable economic development considers economic prosperity for humans

around the world. One of the greatest threats to humans is extreme poverty

that has been created as a result of unsustainable development. Economic

sustainable development aims to provide equal economic opportunity and a fair

chance at prosperity for all individuals around the world.

Unsustainable economic practices include the depletion of natural resources in a

nation so that future generations suffer economically. They also include the

unfair treatment of certain individuals, like women and girls, that ultimately

stagnates the opportunity for economic growth.

In order to guarantee the future is one with economic sustainable development,

we must ensure that economies are prepared to grow moving into the future.

This means setting up economic structures that include responsible banking and

other financial institutes. In addition, all members of nations must be provided

an equal opportunity for economic prosperity. As fair and equal economic

prosperity flourishes, the quality of human life around the globe will improve.
How Does Sustainable Development Help Society?
Sustainable development aims to create a civil society that is peaceful and

prosperous. Violence and fear within society are not beneficial to sustainable

development. Instead, we must focus on creating societies that are peaceful,

just, and inclusive.

Society is riddled with violence and exploitation of innocent humans around the

world. Whether these atrocities occur within legal systems or outside of the law,

they must be altered in order to create a sustainable social future for people all

over the globe.

Ending violence and exploitation is a top priority of sustainable development.

When society is absent of these threats, humans will have the opportunity to

achieve prosperity at a social and economic level.

Ending discrimination within law and institutions is another essential aspect of

creating an environment where people can prosper and where social suffering

can end. Sustainable development will protect human rights around the globe.
The Right to Information
Historical Background

The right to information is a fundamental right under Article 19 (1) of the

Indian Constitution. In 1976, in the Raj Narain vs the State of Uttar Pradesh
case, the Supreme Court ruled that Right to information will be treated as a
fundamental right under article 19. The Supreme Court held that in Indian
democracy, people are the masters and they have the right to know about
the working of the government.

Thus the government enacted the Right to Information act in 2005 which
provides machinery for exercising this fundamental right.

To know more in detail about the Constitution of India, visit the linked
article.

The Right to Information Act of 2005

The act is one of the most important acts which empowers ordinary citizens
to question the government and its working. This has been widely used by
citizens and media to uncover corruption, progress in government work,
expenses-related information, etc.

The primary goal of the Right to Information Act is to empower citizens,

promote openness and accountability in government operations, combat
corruption, and make our democracy truly function for the people. It goes
without saying that an informed citizen is better equipped to keep a required
track on governance instruments and hold the government responsible to
the governed. The Act is a significant step in informing citizens about the
activities of the government.

All constitutional authorities, agencies, owned and controlled, also those

organisations which are substantially financed by the government comes
under the purview of the act. The act also mandates public authorities of
union government or state government, to provide timely response to the
citizens’ request for information.

The act also imposes penalties if the authorities delay in responding to the
citizen in the stipulated time.
Objectives of the RTI Act

1. Empower citizens to question the government.

2. The act promotes transparency and accountability in the working of the
government.
3. The act also helps in containing corruption in the government and work for the
people in a better way.
4. The act envisages building better-informed citizens who would keep necessary
vigil about the functioning of the government machinery.

Right to Education Act

The Indian Parliament sanctioned the Right to Education Act under Article 21a on
4th August 2009. The Act was passed to offer free and compulsory education to
children in the age group of 6-14 years. The purpose of the Act is to enable the
proper education of every child in India irrespective of family income, gender, caste,
or creed.

Importance of the Right to Education Act

The Right to Education Act is important because it offers a right to every child in our
nation to gain the necessary education to develop their skills for a better future.

The right to free and compulsory education is important for these important reasons:

• Proper education brings financial security and stability in life.

• Quality education narrows the social gap by uplifting the underprivileged communities
of society.
• Education for children enhances analytical skills and critical thinking leads to confidence
in making the right decisions and expressing feelings in a better way.
• Quality education helps in reducing crime and this makes society a better and more
peaceful place to live in.

Roles and Responsibilities of Right to Education

There are roles and responsibilities under the Right to Education Act.

1. Free and Compulsory Education

The Government has to provide compulsory elementary education up to Class 8 for

free to every child. The child will not only have a free education in terms of school
fees but also will get other essential elements such as uniforms, textbooks,
stationery items, and other necessary items for free so that there is no hindrance in
the completion of education.
2. Minimum Standards

Any elementary school in India will have to maintain the standards set by the Right to
Education Act in terms of teacher-student ratio, availability of drinking water, proper
classrooms, proper attendance of teachers, separate toilets for boys and girls,
number of days the school will work, and others.

3. Special Cases

According to an important responsibility of the Right to Education Act, any student

who has dropped out of school for any reason should be admitted to a class
appropriate for the child’s age. Also, the child should be provided enough attention
so that the child can cope with the failings and can become equal to other students
in the same class.

4. Teachers

There is a particular teacher-pupil ratio that has to be maintained in every elementary

school, irrespective of the fact whether the school is in an urban area or a rural area. The
teachers who are deployed to the schools should have a proper academic qual ification that
is necessary for entry into such schools. Deployment of teachers is conducted seriously to
ensure proper learning.

6. Minimize Detention

The Right to Education Act also ensures that there is lesser detention of students in
each class. In this light, Continuous Comprehensive Evaluation has been introduced
to improve the students' performance. This system evaluates all the areas of the
child’s development and the teachers work on the weak points to make them
improve their performance and grades.

7. Monitoring Compliance

All the schools under the Right to Education Act need to come up with a School
Management Committee that will consist of the head teacher, parents, community
members, locally elected representatives, and many others. The responsibility of the
committee will be to ensure that the school is functioning correctly and also to plan
for the school’s development in the future.

8. Justiciable

One of the eminent points is that the Right to Education is justiciable. There is a
proper Grievance Redressal system where people can mention if any of the
regulations or responsibilities of the Right to Education Act is not being managed
properly. The schools are public properties and so the school should announce any
changes in their regulations in public.