Preamble is the philosophical key to the Constitution. Examine?

Preamble of Indian Constitution:-

We, the people of india sovereignly resolved to constitute india into sovereign, socialist, secular, democratic republic and to secure all its citizens.

Justice Social, Economical and Political

Liberty of though, belief, faith, expression and worship

Equality of status and of opportunity and to promote among them all

Fraternity assuring the dignity of individual and unity and integrity of the nation

In our constituent assembly this twenty-sixth day of November, 1949 do here by adopt enact and give ourselves this constitution.

Preamble is philosophical key to constitution. It contains very broad and philosophical terms like socialism,  Secularism, Liberty and others, which represents entire constitutional provisions of India. These provisions can be explained in the following way.

Sovereignty:-

India can make or unmake its own decisions without interference of the external force. thatswhy, we are sovereign. According to the constitution, The Sovereignty comes from the two phrases in the preamble. “ We the people of India” and “ Adopt, enact and Give ourselves this constitution”.  this shows popular sovereignty, which is derived from the people. 

Unlike other federal countries, No state has individual sovereignty(from article 1,2,3,4). India has collective consciousness in exercising the sovereignty, which can also be seen from the citizenship chapter of the indian constitution, which says, India, whole have the single citizenship.

Socialist:-

If Production of means and resources are placed in public hands instead of private individuals then that is called socialism. Here Public hand means State, which represents the will and wishes of the people.

Objectives of the socialisms are Elimination of economic inequality, and inequality in Status, Opportunity and standard of living, which can be cited in the directive principles of state policy(quote articles), Fundamental rights(article 16)

Secularism:-

Unlike western philosophy, Secularism in India is not complete separation of state from religion or Dharm Nirpeksh. It is being equidistant to all religions Sarva Dharma Sambhava. In this context, one can say state has no religion. Secularism gives the freedom of religion and affirms the equality which can be observed in article 25-28 and 44 of indian constitution and welfare of all people irrespective of their creed, caste or religion.

Secularism reaffirms the “Equality of the status and of opportunity” and  “fraternity assuring the dignity of individual and unity and integrity of nation”.

“Secular State protect all religions, doesnt favour any religion at the expense of another and doesnt proclaim any religion as the state religion” - Jawaharlal Nehru.

Characteristics of Secular State:-

1. State Doesnt allow all sort of religious dominations such as Inter religious and intra religious domination
2. State promotes the freedom that is freedom of conscience, to profess, practice and propagate the religion.
3. State promotes the equality within and between the religions.
4. State completely against the majority communalism.

Democratic:-

Democracy, where the state is run by representatives, who are elected by the sovereign people. In india, people enjoys the Universal Adult Franchise, which emanates from right to vote, article 326.

Republic:-

In Republic, there is no hereditary monarchy as the head of the state. In India Head of the State is elected by the people of the country and all the public offices also thrown out to the public.

Justice :- 

Justice is fair and moral treatment of all in formulating and implementing the law. Justice cannot be restricted to courts, where laws are being interpreted. Justice encompasses the social, economical and political elements. 

In social Justice, Whole Society shall progress without a single section is falling behind and being exploited. 

In economic Justice, When fruits of the growth are not reaching the some sections of the society, then Economic Justice kicks in Redistribution of the fruits of economy for the progress and prosperity of whole sections.

In Political Justice, every adult person has the right to vote(article 326) and has the right to contest for the public offices.

Liberty:- 

of though, belief, faith , expression and worship.

article 19, 20, 21 & 22 and many other articles protect and preserves the individual Liberty.

Equality:- 

of status and of opportunity and to promote among them all.

article 14, 15, 16, 17 and 18 are some of the provisions that promotes and ensures the equality between all citizens and reduces the inequality between them.

Fraternity:-

Increases the brotherhood and unity and integrity of the nation, which are part of nation building process.


In this way, we can say, provisions of preamble are very broad and deep in explaining the nature of indian constitution.

Recognition of tribal rights over non-timber forest products (NTFPs) would accelerate empowerment of the poor and marginalised. Comment.

Forest rights act , 2006 brought following rights tribal, who are historically being exploited and excluded from their home lands:

Rights over forest land for habitation and cultivation, 
Right of ownership, access to collect, use, and dispose of minor forest produce, 
Right to govern and manage any community forest resource which they have been traditionally conserving for sustainable use.

Potential:-

* 275 million people depend on NTFPs with a turnover of at least Rs 6,000 crore per annum. There is a strong potential to scale up NTFP collection and processing.

* A source of development and poverty alleviation.

* Maharashtra’s Vidarbha region, where community rights under FRA have been implemented at scale, with almost 5.86 lakh hectares of forests being transferred to the jurisdiction of gram sabhas. 

* Information from 247 villages from this region reveals how ownership over minor forest produce, specially tendu leaves and bamboo, has improved the economic condition of forest dwellers. These villages earned a total of nearly Rs 35 crore in 2017 by selling NTFPs.

* Due to the increased income, socio-economic status has increased, which in-turned has reduced migration and increased reverse-migration, which is good sign incase of tribals, who are in general suffered from human trafficking, exploitation, oppression, forced labour and other forms of exploitation due to migration. 

* The recognition of rights over forests and forest products has transferred the decision-making power to communities to decide when, where, how and to whom to sell their non-timber forest products and how to govern their forests. 

* The FRA also fosters democratic control over customary forests by forest-dependent communities, ensuring more effective, sustainable and people-oriented forest conservation, management and restoration. For instance, in the aforementioned districts in the Vidarbha region, the recognition of community rights over forest resources and land has led to dramatic reduction in incidence of forest fires. The forest cover regeneration has improved and indiscriminate felling and diversion of forests has been contested.

* A report of the Rights and Resources Initiative (2015) suggests that if the FRA is implemented properly, it could lead to the recognition of the rights of at least 150 million forest-dwelling people over 40 million hectares of forestland in more than 1,70,000 villages. The economic impact of this could be huge in rural areas as NTFPs constitute about 20 per cent to 40 per cent of the annual income of forest dwellers. It provides them critical subsistence during the lean seasons, particularly for tribal groups such as hunter-gatherers, and the landless. Given that most of the NTFPs are collected, used and sold by women, it would also lead to financial and social empowerment for millions of women.

In this way, Forest Rights become boon for the socio-economic development of Tribal People and also ensures the Protection and sustainable growth of forest land in India.

Child Labour in India

According Official Estimates, nearly 10-17 million children are engaged in some or other forms of labour in India and living outside their childhood. 

Child labour is a violation of fundamental human rights and has been shown to hinder children’s development, potentially leading to lifelong physical or psychological damage. Evidence points to a strong link between household poverty and child labour, and child labour perpetuates poverty across generations by keeping the children of the poor out of school and limiting their prospects for upward social mobility. This lowering of human capital has been linked to slow economic growth and social development. An ILO study has shown that eliminating child labour in transition and developing economies could generate economic benefits nearly seven times greater than the costs, mostly associated with investment in better schooling and social services.

Legal Protections:-

Child Labour( Prohibition and Regulation) Amendment Act, 2016

Constitutional Protection:-

Article 21— No person shall be deprived of his life and liberty except procedure established law. 

Article 21A — Right to education of children in age of 6-14 age

Article 24 — Prohibition of employment of children in factories, mines and hazardous activities. 

Supreme Court Judgement:-

M.C.Mehta Vs State of T.N:

People’s Union for democratic Rights Vs Union of India:

In both cases, S.C prohibited the Child Labour

International Laws:-

SDG 8 — Eradication of child Labour

UNICEF — UN Children’s Fund

ILO:- Minimum Age Convention, 1973; Worst form of child labour convention, 1999