New Delhi, June 16th, 2011
Mr. Justice K.G. Balakrishnan, Chairperson, NHRC has said that there is a need to develop a sound mechanism to educate people at grass root level about their rights and various welfare schemes. Addressing the valedictory session of NHRC's one month long Summer Internship Programme, which concluded today, Justice Balakrishnan said that during the visits of Commission's teams to the 16 districts in different states of the country, the experience has been that the status of implementation of the welfare schemes and awareness of the people about their rights, by and large, is not very encouraging.

Justice Balakrishnan expressed hope that the young interns, trained in application of human rights and various related laws, will make it their mission to help those, in the interiors of the country, who are helpless and find nobody to take up their cause on issues of violation of their rights.

NHRC Chairperson said that the interns should keep in mind the values of human rights. These rights have quite wide ranging applications which are not properly understood by many in the country. He also hoped that the interns would help the Commission in its endeavour to inform and educate people about various human rights including social and economic rights, and international covenants which have been signed by India.

38 students from 11 states completed their internship and were given certificates by Justice Balakrishnan. Four interns shared the best intern award including Anushree Jain and Stuti Kamal from Delhi and Bonani Goswami and Sandeep from Assam and Mumbai, respectively.

During the internship eminent persons and experts including the Chairperson and Members of the Commission addressed the students, comprising mostly final year students of Law. They were given a thorough exposure to the human rights and their practical application and functioning of the Commission during 84 academic sessions, apart from field visits to Dasna Jail in Ghaziabad and two NGOs, Prayas and NAAZ Foundation in Delhi.

The interns described their leaning process as emotional and professionally useful. NHRC Members, senior officers were also present during the valedictory session.

The internship programme is organized by the Training Division of NHRC. The Commission has been organizing Summer & Winter Internship Programmes as per the mandate given to it under Protection of Human Rights Act for spreading human rights literacy.
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