Policies and Practices No. 6

Globalisation, State Policies and Sustainability of Rights,

Madhuresh Kumar, March 2005

 

From the end of the last decade in particular, the government of India has come up with a number of policies aimed at protecting the people who may be adversely affected by globalisation. There has been a virtual policy explosion. These policies are said to have increased our policy fund and total policy knowledge. These policies have been formulated in the background of resistance by various groups of people against the onslaught of globalisation, and the reforms carried out by the government in its wake. The significant question in the context of this policy explosion is : Have these policies been able to help the sustainability of rights under globalisation ? What are the ways in which these policies are formulated ? If these policies form part of what has been called as “safety net”, what kind of safety do these policies provide ?

 

This volume is an attempt to investigate the policy explosions, particular policies, and their features. The overriding concern in this inquiry is : where and to what extent do rights feature in this landscape of policies, which are occasioned by globalisation ?

 

Content

Preface

Introduction                                                                                                           

Section I : Globalisation, State Policies and Rights  

  1. National Agricultural Policy, Public Distribution System and Sustainable Livelihood

  2. National Rural Employment Guarantee Act and Right to Work

  3. The Government Policy of Resettlement and Rehabilitation

  4. Right to Information Bill : How Much Governance can be  Democratised ?

  5. National Environment Policy : An Appraisal

Section II :  Summaries of Other Policies (with inputs from PWTN) 

  1. National Policy on Education     

  2. National Forest Policy                                                                           

  3. National Conservation Strategy and policy Statement on Environment and Development, Government of India

  4. National Policy for the Empowerment of Women

  5. National Water Policy                                                                            

  6. National Health Policy   

  7. National Policy on Safety, Health and Environment at Workplace                

  8. National Charter for Children

  9. National Policy on Tribals

Appendices      

 

  Appendix 1        National Agriculture Policy                                                         

  Appendix 2        National Rural Employment Guarantee Act          

  Appendix 3        National Policy on Resettlement and Rehabilitation for Project Affected Families

  Appendix 4        Right to Information Bill                          

  Appendix 5        National Environment Policy

           

This publication is a part of the research programme on state policies and the sustainability of socio-economic rights in the context of globalisation. The support of the Consortium of Humanitarian Agencies (CHA), Colombo is kindly acknowledged. 

 

To procure copies of this paper please contact

 

Mahanirban Calcutta Research Group, FE- 390, Ground Floor, Sector- III, Salt Lake, Kolkata- 700 106,

Phone: +91-33-23370408, Fax: +91-33-23371523, Email: mcrg@mcrg.ac.in