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India to host international human rights event IANS | New Delhi August 29, 2014 Last Updated at 23:36 IST

India's National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) will host the three-day annual

general meeting of the Asia Pacific Forum of national human rights panels, said a

statement Friday.

The APF is one of the four regional networks of national human rights institutions

(NHRIs) within the international co-ordinating committee of NHRIs.

The event will open on Sep 3 and end Sep 5.

The dialogue will provide an opportunity for APF's NHRIs and civil society

representatives to discuss practical and constructive ways in which they can engage

and cooperate on the APF's Strategic Plan (2015-2020), the statement said.

India to host international human rights event Big News Network (IANS)Friday 29th August, 2014

India's National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) will host the three-day annual

general meeting of the Asia Pacific Forum of national human rights panels, said a

statement Friday.

The APF is one of the four regional networks of national human rights institutions

(NHRIs) within the international co-ordinating committee of NHRIs.

The event will open on Sep 3 and end Sep 5.

The dialogue will provide an opportunity for APF's NHRIs and civil society

representatives to discuss practical and constructive ways in which they can engage and

cooperate on the APF's Strategic Plan (2015-2020), the statement said.

TwoCircles.net

India to host international human rights event

Submitted by IANS on 30 August 2014 - 5:53am

New Delhi: India's National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) will host the

three-day annual general meeting of the Asia Pacific Forum of national

human rights panels, said a statement Friday.

The APF is one of the four regional networks of national human rights

institutions (NHRIs) within the international co-ordinating committee of

NHRIs.

The event will open on Sep 3 and end Sep 5.

The dialogue will provide an opportunity for APF's NHRIs and civil society

representatives to discuss practical and constructive ways in which they can

engage and cooperate on the APF's Strategic Plan (2015-2020), the

statement said.

Monday, September 01, 2014

HT Correspondent, Hindustan Times Bhopal, August 30, 2014

Open hearing of NHRC to review 119 cases in

Bhopal on September 10, 11

In all, 119 cases of alleged human rights violations would come up for review at an

open hearing of the National Human Rights Commission to be held on September 10

and 11 in Bhopal. Of these, 74 cases are of atrocities against scheduled caste persons,

while 14 cases are specifically related to violations of rights of persons in police

custody.

The full bench of the commission, inclusive of the chairperson Justice KG

Balakrishnan and members Justices Cyriac Joseph and D Murugesan and SC Sinha,

would hear the cases at the RCVP Noronha Academy of Administration.

The full bench would hear 31 cases from 10.00 am till lunchtime on September 11.

The rest of the cases would be heard by single or double member benches on

September 10 and in post-lunch session of September 11. On September 12, the

commission members would meet the representatives of NGOs, the chief secretary of

state, the director general of police and other senior administrative and police

officials.

CS directive

In view of the upcoming open hearing, the chief secretary Anthony de Sa on Friday

held a videoconferencing with district collectors of over a dozen districts to which the

cases pertain. The chief secretary reviewed the status of the action taken in connection

with the complaints and the consequent notices of the NHRC.

After finding that many districts did not take the notices of the commission too

seriously, the district collectors were asked the resolve the cases at the earliest and pay

compensation to affected parties as and where required.

The chief secretary asked the collectors to send out the compliance report to the

NHRC and also to the human rights cell of the state general administration department

so that update on the compliance could be maintained and ensured. The director

general of police Nandan Dubey was present on the occasion.

56 bonded labourers rescued from Brick Kiln owner in J&K

Press Trust of India | New Delhi August 30, 2014 Last Updated at 19:45 IST

Forty-year-old Pappu has toiled day and night at a brick kiln in Jammu. He spent days without food and water and was made to work rigourously for three months before being rescued by an NGO.

He along with 55 others were in Delhi today sharing their painful tale.

A city-based organisation Bandhu Mukti Morcha (Bonded Labour Liberation Front) had rescued the 55 labourers, which included 21 women, from the brick kiln contractor in R S Pura sector of Jammu on Aug 27.

The rescued persons belong to different regions like Badaun in Uttar Pradesh, Nayagarh in Odisha and Bilaspur, Jangir and Balodha Bazaar districts of Chattisgarh. They were allegedly purchased on an average advance payment of 15,000-20,000 rupees and were made to toil in pathetic conditions- without proper food, water or medical facilities. Swami Agnivesh, founder of the Bandhu Mukti Morcha (BMM) said, "This is not happening for the first time, we have had a bitter experience in Jammu and Kashmir. We've been raising this issue for the past two-and-half years.

Nirmal Gorana, Executive Director at BMM, who led the rescue opeartion, claimed that none of the contractors had a licence.

"None of the contractors have a license under the 1979 Migrant Workmen act. There is no record of the wages they are giving out, the number of bricks the labourers are making", says Gorana.

Pappu, who was rescued with his family, recalls that the workers were made to toil from as early as 4 a.M. Till late in the night. No proper food or water was available to them. They were forced to work without pay for three months.

The team at BMM who undertook the rescue operation said that even the National Human Rights Commission is helpless.

"I spoke to officials from NHRC yesterday, told them about these people who have come to me. I was told they can't do anything, it is out of their area of jurisdiction. NHRC is pleading helplessness, say they dont have any authority," said the BMM founder. Now, BMM is planning to take up the issue of bonded labourers to Supreme Court to curb trafficking of people as bonded labour.

56 bonded labourers rescued from Brick Kiln owner in J&K

Last Updated: Saturday, August 30, 2014 - 19:53

New Delhi: Forty-year-old Pappu has toiled day and night at a brick kiln in Jammu. He spent

days without food and water and was made to work rigourously for three months before being

rescued by an NGO.

He along with 55 others were in Delhi today sharing their painful tale.

A city-based organisation Bandhu Mukti Morcha (Bonded Labour Liberation Front) had rescued

the 55 labourers, which included 21 women, from the brick kiln contractor in RS Pura sector of

Jammu on Aug 27.

The rescued persons belong to different regions like Badaun in Uttar Pradesh, Nayagarh in

Odisha and Bilaspur, Jangir and Balodha Bazaar districts of Chattisgarh. They were allegedly

purchased on an average advance payment of 15,000-20,000 rupees and were made to toil in

pathetic conditions- without proper food, water or medical facilities.

Swami Agnivesh, founder of the Bandhu Mukti Morcha (BMM) said, "This is not happening for

the first time, we have had a bitter experience in Jammu and Kashmir. We've been raising this

issue for the past two-and-half years.

Nirmal Gorana, Executive Director at BMM, who led the rescue opeartion, claimed that none of

the contractors had a licence.

"None of the contractors have a license under the 1979 Migrant Workmen act. There is no record

of the wages they are giving out, the number of bricks the labourers are making", says Gorana.

Pappu, who was rescued with his family, recalls that the workers were made to toil from as early

as 4 a.M. Till late in the night. No proper food or water was available to them. They were forced

to work without pay for three months.

The team at BMM who undertook the rescue operation said that even the National Human Rights

Commission is helpless.

"I spoke to officials from NHRC yesterday, told them about these people who have come to me.

I was told they can't do anything, it is out of their area of jurisdiction. NHRC is pleading

helplessness, say they dont have any authority," said the BMM founder.

Now, BMM is planning to take up the issue of bonded labourers to Supreme Court to curb

trafficking of people as bonded labour.

PTI

First Published: Saturday, August 30, 2014 - 19:53

NHRC seeks ATR on molestation of three Odisha tribal girl students

Odisha Sun Times Bureau

Bhubaneswar, Aug 30:

The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has directed the Odisha government to submit within six weeks an action taken report (ATR) on the alleged molestation of three tribal girl students inside the hostel by a watchman of Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalaya in Bolangir district on March 24 this year.

The directive of the Commission came in response to a complaint filed by well-known rights activist and Odisha High Court advocate Prabir Das.

As per the complaint lodged by Das, three girls, two from class 8 and one from class 7 of the Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalaya at Kholan village under Titlagarh police station limits in Bolangir district, were allegedly molested by a male watchman while they were asleep inside their hostel room on the night on March 24.

Bringing to the notice of the Commission, Das said the shocking incident took place as the school authorities had allowed the watchman Ratnakar Ghivela to sleep inside the girls’ hostel premises, something that facilitated his alleged sexual assault.

Acting on an earlier directive of the Commission, the Bolangir SP had submitted a report of the SDPO, Titlagarh to the Commission on May 14 this year.

Though the authorities of the School and Mass Education department were well aware of several incidents of such nature happening since November 19 last year, it was only confined to departmental proceedings, the report said.

Having considered the facts discovered by the inquiry officer, the Commission, in an order issued on August 13 this year, directed the principal secretary, School and Mass Education to submit the ATR in the matter within six weeks.

It also asked SP, Bolangir to submit the status report of the investigation and the district collector to submit a report relating to financial assistance to the parents of girl victims under the SC/ST Rules 1995 within the said period.