1. Live life ethically READ MORE
2. EDUCATION REFORM IS THE NEED OF THE HOUR READ MORE

1. Focus on saving India’s wetlands READ MORE
2. Climate change fuelling conflict in Lake Chad Basin: Report READ MORE

1. Need economic policy to cope with ageing population READ MORE
2. Developing schools without barriers READ MORE
3. Can the debate be extricated from identity politics and refocused on gender equality? READ MORE
4. EDUCATION REFORM IS THE NEED OF THE HOUR READ MORE

1. The new and dark interpretations of ‘We the People’ READ MORE 
2. Constitution as ‘North Star’: CJI turns spotlight on issues critical to democratic endurance of Indian State READ MORE
3. Deepfake narratives: CEC triggers debate on threat to free and fair polls READ MORE
4. Structural strength: The basic structure of the Constitution has authority READ MORE
5. Roe versus Wade fifty years on: What does its fall teach us about the fragility of democratic institutions? READ MORE

(Newspapers, PIB and other important sources)

Prelim and Main

1. Mission LiFE Pavilion to be set up at Bharat Parv event to encourage people to become Pro Planet READ MORE
2. IMF confirms receipt of India’s financing assurances for Sri Lanka READ MORE
3. What if risk of commercial release of GM Mustard is irreversible, Supreme Court asks government READ MORE
4. Explained | What ails the Ken-Betwa river link project?  READ MORE
5. Mass mortality of Olive Ridley turtles in Godavari region of Andhra Pradesh raises concerns READ MORE
6. India said to likely peg FY24 nominal GDP growth at about 11% in Budget READ MORE
7. Norovirus cases detected in Kerala: what is this virus and how dangerous is it? READ MORE
8. Transition to expected credit loss-based provisioning may hit banks only one time: Icra READ MORE
9. SC directs Centre to submit status report on ban of pesticides READ MORE

Main Exam

GS Paper- 1

1. Need economic policy to cope with ageing population READ MORE

GS Paper- 2

POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

1. The new and dark interpretations of ‘We the People’ READ MORE 
2. Constitution as ‘North Star’: CJI turns spotlight on issues critical to democratic endurance of Indian State READ MORE
3. Deepfake narratives: CEC triggers debate on threat to free and fair polls READ MORE
4. Structural strength: The basic structure of the Constitution has authority READ MORE
5. Roe versus Wade fifty years on: What does its fall teach us about the fragility of democratic institutions? READ MORE

SOCIAL ISSUES AND SOCIAL JUSTICE

1. Developing schools without barriers READ MORE
2. Can the debate be extricated from identity politics and refocused on gender equality? READ MORE
3. EDUCATION REFORM IS THE NEED OF THE HOUR READ MORE

INTERNATIONAL ISSUES

1. In President Sisi visit, India and Egypt look to rekindle non-aligned era ties READ MORE
2. India India, Egypt elevate bilateral ties to strategic partnership READ MORE
3. Give peace a chance: G20 presidency is an opportunity to lead the initiative READ MORE

GS Paper- 3

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

1. Sovereign Green Bonds: What do they mean for investors, and the environment? READ MORE
2. Lower tax rates, not a great idea READ MORE
3. Budget needs a road map for reducing fiscal deficit READ MORE
4. Irrigation and the spatial pattern of local economic development in India READ MORE

ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

1. Focus on saving India’s wetlands READ MORE
2. Climate change fuelling conflict in Lake Chad Basin: Report READ MORE

SECURITY

1. Conference of top cops, attended by PM Narendra Modi, must not ignore basic policing problems READ MORE

DISASTER MANAGEMENT

1. Himalayan challenge: Prioritise sustainable development to save the hills READ MORE

GS Paper- 4

ETHICS EXAMPLES AND CASE STUDY

1. Live life ethically READ MORE
2. EDUCATION REFORM IS THE NEED OF THE HOUR READ MORE

Questions for the MAIN exam

1. ‘New defense and security cooperation efforts are springing up across the Indo-Pacific’. In the light of statement, analyse how new security grouping in Indo-Pacific are fueling up regional tensions in region?
2. ‘Careful management of hydropower resources is essential to ensure its positive impacts on climate change and avoid transboundary river conflicts’. Comment on the statement in light of transboundary riven conflicts between India and neighboring countries.
3. ‘A system of checks and balances that prevents any one branch gaining the upper hand is essential for democratic functioning’. Comment on the statement in the light of recent stand-off between Judiciary and Executive.

QUOTATIONS AND CAPTIONS

• Constitution is not a mere lawyers’ document, it is a vehicle of life. Its spirit is always the spirit of the age. — BR Ambedkar
• The increasing number of wild animals and reduction of food and water sources due to the increasing presence of exotic species rather than native varieties lead to wild animals invading human habitats.
• Where the union government is busy stifling with the conduct of state governments through the post of the governor, one can only conclude that good governance is certainly not its top political priority.
• When the RBI governor is emphatic in his view that crypto currency is going to be the instrument for next financial crisis, the policy makers must act quickly to ensure that our economy is insulated from such a crisis.
• A bit of urgency on the part of the top court over the collegium would go a long way in smoothing its relationship with the Government. Two organs of the State bickering with each other all the time is not a good advertisement for either India or democracy.
• The court may have perhaps missed an opportunity to clarify the true extent or limits to the guarantee of the currency by the state.
• Technology can potentially meet the diverse needs of different demographic groups of workers, in terms of location, flexibility and hours of work.
• India’s population presents a chance for growth, but inequality and elderly care need attention.
• Like the larger policy framework within which they are set, the UGC’s draft rules emphasise quality without corresponding measures to safeguard equal access.
• To suggest that the basic structure doctrine is by itself unsanctioned is to place the Constitution at the legislature’s whim.
• A system of checks and balances that prevents any one branch gaining the upper hand is essential for democratic functioning.

50-WORD TALK

• The Supreme Court has listened to experts and decided on simplifying the cumbersome procedure for execution of passive euthanasia. The commendable move will ensure that the ‘right to die with dignity’ is given teeth on ground and help families of terminally ill patients avoid the additional trauma of red tapism.
• The policy must seek to bring down the maternal and infant mortality rates, improve nutrition levels and expand training. This will allow healthy mothers to go back to work after giving birth and their babies to grow up to become healthy youngsters and robust workers. The youngsters must be properly educated so that after completing schooling they are able to access vocational training and acquire skills which enable them to work with increasingly sophisticated technology.

Things to Remember:

• For prelims-related news try to understand the context of the news and relate with its concepts so that it will be easier for you to answer (or eliminate) from given options.
• Whenever any international place will be in news, you should do map work (marking those areas in maps and exploring other geographical locations nearby including mountains, rivers, etc. same applies to the national places.)
• For economy-related news (banking, agriculture, etc.) you should focus on terms and how these are related to various economic aspects, for example, if inflation has been mentioned, try to relate with prevailing price rises, shortage of essential supplies, banking rates, etc.
• For main exam-related topics, you should focus on the various dimensions of the given topic, the most important topics which occur frequently and are important from the mains point of view will be covered in ED.

[WpProQuiz 412]

THE CONTEXT: Speaking at the convocation ceremony at the National Law University in Cuttack in September 2022, the CJI UU Lalit admitted that legal aid work is still a neglected field in India and that young law graduates should devote their time and energy to provide the legal aid services and instil a sense of compassion. This article presents the various aspects of free legal aid in India and why they shall be improved.

LEGAL SERVICES AUTHORITIES (LSA) ACT

• In 1987, the Legal Services Authorities (LSA) Act was enacted to give free and competent legal services to the poor and paved the way for the constitution of the National Legal Service Authority (NALSA) and other legal service institutions at the State, district and taluka levels.
• Free legal services under LSA Act are available to a person belonging to Schedule Tribe and Schedule Caste, a woman, child, victim of human trafficking, a differently abled person, an industrial workman, and a person in custody in a protective home and the poor.

CONSTITUTIONAL PROVISIONS

• The preamble of the Indian constitution aims to secure for the people of India justice – socio-economic and political. Justice P.N. Bhagwati aptly stated that legal aid means providing an arrangement in the society which makes the machinery of administration of Justice easily accessible and within reach of those who have to resort to it for enforcement of rights given to them by law. Article 38(1) avows that the State shall promote the welfare of the people by securing and protecting the social order, including justice.
• Article 39A of the Constitution of India provides that State shall secure that the operation of the legal system promotes justice on the basis of equal opportunity and shall, in particular, provide free legal aid by suitable legislation or schemes or in any other way, to ensure that opportunities for securing justice are not denied to any citizen by reason of economic or other disability.
• Articles 14 and 22(1) also make it obligatory for the State to ensure equality before the law and a legal system which promotes justice on the basis of equal opportunity for all.

FREE LEGAL AID

ABOUT

• It entails the provision of free legal aid in civil and criminal matters for those poor and marginalized people who cannot afford the services of a lawyer for the conduct of a case or a legal proceeding in any court, tribunal or before an authority

INSTITUTIONS

India has a robust institutional framework of legal aid bodies. This has National Legal Services Authority at the helm, 37 state legal services authorities, 673 district legal services authorities, 2351 taluka legal service authorities, 39 High Court legal services committees and the Supreme Court legal services panel for oversight.

• National Level: National Legal Services Authority (NALSA). It was constituted under the Legal Services Authorities Act 1987. The Chief Justice of India is the Patron-in-Chief.
• State Level: State Legal Services Authority. It is headed by the Chief Justice of the State High Court, who is its Patron-in-Chief.
• District Level: District Legal Services Authority. The District Judge of the District is its ex-officio Chairman.
• Taluka/Sub-Division Level: Taluka/Sub-Divisional Legal Services Committee. It is headed by a senior Civil Judge.
• High Court: High Court Legal Services Committee
• Supreme Court: Supreme Court Legal Services Committee.

ELIGIBLE PERSONS

• • Women and children
  • Members of SC/ST
  • Industrial workmen
  • Victims of mass disaster, violence, flood, drought, earthquake, and industrial disaster.
  • Disabled persons
  • Persons in custody
  • Those persons who have an annual income of less than the amount prescribed by the respective State Government if the case is before any court other than the Supreme Court and less than Rs. 5 Lakhs if the case is before the Supreme Court.
  • Victims of Trafficking in Human beings or begar.

CONCERNS RELATED TO FREE LEGAL AID

• According to Justice A P Shah, despite having a formidable structure for free legal aid, the scheme has failed to attract competent lawyers, and there is no mechanism for the clients to question.
• Justice S Muralidhar of the Delhi high court is of the opinion that there is a need to pay the legal aid lawyers better otherwise, ‘legal aid for the poor, will continue to be ‘poor legal aid’.
• Justice UU Lalit has also highlighted two basic difficulties in providing free legal aid:

• Most of the population is entitled to legal aid but they are not aware that they are eligible for legal aid due to various factors – lack of knowledge, lack of experience, or lack of exposure to the entire set-up. Legal aid continues to be the “hope” that many persons in custody turn to for a fair trial. Almost 80% of India’s 132 crores (1.32 billion) population is eligible for legal aid. An overwhelming number (41.5%) of those accused of criminal acts in India are from the economically weak and disadvantaged sections of society. Few are aware of their rights or procedures relating to the police, prosecution and courts or what the services of a lawyer involved.
• The second pressing issue is Infrastructure. For example, if we have a legal aid set up in a remote district, that area must have the facility of an e-library where lawyers can have the assistance of law reports and the latest judgments at the click of a mouse, but we lack in that aspect also.
• Inadequate monitoring frameworks have also contributed towards the less effectiveness of the free legal services, such as many lawyers do not visit their clients or even neglecting to represent them.

ANALYSIS OF LEGAL AID SERVICES IN INDIA

Legal aid is not a charity or bounty but is an obligation of the state and the right of the citizens. The focus of legal aid is on distributive justice, effective implementation of welfare benefits and elimination of social and structural discrimination against the poor.

Twenty-eight years on, however, the Legal Services Authorities Act has become yet another example of a social justice law that is well-intentioned on paper but riddled with problems on the ground. From daunting procedures that deter lawyers from taking up free cases to corruption, lawyers and social workers pointed out, legal aid is far from being ideally implemented. Hence it is imperative to improve the quality of free legal aid services in India to further the objectives and ideals enshrined in the Constitution.

Legal aid is a key element of access to justice. It is also at the heart of the equality requirement and of the overarching objective of the 2030 Agenda: to leave no one behind. Access to legal aid translates into access to justice for the poor, the marginalized, and the disadvantaged. Access to justice features prominently in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, whose Target 16.3 of Goal 16 is about promoting the rule of law at the national and international levels and ensuring equal access to justice for all. This is particularly important when a person’s fundamental rights to life and liberty are put at risk.

The Basic Principles on the Role of Lawyers further place responsibility upon the government and the legal profession to ensure that everyone has access to counsel, regardless of means or background, to protect the right to equality before the law.

THE WAY FORWARD

EXPAND THE SCOPE OF SECTION 12

• There is an urgent need to expand the scope of Section 12 so that more and more areas can be covered under the Act and assistance can be rendered. State Government should come up with appropriate amendments to the law and provide legal services in an effective and efficient manner.

ROLE OF NGOS

• Involving and increasing the role of non-governmental organisations to create awareness amongst the people about their rights and effective justice delivery.

LEGAL AID PROGRAMMES AND LEGAL AWARENESS

• There should be an organisation of legal aid camps and Lok Adalats at a mass level to spread awareness about the rights of the people and awareness about the free legal aid programmes for the needy ones.
• There should be the establishment of entitlement centres at various backward areas to make them aware of their rights and laws and encourage them to opt for free legal services.

BETTER REMUNERATION TO THE LAWYERS

• There should be an increase in remuneration paid to the lawyers by the courts or government, appearing or defending the accused for free.

FEEDBACK APPROACH

• The monitoring of the work of the counsels should be evaluated through the feedback approach, i.e. by asking the people for the feedback of the work of the counsel and then there should be proper progress reports of every advocate. This all could be done by setting up a proper monitoring committee.

THE CONCLUSION: Reginald Heber Smith, in his book ‘Justice and the Poor’ wrote that “Without equal access to the law, the system not only robs the poor of their only protection, but it places in the bands of their oppressors the most powerful and ruthless weapon ever invented.” To have a successful legal aid movement in India, the government needs to take appropriate steps by spreading awareness and educating the people about their basic fundamental rights. The only objective or aim of the government should be to provide ‘equal justice to all.’

Mains Practice Questions:

• “Free legal aid does not mean poor legal aid; free legal aid must mean quality service”. Comment.
• Poor and marginalised citizens are legally entitled to get lawyers free of charge when they need them. Why do they often have to struggle for it? Suggest measures to improve the quality of free legal aid in India.
• The guarantee of equal justice is meaningless if vulnerable sections cannot enforce their rights because of poverty, illiteracy or weakness. Discuss.