Good governance is a fundamental right, says Dr PK Mishra at National Human Rights conference
On December 10, Dr PK Mishra, who serves as Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister, launched a National Conference in New Delhi titled “Ensuring Everyday Essentials – Public Services and Dignity for All.” He opened the event at Bharat Mandapam by insisting that effective governance itself should be treated as a fundamental right.
Mishra noted that operational concepts such as efficiency, transparency, timely grievance redressal, and swift service delivery are not merely bureaucratic niceties—they form the core of human dignity in a democratic society. He pointed out that this gathering coincides with World Human Rights Day, emphasizing that the occasion urges us to examine how dignity is lived each day through access to food, water, shelter, education, justice, and newer entitlements like privacy, mobility, a clean environment and digital inclusion.
Reinforcing his theme, Mishra recalled Article 25(1) of the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which guarantees an adequate standard of living—including food, clothing, housing, medical care, and social security during times of vulnerability. He highlighted India’s pioneering role in shaping the Declaration, particularly citing the contributions of Dr Hansa Mehta, who helped embed the principle that all human beings are born free and equal, a milestone for gender equality.
He argued that human rights must be fulfilled through concrete access to basic needs, and that the scope of rights has steadily broadened from civil and political freedoms to social, economic, and cultural entitlements, now encompassing technology, digital systems, environmental protection, and emerging vulnerabilities.
According to Mishra, contemporary dignity is constructed not only around freedoms but also by ensuring privacy, mobility, environmental quality, and digital inclusion. He anchored this view in India’s rich civilizational heritage, pointing to values such as dharma, nyaya, karuna, and seva, which emphasize righteous conduct and welfare. Concepts like ahimsa and the Mahābhārata’s vasudhaiva kutumbakam (the world is one family) informed the Constitution’s emphasis on universal adult franchise, enforceable rights, and directive principles that prioritize education, health, livelihood, and welfare.
Reflecting on the decade before 2014, Mishra acknowledged that India adopted a rights‑based agenda through statutes like the Right to Education Act, MGNREGA, and the National Food Security Act. However, he stressed that enacting rights without effective delivery erodes credibility. Since 2014, the government has shifted from merely codifying rights to ensuring that no eligible beneficiary is left out, turning rights into actionable outcomes via digital infrastructure, direct benefit transfers, and outreach initiatives such as the Viksit Bharat Sankalp Yatra.
He highlighted poverty alleviation as the most tangible human‑rights intervention, citing that 25 crore Indians were lifted out of poverty in the past decade, according to the Household Consumption Expenditure Survey 2023‑24.
Concluding, Mishra urged institutions to adopt frameworks that address emerging challenges as India moves toward Viksit Bharat 2047. He identified climate change, environmental justice, data protection, algorithmic fairness, responsible AI, gig‑work vulnerabilities, and digital surveillance as urgent concerns.
His vision paints a modern, inclusive nation with livable cities and thriving villages, driven by citizen‑centred governance, responsible technology use and collective action to secure dignity, justice, and development for all.
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