Youth can contribute to nation-building by respecting human rights: NHRC chief

New Delhi, Dec 16 (IANS) NHRC Chairperson Justice V. Ramasubramanian on Tuesday urged the youth to show compassion and respect human rights in their daily lives at home, in the workplace, and within the community, so that they may contribute effectively to nation-building.

Addressing interns at the start of the National Human Rights Commission’s (NHRC) four-week in-person Winter Internship Programme (WIP)-2025, Justice Ramasubramanian said that the internship is a one-of-a-kind platform for peer learning in a nation as diverse as India.

He said that it aims to provide meaningful insights into the human rights discourse and urged the interns to internalise these values in their daily lives at home, in the workplace and within the community, so that they may contribute effectively to nation-building.

A total of 80 university-level students from diverse academic backgrounds are attending the programme scheduled from December 15, 2025, to January 9, 2026.

They were shortlisted from 1,485 applicants representing various institutions across 19 states and Union Territories of the country, said a statement.

NHRC Secretary General Bharat Lal emphasised the critical role of youth in advancing the cause of human rights.

He urged the interns to cultivate compassion rooted in the values enshrined in the Constitution of India and the country’s civilisational ethos.

He urged them to utilise the internship to broaden their perspectives and work towards building an inclusive, equitable and just society.

Earlier, giving an overview of the internship programme, NHRC Joint Secretary Saidingpuii Chhakchhuak said that besides interactive sessions with subject experts, the interns will have group research projects, book reviews and declamation contests.

Chhakchhuak said the programme activities are aimed at enhancing the interns’ understanding of human rights issues and fostering innovative approaches to address them.

Earlier on December 10, President Droupadi Murmu led the Human Rights Day celebrations while emphasising that “human rights must be ensured for all, including the person in the last mile, in keeping with the philosophy of Antyodaya.”

The President stated that every citizen should be an active participant in the nation’s development journey towards building a Viksit Bharat by 2047.

“Seventy-seven years ago, the world came together to articulate a simple yet revolutionary truth: that every human being is born free and equal in dignity and rights,” the President said, stressing that India played an important role in shaping a global framework of human rights and “our freedom fighters envisioned a world rooted in human dignity, equality, and justice.”

Murmu said that human rights are contained in the vision of our Constitution.

“Human rights promote social democracy. Human rights encompass the right to live without fear, to learn without barriers, to work without exploitation, and to age with dignity,” she said.

rch/uk