Increasing Access to Justice for Marginalized People
What the Project is About
In partnership with the Department of Justice, Ministry of Law and Justice, Government of India, the project focuses on strengthening access to justice for the poor by developing strategies that address barriers to accessing justice in legal, social, economic and political domains.
Achievements
- Based on the success of the partnership, the Government has launched a similar project in Jammu and Kashmir and the North East of India with a budget allocation of US$ 6 million.
- More than 2 million people from marginalized communities are more aware of their legal rights and how to seek redressal of their grievances
- As a result of convergence with the Ministry of Human Resource Development legal literacy has been included in the continuing adult literacy programme under the national Government of India literacy scheme, Sakshar Bharat.
- Over 7,000 paralegals trained to better assist marginalized communities, drawn from diverse backgrounds including women SHGs, Muslim women, women living in urban slums and so on.
- The project has built greater synergy between a range of key actors, both nationally and at state levels to better coordinate efforts in supporting the legal needs of marginalized communities
- A first-ever study conducted in India on legal aid clinics run by law schools and needs assessments of several State Legal Services Authority have enabled a better understanding of the barriers faced by marginalized communities in accessing justice.
Funding Support by
| Donor Name | Amount Contributed |
| United Nations Development Programme | US$ 3,500,000 (For Year 2013-2017) US$ 3,176,537 (For Year 2008-2012) |
Expenditure in Previous Fiscal Year
| Year | Amount |
| 2016 | US$ 721,307 |
| 2015 | US$ 715,161.96 |
| 2014 | US$ 914,812 |
| 2013 | US$ 594,213 |
| 2012 | US$ 11,33,180 |
| 2011 | US$ 794,452 |
| 2010 | US$ 749,496.15 |
| 2009 | US$ 437,589 |
| 2008 | N/A |
Stories of Change
From Entitlement to Reality: Tribal Communities Use the Right to Information Act to Secure Justice
In partnership with the Ministry of Law and Justice, Government of India, the project is helping poor and marginalized communities in Odisha access justice by enhancing legal awareness and supporting national and local justice delivery institutions.
Functional Literacy – The Language of Empowerment
By focusing on financial and legal literacy, UNDP has empowered poor and marginalized to strengthen their asset base, secure justice and expand the range of choices available to them.
Justice for All: Securing Land Rights for Tribal Communities
UNDP partners with the Ministry of Law and Justice, Government of India to empower the poor and marginalized to demand and access entitlements and support justice delivery institutions to ensure the law works for the poor.
Road to Freedom: Tribal Communities Secure Land Rights
A UNDP-Ministry of Justice partnership has enabled poor, tribal communities in the Kalahandi district of Odisha to secure land rights and access entitlements under government schemes.
Videos
कानून को जाने - मंगला
Mangla, an uneducated rural woman helped her son get bail for a crime he was wrongly accused of having committed and fought a case against her husband in a Lok Adalat. Her empowerment has been a result of free legal aid and counseling services available under the Legal Service Authority Act, 1987.
Equitable Access to Justice: Legal Empowerment, Legal Aid and Making it work for the Poor and Marginalised
An international conference to share good practices and innovative approaches to enabling legal empowerment and securing legal aid for poor communities was organized by UNDP, in partnership with the Department of Justice, Government of India. At the conference, two knowledge products- a training manual for judges on laws and issues related to marginalized communities; and user manual on Forest Rights Act and Panchayat (Extension to Scheduled Areas Act, 1996) were also released.
Legal Protection Against Domestic Violence in India | भारत में घरेलु हिंसा के खिलाफ विविध सरंक्षण
Estimates suggest 70 percent of women in India have withstood either physical or sexual violence in their lifetime. The video, produced in partnership with the Department of Justice, Ministry of Law and Justice, reveals the different forms that domestic violence can take and importantly, the legal protection available to victims of this violence.
Journey to Justice
The video shows how UNDP’s partnership with the Department of Justice, Ministry of Law and Justice, Government of India is helping poor and marginalized communities across India access justice and secure their entitlements. Since 2009, the partnership has reached out to two million people including women, dalits, scheduled castes, and scheduled tribes and people with disabilities in seven states of India. As a result of the partnership, legal information centres and mobile Right to Information clinics have been established to help communities learn about and demand their rights. In addition, radio and training programmes enable widespread dissemination of information on a range of legal rights.
In the News
- साठ फीसदी आबादी के लिए न्याय स्वप्न : जस्टिस सिन्हा
[Date: 12 March 2013, Source: Ranchi Express, Language: Hindi]
- Be Sensitive to Poor Litigants’ needs, CJI tells Judges
[Date: 18 November 2012, Source: The Tribune]
- Dr. Ashwani Kumar to Inaugurate International Conference on 'Equitable Access to Justice: Legal AID and Legal Empowerment'
[Date: 17 November 2012, Source: India Education Diary]
- Dr. Ashwani Kumar to Inaugurate International Conference on 'Equitable Access to Justice: Legal AID and Legal Empowerment'
[Date: 17 November 2012, Source: India Education Diary]
- Dr. Ashwani Kumar Inaugurates International Conference on Equitable Access to Justice: Legal Aid and Legal Empowerment
[Date: 17 November 2012, Source: Press Information Bureau]
- Ashwani Kumar to Inaugurate Conference on Equitable Access to Justice
[Date: 16 November 2012, Source: ANI]
- Improving the Justice Delivery System in the Country
[Date: 30 April 2012, Source: Press Information Bureau]
- Will RTI be a Changemaker?
[Date: 08 April 2012, Source: Political Business Daily]