August 15th. We celebrate Independence Day, which commemorates the independence of India which was officially declared on August 15th 1947.
January 26th. We celebrate Republic Day. Do we know what was officially declared on January 26th 1950?
Republic Day celebrates the Constitution of India coming into effect on January 26th 1950, which officially made India a republic, which means that sovereignty rests with the people.
PREAMBLE
The Constitution of India has a preamble and 22 parts. The preamble is perhaps the most popular section of the Indian Constitution and consists of 85 words which is widely known and repeated:
WE, THE PEOPLE OF INDIA, having solemnly resolved to constitute India into a SOVEREIGN SOCIALIST SECULAR DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC and to secure to all its citizens:
JUSTICE, social, economic and political
LIBERTY of thought, expression, belief, faith and worship
EQUALITY of status and of opportunity; and to promote among them all
FRATERNITY assuring the dignity of the individual and the unity and integrity of the Nation.
IN OUR CONSTITUENT ASSEMBLY this twenty-sixth day of November, 1949, do HEREBY ADOPT, ENACT AND GIVE TO OURSELVES THIS CONSTITUTION.
FUNDAMENTAL DUTIES
The Fundamental Duties in Part IV of the Constitution lists 11 fundamental duties of every citizen of India:
1) To abide by the Constitution and respect its ideals and institutions, the National Flag and the National Anthem;
2) To cherish and follow the noble ideals which inspired our national struggle for freedom;
3) To uphold and protect the sovereignty, unity and integrity of India;
4) To defend the country and render national service when called upon to do so;
5) To promote harmony and the spirit of common brotherhood amongst all the people of India transcending religious, linguistic and regional or sectional diversities; to renounce practices derogatory to the dignity of women;
6) To value and preserve the rich heritage of our composite culture;
7) To protect and improve the natural environment including forests, lakes, rivers and wildlife, and to have compassion for living creatures;
8) To develop the scientific temper, humanism and the spirit of inquiry and reform;
9) To safeguard public property and to abjure violence;
10) To strive towards excellence in all spheres of individual and collective activity so that the nation constantly rises to higher levels of endeavour and achievement;
11) Who is a parent or guardian to provide opportunities for education to his child or, as the case may be, ward between the age of six and fourteen years.
READ
The Preamble and the Fundamental Duties are just two parts of an extensive document which is important reading for every citizen of India who is passionate about doing their part to create change for good.
As a part of our Active Citizenship initiative, we encourage all young people to read the Constitution of India which is available on the Government of India website in multiple Indian languages. To read the document in English, click HERE to read and download the PDF on the website of the Ministry of Law and Justice.
OUR ACTIVE CITIZENSHIP INITIATIVE
Our Active Citizenship initiative provides a platform for people – especially young people – to voice their opinions about the issues that matter to them and come up with solutions together to benefit people. We have worked with young people to highlight various issues and make a difference in our communities, such as:
- a stand-up comedy event in Film Nagar to encourage voting amongst the 150 young people in attendance
- a slam poetry event in Jubilee Hills that 200 people attended, to get people enthusiastic about voting in the upcoming elections
- a voting awareness drive held in the form of a music concert featuring local retro band Caprico and fusion band Threeory in Jubilee Hills attended by 2,000 people and live-streamed with an online audience of 10,000 people
- a social media campaign that reached 20,000 people across all platforms with the hashtags #telanganaletsvote #telanganaelections2018 #festivalofdemocracy
- and support provided to the Telangana GHMC elections in December 2020 by mobilizing 2,000 volunteers at the poll stations to assist senior citizens, people with disabilities and other voters to ensure a smooth voting process
If you are a young person who is inspired by the voting awareness campaigns above, which have also been supported by the local authorities, then read more about Active Citizenship initiative here and sign up to be a volunteer and make a change!
