A total of 69 students from various universities in the far-flung areas of different regions in the country completed it
NHRC, India Member, Vijaya Bharathi Sayani, in the valedictory session, urges students to embrace empathy as a guiding principle for justice
Emphasises human rights as lived realities and not abstract ideas
NEW DELHI, MAY 27, 2025: The two-week Online Short-Term Internship programme organised by the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), India, has concluded. It commenced on 13th May, 2025. 69 students from various universities from the far-flung areas of different regions in 21 States and one Union Territory completed it. 80 students were shortlisted out of a total of 1,795 applicants for this coveted internship programme of the Commission for university-level students.
Addressing the valedictory session, the NHRC, India Member, Vijaya Bharathi Sayani, congratulated the students on the successful completion of the internship. She expressed the hope that they would make the best use of this exposure to various aspects of human rights while urging them to embrace empathy. She said that human rights are about dignity, equality, and freedom. They are about ensuring that every individual, regardless of their socio-economic background, can live without fear, with equal access to opportunities, and with respect.
The Member underscored that achieving zero tolerance to human rights violations is a way forward. In this context, she drew attention to the plight of tribal population of 14 villages in the Alluri Sitarama Raju district of Andhra Pradesh, who were the displaced due to the Polavaram project, and the poorly constructed dwelling units provided to them as an alternative were bereft of necessities of human life including drinking water, toilets, electricity. Their new surroundings continue to lack healthcare, roads, transportation, hospitals, schools, etc., despite several requests made to the authorities. She called upon the concerned authorities to address their issues at the earliest by accepting that human rights are lived realities and not abstract ideas.
NHRC, India Joint Secretary Samir Kumar presented the internship report. The students were exposed to various aspects of human rights in 35 sessions conducted by the senior NHRC officers, experts and civil society representatives. He said that they were also taken for virtual tours to the Tihar Jail, Police Station and Asha Kiran Shelter Home in Delhi to have an understanding of their functioning and related challenges in ensuring protection of human rights. He also announced the winners of the book review, group research project presentation, and declamation competition.
