Annual Report 2009-2010
Inspection of Jails
2.7
The Acting Chairperson and two Special Rapporteurs of the Commission visited five
jails located in Prothrapur (Andaman & Nicobar Islands), Nagpur (Maharashtra), Keonjhar
(Orissa), Thane (Maharashtra) and Agra (U�ar Pradesh). The main objective of these visits was
to oversee the functioning of the jails and the human rights situation of the undertrials and
prisoners there.
Spot Investigations
2.8
During the period under review, the Commission directed its Investigation Division to
conduct 152 spot investigations. Out of these, 80 spot investigations were of alleged bonded
labour cases from different parts of the country. Some of the other important cases in which
spot investigations were conducted by various teams of the Investigation Division pertained to
-- prevalence of illegal mining activities in certain districts of Karnataka; rehabilitation of child
labourers in Bihar; monitoring the functioning of shelter homes being run for children in NCT
of Delhi; alleged fake encounters; and alleged discrimination of dalits by health functionaries
in four districts of Madhya Pradesh. Some of these cases have been detailed out in Chapter 4
of this Annual Report.
ECONOMIC, SOCIAL AND CULTURAL RIGHTS
Right to Health
2.9
Being deeply concerned about the illegal medical practices of doctors having fake
certificates/degrees in tribal areas as well as to ensure that people in the country have access to
quality health care, the NHRC organized a one-day Meeting of the Health Secretaries of all the
States/Union Territories on “Illegal Medical Practices and Health Care Facilities in the Tribal
Areas” on 29 January 2010 at the National Institute of Health and Family Welfare (NIHFW),
New Delhi.
Right to Food
2.10 A meeting of the Core Group on Right to Food was convened on 10 September 2009 in
the NHRC.
Regional Review Meetings on Rights of Mentally-Ill Persons
2.11 The NHRC continued with its efforts of creating a be�er understanding and awareness
about the rights of mentally-ill persons by organizing regional review meetings in the country.
During the year under review it organized four such meetings. The Eastern Regional Review
Meeting was conducted in Ranchi on 5 June 2009, the Western Regional Review Meeting took
place in Pune on 24 July 2009, the North-Eastern Regional Review Meeting was convened in
Tezpur on 11 February 2010 and the Southern Regional Review Meeting was organized in
Chennai on 12 March 2010.
NHRC
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