EQUALITY

1. Three Dimensions of Equality

Political Equality 

• political equality would include granting equal citizenship to all the members of the state.
• Equal citizenship brings with it certain basic rights such as the right to vote, freedom of expression, movement and association and freedom of belief. These are rights which are considered necessary to enable citizens to develop themselves and participate in the affairs of the state.
• ARTICLE 326 adult suffrage, article 19 freedom of expression, movement, association- of Indian constitution ensuring political equality.
• They are legal rights, guaranteed by the Constitution and laws

Social Equality 

• social equality ensures that people belonging to different groups and communities also have a fair and equal chance to compete for those goods and opportunities. adequate health care, the opportunity for good education, adequate nourishment and a minimum wage, among other things. In the absence of such facilities, it is exceedingly difficult for all the members of the society to compete on equal terms.
• In India, a special problem regarding equal opportunities comes not just from a lack of facilities but from some of the customs which may prevail in different parts of the country, or among different groups. Women, for instance, may not enjoy equal rights of inheritance in some groups, or there may be social prohibitions regarding their taking part in certain kinds of activities.
• Indian constitution ensures social equality-article 14-equality before law;
• Article 15-No citizen shall on grounds only of race, religion, caste, place of birth, sex, or any of them, be subjected to any liability, disability, restriction or condition concerning – access to public places, use of tanks, wells, ghats etc that are maintained by the state or that are meant for the general public.
• Article 16-equality of opportunity in matters of public employment
• Article 17-abolition of untouchability.
• Article 18-abolition of titles. etc

Economic Equality

• Economic inequality exists in a society if there are significant differences in wealth, property or income between individuals or classes.
• One way of measuring the degree of economic inequality in a society would be to measure the relative difference between the richest and poorest groups.
• Another way could be to estimate the number of people who live below the poverty line. Poverty estimation is carried out by the NITI Aayog task force through the calculation of the poverty line based on data captured by the National Sample Survey Office under the Ministry of Statistics and Program Implementation. 

• Poverty Estimation Committees-VM Dandekar and N Rath (1971)made the first systematic assessment of poverty in India based on the National Sample Survey.
• Alagh Committee 1979-constructed a poverty line for rural-urban areas based on nutritional requirements and related consumption expenditure
• Lakdawala committee1993-made suggestions that Consumption expenditure should be calculated based on calorie consumption, State-specific poverty lines should be constructed and these should be updated using the CPI-IW in urban areas and CPI-AL in rural areas.
• Tendulkar Committee 2009 made a recommendation to shift from calorie consumption-based poverty estimation and computed new poverty lines for rural and urban areas of each state based on the uniform poverty line basket.
• The Rangarajan committee set a poverty threshold person spending below rupees 47 a day in cities and rupees 32 in villages to be considered poor.

Inequalities which remain relatively untouched over generations, are more dangerous for a society. If in a society certain classes of people have enjoyed considerable wealth, and the power which goes with it, over generations, the society would become divided between those classes and others who have remained poor over generations. Over time such class differences can give rise to resentment and violence.

Political ideologies

• Marxism and liberalism are two important political ideologies.
• Marx was an important nineteenth-century thinker who argued that the root cause of entrenched inequality was private ownership of important economic resources such as oil, land, or forests, as well as other forms of property.
• He pointed out that such private ownership did not only make the class of owners wealthy, it also gave them political power. Such power enables them to influence state policies and laws and this could prove a threat to democratic government. Marxists and socialists feel that economic inequality provides support to other forms of social inequality such as differences of rank or privilege.
• Therefore, to tackle inequality in society we need to go beyond providing equal opportunities and try and ensure public control over essential resources and forms of property.
• An opposing point of view can be found in liberal theories. Liberals uphold the principle of competition as the most efficient and fair way of distributing resources and rewards in society. They believe that while states may have to intervene to try and ensure a minimum standard of living and equal opportunities for all, this cannot by itself bring equality and justice to society.
• Competition between people in free and fair conditions is the most just and efficient way of distributing rewards in a society.
• The problem for liberals is not inequality as such, but unjust and entrenched inequalities which prevent individuals from developing their capabilities

Socialism

• Socialism refers to a set of political ideas that emerged as a response to the inequalities present in and reproduced by the industrial capitalist economy.
• The main concern of Socialism is how to minimise existing inequality and distribute resources justly. Although advocates of socialism are not entirely opposed to the market, they favour some kind of government regulation, planning and control over certain key areas such as education and health care.
• In India the eminent socialist thinker Rammanohar Lohia, identified five kinds of inequalities that need to be fought against simultaneously:
• inequality between men and women
• inequality based on skin colour,
• caste-based inequality,
• colonial rule of some countries over others,
• economic inequality
• He added two more revolutions to this list: revolution for civil liberties against unjust encroachments on private life and
• revolution for non-violence, for renunciation of weapons in favour of satyagrah. These were the seven revolutions or sapt kranti which for Lohia was the ideal of socialism.

Feminism

• Feminism is a political doctrine of equal rights for women and men.
• According to feminists, inequality between men and women in society is the result of patriarchy.
• Patriarchy refers to a social, economic and cultural system that values men more than women and gives men power over women.
• Feminists question this way of thinking by making a distinction between “sex” i.e. biological difference between men and women, and “gender” which determines the different roles that men and women play in society.
• For instance, the biological fact that only women can become pregnant and bear children does not require that only women should look after children after they are born. Feminists show us that much of the inequality between men and women is produced by society and not by nature ePatriarchy produces a division of labour by which women are supposed to be responsible for “private” and “domestic” matters while men are responsible for work in the “public” domain.
• Feminists contend that this public/ private distinction and all forms of gender inequalities can and should be eliminated.

3. Ways to Promote Equality

• Establishing Formal Equality: The Constitution prohibits discrimination on grounds of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth. Our Constitution also abolishes the practice of untouchability. Most modern constitutions and democratic governments have formally accepted the principle of equality and incorporated it as identical treatment by law to all citizens without any regard to their caste, race, religion or gender.
• Equality through Differential Treatment is necessary to treat people differently to ensure that they can enjoy equal rights.

• For instance, disabled people may justifiably demand special ramps in public spaces.
• Steps taken in this direction-

1. The Person With Disabilities (equal opportunities, protection of opportunities, protection of rights and full participation ) Act 1995-

• Prevention of early detection of disability
• Education
• Employment
• Affirmative action
• Non-discrimination
• Social security

2. The Mental Health Act
3. The Rehabilitation Council of India Act 1992
4. The national trust for welfare of persons with autism, cerebral palsy, mental retardation and multiple disabilities act 1999
5. Income tax concessions

• Women working in call centres at night may need special protection during the journey to and from the centre so that their equal right to work may be protected. These should not be seen as infringements of equality but as enhancements of equality Steps taken 

1. Article 16-equality of opportunity for all citizens in matters relating to public employment
2. Article 39 states to direct its policy towards securing for men and women equally the right to adequate means of livelihood, and Article 39(d)equal pay for equal work for both men and women.
3. Article 39A directs the state to promote justice, based on equal opportunity and to promote free legal aid
4. Article 42 directs the state to make provisions for securing justice and humane conditions of work and for maternity relief
5. Article 51A(e)enjoins upon every citizen to renounce practices derogatory to the dignity of women.
6. Reservation of seats for women in panchayats and municipalities
7. National commission for women.

Affirmative Actions

• Affirmative action can however take many forms, from preferential spending on facilities for disadvantaged communities, such as scholarships and hostels to special consideration for admissions to educational institutions and jobs.
• In our country we have adopted a policy of quotas or reserved seats in education and jobs to provide equality of opportunity to deprived groups certain groups have been victims of social prejudice and discrimination in the form of exclusion and segregation.
• These communities who have suffered in the past and been denied equal opportunities cannot be immediately expected to compete with others on equal terms.