FUNDAMENTAL DUTIES IN INDIA

          Fundamental Duties in India

1

The 42nd Amendment Act added the Fundamental Duties of citizens in 1976. The ten Fundamental Duties (given in Article 51-A of the constitution) can be classified as either duties towards self, duties concerning the environment, duties towards the State and duties towards the nation. The 86th constitutional amendment added the 11th Fundamental Duty, which states that every citizen "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" in 2002.

 Citizens have a moral obligation by the constitution to perform those duties, although non-justifiable, incorporated only with the purpose of promoting patriotism among citizens. Those obligations extend not only to the citizens, but also to the State. International instruments such as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights make reference to such duties. The Fundamental Duties obligate all citizens to respect the national symbols of India (including the constitution), to cherish its heritage and assist in its defense. It aims to promote the equality of all individuals, protect the environment and public property, to develop "scientific temper," to abjure violence, to strive towards excellence and to provide free and compulsory education.

The following are the Fundamental Duties prescribed by the Constitution of the nation under PART [IV-A] to its every citizen :

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 wild life, 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 endeavor and achievement.