WHT Summer Internship in Delhi
Max Weidenfeld travel grant reflections by Ayushi Agrawal
captured at a children's education initiative supported by the Indian Railways in Allahabad
As a human rights advocate with a focus on gender, I was keenly lookingfor an opportunity to learn how my current studies as a law student at Oxfordcan be applied for the benefit of stakeholder groups, and bridge the essentialgap between academic theorising and relevant practise.
The Max Weidenfeld travel grant allowed me to travel to Delhi during the spring vacation 2019 to intern with the Samana Centre for Gender, Policy and Law for three weeks. It is a gender consultancy focusing on gender diversity and inclusion, and helps institutions better implement laws, by assisting them in designing workplace policies, conducting workshops and creating more sensitivity to gender issues, ultimately aimed at empowering women and the LGBTQ community and furthering their inclusion and growth in the workplace.
In two of my courses, Comparative Human Rights and Comparative EqualityLaw, a significant portion of the class discussion is centred on how rightsultimately percolate down to those for whom they are intended, through theinstitutions that mediate them i.e. the legislature, the judiciary and public& private workplaces. As an intern at the Samana Centre, my work was a direct application of what I’mlearning in those classes.
My first project revolved around researching paternity leave policies incompanies around the world, and highlighting practices that can be followed by willing companies in India, that do notcurrently have a law for paternity leave. The comparative nature of my coursesat Oxford assisted me in undertaking the comparative research for this project,and also made me aware of the vast difference across countries when it comes tolaws that further gender equality.
My second project involved research on harassment of trans-genderindividuals in India. While I was aware of the problem; this research made meaware of the whole range of discriminatory practices and harassment faced by thetransgender community, which can include violence by police, harassment inschools and at the workplace and barriers to accessing basic amenities such as toilets.
My third project required that I research the position of women in thelegal community in India. My findings showed dismal representation of women, especiallyin professional positions such as advocates, judges and corporate law firmpartners. This insight has only strengthened my resolve to work for genderequality in India.
My final project consisted of making a comprehensive index of all thesexual harassment cases that have come before Indian courts since the passingof the Prevention of Sexual Harassment atthe Workplace Act, 2013. Reading through these judgments, which werenumbered at more than 130, and encompassed the Supreme Court, and 17 differentHigh Courts, reinforced in my mind the vastness and prevalence of the problem.
Having now finished the internship, I feel that I have gained significantpractical insight into the context of my own country, which will definitely goon to enrich all that I have learnt and will learn in the classroom at Oxford.
A group of children is captured here at the educational project in Allahabad.
In addition to the internship, I was able to visit Allahabad, a city inUttar Pradesh, where my father is currently posted as an Indian Railwaysemployee. While I was there, I participated in the pro-bono efforts of theIndian Railways to increase access to education for poor children who live onthe railway platforms. These children spend their entire lives on the platforms,and often have no family. They either beg or sell food/drinks to supportthemselves. The initiative aims to introduce children of all age groups to thejoy of learning, by engaging them in short stories and preliminary mathematicslessons and giving them a space where they can simply be children instead ofworrying about making a living. Participating in these sessions reinvigoratedmy sense of duty towards the lesser privileged people of my country, andgratitude for everything I’ve been privileged enough to experience, especiallymy education.
I would like to thank the Weidenfeld Hoffmann Trust for awarding me theMax Weidenfeld Travel Grant, which allowed me to have this educational andfulfilling experience.
