NHRC Marks Its 33rd Foundation Day with a National Conference on the Right to Water
The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), India observed its 33rd Foundation Day on 12 October 2026 at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi, with Chief Justice of India Justice Surya Kant as chief guest. Constituted in 1993 under the Protection of Human Rights Act, 1993, the Commission has dealt with 24,33,716 cases, including 3,100 taken up *suo motu*, and has recommended monetary relief exceeding Rs 274 crore in 9,085 cases. The day was followed by a national conference on the theme "Water, the Nectar of Life: Right to Water for Human Dignity", extending the rights-based reading of Article 21 that the Supreme Court has built over decades.
NHRC headquarters: Manav Adhikar Bhawan, New Delhi | Since the 2019 amendment the chairperson may be a former Chief Justice of India or a former judge of the Supreme Court | NHRC recommendations are advisory, not binding; the right to water has been read into Article 21