Socio Legal Information Centre

The Socio Legal Information Center (SLIC) is a non-profit organization in India that supports poor and socially excluded communities to access their legal entitlements by seeking higher accountability and commitments from public service delivery systems. SLIC works with community-based organizations and networks to create higher awareness on basic rights and entitlements of these communities promised under various statutes in the country.

This award supports SLIC to provide support to public functionaries and community based organizations in ten states in India to build awareness and learning on legal entitlements of communities with respect to health care and other social protection schemes associated with CoVID-19 relief and recovery. In addition, it assists SLIC to establish community-based systems for seeking effective resolution of constraints that otherwise prevent them from accessing their entitlements. The award contributes to the Foundation’s goal of improving access to resources for immediate COVID-19-related public health challenges while simultaneously advancing new models, policies, and infrastructure for greater public health equity and resilience in the future.

The Socio Legal Information Centre (SUC) was registered in 1991 as a non-profit to provide legal services to the poor. Over the years, SUC's lawyers have pioneered cutting edge human rights litigation on women's justice, child rights, health rights, and reproductive rights. The award to SUC enables the organization to employ strategic litigation in India in order to obtain orders in superior courts that ensure greater accountability from state and national governments for the effective implementation of policies and programs related to quality of care in maternal health. In addition, SUC organizes legal trainings for civil society organizations and lawyers on the use of strategic litigation, colloquiums for judges, develops "know your rights" publications, and conducts public outreach.

The Socio Legal Information Centre (SLIC) in Mumbai, India, uses the legal system to advance human rights and ensure access to justice. SLIC is the largest human rights NGO in India with offices in 25 states and 180 lawyers and social workers. SLIC’s activities include litigation, advocacy, legal awareness programs, investigations into violations, and public education campaigns. This grant will be used for the purchase of an office and training space in Delhi. A portion of the grant funds will also be used to make a contribution to SLIC’s cash reserve fund to provide health insurance and emergency assistance for staff.

The grant to the Socio Legal Information will support the use of legal strategies to advocate for the improved implementation of laws, policies and programs that prevent maternal mortality and morbidity, and protect young people’s sexual and reproductive health in India.

To support a legal advocacy program on maternal mortality and morbidity, and young people's sexual and reproductive health and rights in India (over three years).