PART IV DIRECTIVE PRINCIPLES OF STATE POLICY

Article 39: Certain principles of policy to be followed by the State

The State shall, in particular, direct its policy towards securing—

(a) that the citizens, men and women equally, have the right to an adequate means of livelihood;

(b) that the ownership and control of the material resources of the community are so distributed as best to subserve the common good;

(c) that the operation of the economic system does not result in the concentration of wealth and means of production to the common detriment;

(d) that there is equal pay for equal work for both men and women;

(e) that the health and strength of workers, men and women, and the tender age of children are not abused and that citizens are not forced by economic necessity to enter avocations unsuited to their age or strength;

¹[(f) that children are given opportunities and facilities to develop in a healthy manner and in conditions of freedom and dignity and that childhood and youth are protected against exploitation and against moral and material abandonment.]

Footnotes in the official text

1.Subs. by the Constitution (Forty-second Amendment) Act, 1976, s. 7, for cl. (f) (w.e.f. 3-1-1977).

Leading cases

Bandhua Mukti Morcha v. Union of India (1983)A letter alleging bonded labour in Faridabad stone quarries was maintainable under Article 32; the Court rejected objections to its commissioners' reports, presumed forced labourers to be bonded, and issued directions to the Union and Haryana.

Questions on this article

8 questions in 18 of our papers cite Article 39. Try these from the free papers:

1. A State Legislature passes a law declared to give effect to the principle in Article 39(b). The Bill was not reserved for the consideration of the President; the Governor gave his assent. The law is challenged as violating Article 14. Can the State claim the protection of Article 31C?
2. In Charan Lal Sahu v. Union of India (1989), the Supreme Court upheld the Bhopal Gas Leak Disaster (Processing of Claims) Act, 1985, under which the Central Government represented the victims of the gas leak in their claims. The doctrine relied upon to justify the State acting on behalf of the victims was:
3. The directive that there should be equal pay for equal work for both men and women is contained in:

Practise questions on Constitutional Law