A/HRC/21/10 66. Chad inquired about India’s understanding of secularism. Chad made a recommendation. 67. Chile commended the adoption of the National Green Tribunal Act; the Right to Education Act; the policy incorporating a gender perspective and the measures to assist vulnerable castes. It encouraged India to continue its efforts to address discrimination. Chile made recommendations. 68. China appreciated India’s efforts to safeguard the rights and interests of women and children, to provide free and compulsory education for children and to reduce its infant and maternal mortality rates. In other areas, China welcomed steps taken protecting employment rights and those of the elderly. 69. Cuba noted India’s progress in implementing the recommendations from its first review. It recognized the progress shown in the different areas including rural health. Cuba made recommendations. 70. The Czech Republic expressed regret that ongoing legislative procedures continued to delay India’s ratification of CAT. It expressed its appreciation of India’s cooperation with international mechanisms. It made recommendations. 71. Ecuador stated that India had made significant changes in human rights in areas which included universal education, empowerment of women, food sovereignty, social inclusion and the fight against discrimination. Ecuador made a recommendation. 72. Egypt expressed interested in India’s National Rural Employment Guarantee Act and requested more information. It made recommendations. 73. Finland expressed its appreciation for India’s policies and programmes to improve maternal health. However, it raised its concern over maternal deaths due to unsafe abortions. It made recommendations. 74. India stated that the Convention against Torture may only be ratified once the definition of torture was fully reflected in domestic legislation. The Lok Sabha passed the Prevention against Torture Bill in 2010 but the Rajya Sabha referred the Bill to a Select Committee whose report was being examined. Nevertheless, there were sufficient provisions in Indian law prohibiting torture, including the Indian Penal Code. Also, the right to life under article 21 of the Constitution encompassed the right to live with dignity. The provisions in the Constitution and Criminal Procedure Code against self-incrimination, the obligation to produce an arrestee before a magistrate within 24 hours of such arrest and to ensure that the arrestee is informed of the grounds of arrest, provide further safeguards. 75. Freedom of speech and expression was a fundamental right, guaranteed by the Constitution, with accepted restrictions. India’s vibrant media bore testimony to this. The Information Technology Act amended in 2011 had no provision to restrict or block Internet contents. Removal of illegal contents, including child pornography, should not be construed as restricting Internet freedom; such restrictions were addressed towards cyber-security, essential for increasing e-commerce and Internet use. 76. The delegation stated that through MGNREGA, over 12 billion person-days of work had been generated with a total expenditure of over US$ 30 billion, benefitting 54 million families. It also provided a safety net to the 92 per cent of workers who are unorganized, mostly in rural areas. 77. The death penalty was imposed with strong procedural safeguards when life imprisonment appeared inadequate. The President of India and the Governors of the respective states had the power to grant pardons, reprieves, remission or suspension for any offence. Statistics on the death penalty and commutations granted were provided. 9