Money control: National: Friday,
24 July 2020.
The
National Foundation for Communal Harmony (NFCH), which is an autonomous body
under the Ministry of Home Affairs, has not held a meeting in the last two
years, a Right to Information (RTI) filed by Govindan Nampoothiry, an activist,
has shown.
According
to a report by the Times of India, the body, which assists children hit by
communal violence and promotes national integration, "shall meet as often
as necessary but not less than once in a year" according to its MoU. The
foundation had last met on April 12, 2018, despite communal riots in Delhi in
February this year. That was under the chairmanship of Rajnath Singh, the then
Home Minister of India.
According
to the newspaper, the body has not met even once under the new home minister
Amit Shah. A query submitted by the newspaper regarding the issue to the
ministry's spokesperson did not elicit any response, according to the report.
According
to the report, while the governing council of the body is tasked with the
formulation of overall policies, the executive council is responsible for the
management and the administration. The former is chaired by the home minister,
while the latter is headed by the Union home secretary.
The
report stated that the executive council has met nine times since 2014-15, and
had last met in March this year. According to the RTI reply, the NFCH has
provided assistance to 3,397 children during the 2019-20 period.
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