Chapter 1 — On Equality

The Indian Constitution recognises every person as equal, including persons of all castes, religions, tribes, and educational and economic backgrounds. Key provisions include equality before the law, non-discrimination on grounds of religion, race, caste, place of birth or gender, access to all public places, and abolition of untouchability.

Equality before the law means every person — from the President of the country to Kanta, a domestic worker — has to obey the same laws. No person receives special treatment under the law.

The four provisions are: (1) every person is equal before the law; (2) no person can be discriminated against on the basis of religion, race, caste, place of birth, or gender; (3) every person has access to all public places including playgrounds, hotels, shops, markets, wells, roads, and bathing ghats; (4) untouchability has been abolished.

Article 15 prohibits the State from discriminating against any citizen on grounds of religion, race, caste, sex, or place of birth. It also states that no citizen shall be denied access to shops, public restaurants, hotels, or publicly maintained places such as wells, tanks, bathing ghats, and roads on these grounds.

The midday meal programme provides meals to children in government schools. Its benefits include: improved school attendance and enrolment of poor children; reduced burden on mothers who no longer need to come home mid-day to feed children; reduction of caste prejudice as children of all castes eat together; and relief from hunger for poor students who could not concentrate on an empty stomach.

Rosa Parks (1913–2005) was an African American woman who, tired from a long day at work, refused to give up her bus seat to a white man on 1 December 1955. Her act of defiance started a major agitation against the unequal treatment of African Americans, which came to be known as the Civil Rights Movement.

The Civil Rights Movement was a movement that began in the USA in the 1950s in which African American people demanded equal rights and an end to racial discrimination. Rosa Parks's refusal to give up her seat in 1955 is highlighted in the chapter as a key event that triggered this movement.

The Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibited discrimination on the basis of race, religion, or national origin in the USA. It also stated that all schools would be open to African American children, who would no longer have to attend separate schools set up specially for them.

Universal adult franchise means all adult citizens — those aged 18 and above — have the right to vote, irrespective of their social or economic backgrounds. The chapter identifies it as a very important aspect of democratic societies.

According to the chapter's glossary, dignity means thinking of oneself and other persons as worthy of respect. The chapter emphasises that establishing equality requires every person's dignity to be maintained.

The Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016 states that persons with disabilities have equal rights and that the government should make possible their full participation in society. It mandates free education and integration of children with disabilities into mainstream schools, and requires all public places including buildings and schools to be accessible and provided with ramps.

Yes — the full NCERT PDF for Class 7 Social and Political Life II (Civics), including Chapter 1 "On Equality", is available free on this page with no sign-up required.