IDIA Charitable Trust

The IDAP Interview Series is a unique initiative that conducts interviews with lawyers with disabilities across various domains in the legal profession, including teaching, advocacy, litigation, and corporate work. The series aims to gather practical insights from these lawyers on the strategies they have employed to excel in their respective fields. It serves as a platform to learn from their experiences and gain actionable knowledge.

P-PIL, initiated by the late Professor (Dr.) Shamnad Basheer, emerged as an informal network of lawyers and law students. Its purpose was to advance public interest goals through the legal system. What set P-PIL apart from other public interest organisations was its collaborative approach, pairing law students and lawyers to work together towards common public interest objectives. The initiative aimed to bridge the significant gap between legal academia and the legal profession in India, providing practical learning experiences to law students who often lacked exposure to hands-on training during their time in law school.

The IDIA Research and Policy(IRAP) wing has established itself as the driving force behind numerous IDIA policies. IRAP conducts research using primary and secondary sources, as well as petitions and complaints, to support IDIA's initiatives. Its primary objective is to enact necessary systemic changes by implementing IDIA's initiatives and addressing relevant policy issues that will have long-term benefits for the cause.

IDAP, launched on 3 December 2015, coinciding with the United Nations' International Day of Persons with Disabilities, aims to promote equality in line with the UN's theme of "Inclusion matters: access and empowerment of people of all abilities." The programme sensitises, trains, and supports students with disabilities, conducts policy research, and implements reforms to enhance accessibility in legal education and the profession. Through the establishment of internal and external support systems, IDAP strives to overcome challenges faced by students with disabilities, enabling them to compete equally with their peers while raising awareness of the responsibility of institutions to provide equitable infrastructural support. Under this programme, it has organised some workshops namely Creating Inclusive Spaces: Empowerment through Equality, and IDAP Workshop for IDIA Scholars with Disabilities.