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“We got our political freedom in 1947 but there is still a long way to go before we as the  people of the nation can enjoy complete economic and personal freedom. Azadi.me is therefore an initiative to bring the best in liberal thinking to one of the world's largest audiences and to provide them with a platform to learn, share and freely pen down their thoughts. We must move from Independence to full Freedom.” With these words, the Centre for Civil Society (CCS) launched India’s first Liberal portal in Hindi, www.azadi.me at a press conference held at the ASSOCHAM House. Azadi.me is a joint initiative of CCS, Atlas Global Initiative and Cato Institute.
The launch saw the presence of an eminent panel comprising of Mr Gurcharan Das, Author of The Difficulty of Being Good and India Unbound, Mr Shrawan Garg, Group Editor, Dainik Bhaskar, and Dr Ved Pratap Vaidik, political thinker and Former Editor of Navbharat Times and PTI Bhasha.
Mr Vaidik said, “This is a great moment for us Indians that esteemed think tanks like the 
Panelists with azadi.me mugs! CCS, Cato Institute and the Atlas Global Initiative are now realizing the importance of the Hindi audience to spread the liberal movement further; this also reflects on the increasing popularity of the Hindi language today throughout the world. I believe that if Azadi.me through its literature can make the common man think for himself, that would be an achievement in itself. There are too many prejudices in India and to have a platform to voice your opinions and share experiences without any fear are something noteworthy.”
“What the Hindi Media has left behind for decades now due to various parameters and forces, Azadi.me has taken up. The British have left India for over six decades and yet we are still not completely free; what we have become now is dependent….on the media, on institutions and on the ideas of other people. I feel Azadi.me would open up minds and avenues and bring to light some interesting and key global developments and enable the common man to liberate himself from all that is holding him back, ” said Mr Garg.
The portal will have three basic categories: Classics, with literary works of some of the best known liberal thinkers and writers from India and around the world; Commentary, with news, views and reviews of current issues; and Public Policy, that will contain analysis of legislations and regulations, and suggestions, campaigns and ideas to design sound policy solutions for the core issues plaguing the country.
The portal will also serve as a platform for discussion and debate, help connect the Hindi audience to other liberal individuals and organizations throughout the world and most importantly will serve as a one point contact to help each individual understand what true liberalism and freedom really is. The portal will be a powerful and effective medium to communicate with policy makers and the Hindi media, which has a much wider reach than the English media in India.
Thanking the speakers Mr Das said, “Today marks the beginning of a new chapter; we got our independence in 1947 but not complete freedom. The revolution started in 1991 but we still have a long way to go. Prosperity is going to spread in India but not happiness until we can fix governance. When one out of 4 teachers are not there in government schools, one out of four teacher present in the school is not teaching, what kind of azadi is this for our children. It is now for azadi.me to take this up.”
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