Dalits Media Watch
News Updates 07.11.11
Dalit farmers herded away from govt land - The Hindustan Times
Dalits 'forced out' of rented house - Republica
http://www.myrepublica.com/portal/index.php?action=news_details&news_id=37989
Quantum jump in SC/ST officers in govt jobs - Indian Express
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/quantum-jump-in-sc-st-officers-in-govt-j.../871770/
Dalit village cut-off from road to development - IBN Live
http://ibnlive.in.com/news/dalit-village-cutoff-from-road-to-development/199957-60-118.html
Government Mulls Dalit Venture Capital Fund - The Wall Street Journal
The Hindustan Times
Dalit farmers herded away from govt land
Ejaz Kaiser, Hindustan Times
Raipur, November 06, 2011
Last Updated: 01:48 IST(7/11/2011)
As part of a drive against encroachment on government land, a big herd of cattle was pushed into agricultural fields in Raigarh to stampede the crops cultivated by Dalit farmers. The panchayat in Chicho-umariya village, 240 km east of Raipur, has defended the incident, which took place on October 30 and has created tension in the area.
Local BJP leader Kartikram Pradhan, who also allegedly performs the role of sarpanch-pati (husband of the woman sarpanch, wielding authority on her behalf), allegedly spearheaded the move.
Pradhan, who is also block president, said: "After the directive from the collector and the resolution passed by the gram panchayat, the process of removal was initiated."
The Dalit families of the village are now facing the threat of social boycott and the blocking of their ration supplies if they protest or lodge any complaint.
Raigarh collector Amit Kataria said humanitarian concern should have been shown to the villagers. "The action was legal and undertaken after a resolution was passed by the gram panchayat. Following the directive of the Supreme Court, we have decided to get rid of illegal encroachments on all public and government land by December 15," Kataria told HT. Of the 1,650 acres in Chicho-umariya, nearly 250 acres has been declared as grazing land, owned by the government. About 65 Dalit families were reportedly using 150 acres of that for decades.
"We have been cultivating the land since the sixties and now face the threat from the sarpanch pati, who is also a local BJP leader, that our ration supply will be blocked," said Pushkarma, a woman in her thirties.
Suraj Kumar, a villager, asked: "Why was the drive undertaken without the presence of an officer or the police? We had a lush green harvest this year owing to the good monsoon but all are destroyed now."
The police, however, are saying the action was unjustified. "I have sent a police force led by the additional SP to inquire into the incident. Such an anti-encroachment drive is absolutely wrong. And the issue becomes sensitive when the victims are Dalits," Raigarh superintendent of police Rahul Sharma said.
Republica
Dalits 'forced out' of rented house
http://www.myrepublica.com/portal/index.php?action=news_details&news_id=37989
DILIP POUDEL
BAGLUNG, Nov 7: Three students in Baglung have accused their landlord of forcing them to leave the rented room just because they belong to the Dalit community.
Kalpana Pariyar and Samjhana Pariyar of Khugrani - 1, and Garima BK of ward no 6 on Sunday accused Bhimnath and Sita Poudel, the owners of house, resident of Baglung, of forcing them to vacate the room.
"We have a naagdevta (snake god) in our house. If you Dalits are allowed to live here, the naag will get angry inviting bad consequences," the girls quoted Poudel duo as saying. The students have been undergoing health assistant training.
According to the tenants, the duo had agreed to give them the room for 2,000 per month. "But the same day in the evening, they came to know about our caste and they changed their mind," said Kalpana. "We were humiliated and ill treated by the landlords."
The students complained that they were not given sufficient time even to rent another room. They had to remove all their stuffs.
While the girls have demanded action against the landlords, the latter denied the charge. "We wanted to give the entire flat to a single family, that was the reason why we asked them to leave," the duo said. "We have not forced them to vacate the room immediately," they defended.
On the basis of allegation, police has already detained and filed a case against the Poudel duo.
On the other hand, several human rights and pro-Dalit organizations have been pressurizing action against the guilty.
Indian Express
Quantum jump in SC/ST officers in govt jobs
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/quantum-jump-in-sc-st-officers-in-govt-j.../871770/
Mon Nov 07 2011, 01:21 hrs New Delhi:
Thanks to the policy of reservation, the representation of Scheduled Castes in higher-level government jobs has increased nearly eight times in the last 45 years while the proportion of Scheduled Tribes has shown an almost 20-fold jump.
The proportion of SCs in Group A government jobs was only 1.64 per cent at the beginning of 1965. That had risen to 12.5 per cent by January 2008. Similarly, the share of STs in top government jobs increased from a meagre 0.27 per cent in 1965 to 4.9 per cent in 2008, according to data in the latest brochure on reservation brought out by the government.
Even in the lower levels of bureaucracy, the reservation policy has had a similar impact, as 2008 figures show. From 13.17 per cent as of January 1, 1965, the share of SCs in all government jobs increased to 17.51 per cent. STs now have 6.82 per cent of all government jobs as compared to 2.25 per cent in 1965.
This is the first time the government has brought out such a brochure since reservation for Other Backward Classes (OBCs) was introduced in 1993. The previous such brochure in fact came out in 1993 itself. However, the impact of reservations on OBCs during these years has not been quantified.
SCs and STs have been eligible for reservation in government service from the time of Independence. As of now, SCs, STs and OBCs get 15 per cent, 7.5 per cent and 27 per cent reservation respectively in all government posts where appointment is done by open competition.
IBN Live
Dalit village cut-off from road to development
http://ibnlive.in.com/news/dalit-village-cutoff-from-road-to-development/199957-60-118.html
Express News Service , The New Indian Express
RAMANATHAPURAM: Cross a water channel, dive if it is raining cats and dogs and slog through the path that would hardly pass for a road and you are there. Welcome to Keela Allikulam located seven km from Sayalkudi where proper transport and health facilities are still a mirage.
A tiny village with a population of 550, mostly Dalits, Keela Allikulam has been longing for a regular bus service. Wading thr- ough Sankaradevan Channel is an everyday affair for the villagers, who otherwise have a second option to reach Sayalkudi - a shortcut covered with bushes formed by Kattu karuvelam (a thorny plant).
But not many women and children would take that route as there have been incidents wherein masked men waylaid women and snatched their valuables. During the rains, water level in the channel is almost neck-deep. So children refuse to go to school or do not reach on time and eventually quit learning.
Like the transportation problems, health facilities in the village are in shambles. There is no primary health centre to attend to emergency cases. Most often patients have to be taken to Sayalkudi by auto for exorbitant fares.
Forget health, even grocery items are not easy to get. Villagers have to walk at least two km to procure essential commodities from the PDS shop at Usilankulam. The villagers have been urging the government to establish a PDS shop in their village itself, but so far nothing has happened.
"Reaching school itself is a big ordeal. It is located far from the village. After a point, I had to discontinue studies due to family problems," said Valarmathi, a Keela Allikulam resident. A regular bus service would at least help other students to attend the school properly, she added.
Most of the villagers depend on agriculture for livelihood. They climb palm trees for six months to sell palm juice. The village is fully dependant on the Cauvery water for drinking purposes, while oorani water is used for other chores.
"Life here is pathetic. Even a good hospital is not present in the vicinity. We have to put up with all the problems as there is no other option," Ramakrishnan said.
Sathaiah, Director of the Rural Workers' Development Society, said the residents have been seeking basic facilities for the last several years. At least a bridge should be constructed across the Sankaradevan Channel to reach Sayalkudi safely during the rainy season. The director added that his society had identified some dropouts in the village and were making efforts to readmit them in schools.
The Wall Street Journal
Government Mulls Dalit Venture Capital Fund
http://blogs.wsj.com/indiarealtime/2011/11/07/government-mulls-dalit-venture-capital-fund/?mod=google_news_blog
By Tripti Lahiri
Almost a year ago, Dalit businessmen met with Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia to talk about how the government could support entrepreneurs from India's historically disadvantaged low-caste groups.
This weekend, the Dalit Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry gathered again in Delhi to celebrate one result of that meeting. Last week, India's Cabinetapproved a policy for public procurement that asks government departments to source 4% of their total purchases from businesses run by people from India's most disadvantaged communities. These include both Dalits and members of tribal communities.
At the Saturday gathering, which also saw the creation of a Delhi chapter of the chamber, the minister who lobbied for the procurement policy change said the government was now considering creating a "Dalit venture capital fund." Dalit entrepreneurs say one of the major hurdles they face is a lack of financing options.
"It wouldn't be right to say more," Minister for Social Justice and Empowerment Mukul Wasnik told the gathering. "But I hope we'll see it reach fruition."
Later Mr. Wasnik told India Real Time that it wasn't enough to recommend that a certain amount of procurement come from Dalit businesses. The policy allows for ministries to source from other businesses if Dalit firms don't participate in bids.
"It will be our responsibility to make it a success as well," said Mr. Wasnik. "What else can be done?"
The minister said that India was looking to other countries for ideas, such as South Africa's black economic empowerment program.
In South Africa, firms that want to apply for public contracts must present independent verification that they are following prescribed empowerment policies.
"Empowerment was basically coming in the public sector," said Mr. Wasnik, referring to affirmative action quotas for government jobs. "Gradually the private sector needs to start empowering."
Mr. Wasnik wasn't the only Congress party politician present. General Secretary Digvijay Singh was there too. That marked a change from last year's festivities, when the Planning Commission's Montek Singh Ahluwalia, a civil servant, was the chief guest.
India is months away from elections in Uttar Pradesh — a state presently run by Chief Minister Mayawati Kumari of the Dalit-supported Bahujan Samaj Party.
In their remarks, both politicians mentioned the Congress party many times, as well as Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Congress president Sonia Gandhi specifically, praising them for their focus on Dalit empowerment.
But Mr. Wasnik denied that the public procurement policy was approved with an eye on the coming elections.
"We didn't keep this for these elections," he said. "Elections come in some part of the country every six months. This is our social commitment."
--
.Arun Khote
On behalf of
Dalits Media Watch Team
(An initiative of "Peoples Media Advocacy & Resource Centre-PMARC")
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Peoples Media Advocacy & Resource Centre- PMARC has been initiated with the support from group of senior journalists, social activists, academics and intellectuals from Dalit and civil society to advocate and facilitate Dalits issues in the mainstream media. To create proper & adequate space with the Dalit perspective in the mainstream media national/ International on Dalit issues is primary objective of the PMARC.
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