Dalits Media Watch

News Updates 17.03.10

SC Sub-Plan calls for following M'rashtra model - The Tribune

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2010/20100317/punjab.htm#1

Noorwala still tense, admn talks of peace process - Indian express

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/noorwala-still-tense-admn-talks-of-peace-process/591888/0

Temple doors open to Dalits - The Hindu

http://www.hindu.com/2010/03/17/stories/2010031763580600.htm

NU crisis reaches Delhi - The Morang Times

http://www.morungexpress.com/frontpage/45329.html

International Herald Tribune

India's Disjointed Prosperity

The Tribune

SC Sub-Plan calls for following M'rashtra model

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2010/20100317/punjab.htm#1

Jangveer Singh, Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, March 16 The Scheduled Castes Sub-Plan, 2010-11, has recommended that the SC Sub-Plan (SCSP) Department should be allocated SCSP funds in its budget demand on the pattern of the Maharashtra model as approved by the Council of Ministers in March, 2003.

It has also noted that SC females lagged behind as far as the literacy rate were concerned. It said the dropout rate among SC students was much higher when compared to students from the general category, as was the infant mortality rate.

The Sub-Plan, prepared by the Directorate of SC Sub-Plan Department of Welfare and tabled in the Vidhan Sabha today, recommended that the SCSP Department should be given the liberty to formulate new schemes as per the actual needs of SCs at its own level in consultation with administrative departments.

It calls for giving the Secretary, Welfare Department, powers of the Secretary, Planning, and the Secretary, Finance, to allocate SCSP funds to various departments. For this it has called for strengthening the SCSP Department besides creating awareness about the concept of SCSP through workshops and seminars.

The report said the government was still considering the budgetary mechanism to be followed for implementing the SCSP on the Maharashtra pattern. It said 3,788 villages with more than 40 per cent SC population had been identified for being provided infrastructure facilities on a priority basis.

Speaking about the dropout rate of SC students, the report said the rate among Class I to V students was 29.20 per cent as compared to 24 per cent among general category students. It said this increased in the Class VI to VIII group with the drop out rate of SC students being 52.46 per cent as compared to 33.67 per cent among general students. The report said in the Class I to X group the dropout rate was 65.69 per cent among SC students as compared to 44 per cent among general students.

In the case of mortality of SC children, the report said infant mortality among SC children was 73.70 per cent against an all-India average of 67 per cent and a Punjab average of 44 per cent. Child mortality among SC children was 22.50 per cent against a national average of 29 per cent and a Punjab average of 7.40 per cent.

The Sub-Plan also revealed that 86 per cent of SC children were anaemic as compared to a national average of 74 per cent. Similarly, 47 per cent of SC women suffered from anaemia as compared to a state average of 38 per cent.

Indian express

Noorwala still tense, admn talks of peace process

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/noorwala-still-tense-admn-talks-of-peace-process/591888/0

Wednesday, Mar 17, 2010 at 0305 hrs Ludhiana:

The district administration claims the Noorwala situation is under control, but forgets to mention that tension still simmers in this village.

And while DC Rahul Tewari announced he wants the two warring groups to come together and sort out the matter, Police Commissioner, Ishwar Singh, claims just the opposite.

His stand — "We're investigating the matter and the guilty will be brought to book. Though our SP City 3 and ADC are trying to ensure that the matter is resolved, the law will take its own course."

Meanwhile, G S Saroya, national president of Vishwa guru Ravi Das Mission, who is representing the SC/ST section said, "We've tried to apprise the district administration and the police about how our people are being suppressed. We condemn violence and hold that our people are also at fault. But the ground reality is that when ex-sarpanch Hari Singh was trying to hold a function at the old gurdwara by installing the Guru Granth Sahib, he should have been allowed to do so, because by creating a ruckus, people from the other community have lowered the prestige of the Guru Granth Sahib. The fact is that the Jats look down upon people from the lower castes visiting the new gurdwara and will not let us pray at the old one."

"We did not disrespect the Guru Granth Sahib. The people who attacked us did that," added Saroya. He said, "We've decided to approach the National Commission as well as the State Commission for SC/STs to intervene and sort out the issue. There are a number of complaints lodged by our people lying unaddressed at various police stations. There is no one to redress our issues and ultimately, anger boils over. We've told our boys not create a ruckus, for we have full faith in the judiciary and will try and resolve the matter peacefully. But the fact is that the SGPC people have met the Jats, but have not come to our people for any kind of talks. Our MLA Hira Singh Garbria who came asking for votes has not come to this village to talk to people."

Garbria could not be contacted for his comments despite repeated attempts.

The Hindu

Temple doors open to Dalits

http://www.hindu.com/2010/03/17/stories/2010031763580600.htm

Muralidhara Khajane

Dalits can now enter village hotel and barber shop

Over 100 Dalits made a historic entry into temple

MYSORE: For the first time in their lives over 100 Dalits of Kannali village in Mandya district entered Chennakeshavaswamy and Eshwara temples on Tuesday.

Though they had served the village deities by beating drums during festivals and cleaning the temple premises, they were barred from entering the temple. Overjoyed by the newly acquired right, the Dalits offered special prayers.

All this came about as a fall out of an incident where a Dalit was attacked by "caste" Hindus. During a festival on March 13, Chandu (28) a Dalit youth climbed 'one' step of the Chennakeshavaswamy temple while beating the drums. Enraged by this, some of the "caste" Hindus attacked and abused him.

Some educated Dalit youth decided to register a complaint with the police and met station head of Mandya rural police. However, the police did not register the complaint immediately but said they would do so the next day.

Meanwhile, Mandya MLA Srinivas convened a meeting of the Dalits and "caste" Hindus to bring about a compromise.

Responding to the MLA's plea, Kempaih (50) Dalit leader of Kannali said they would not press charges if they were allowed to enter the village temple, hotel and barber shop. The "caste" Hindus agreed reluctantly and assured them that changes would be made in phases.

Negotiation

However, the Dalits insisted that they be allowed into the temples on Ugadi. Finally, the "caste" Hindus yielded to pressure said, Vasu of Karnataka Janapara Vedike, who was with the Dalits when they entered the temple on Tuesday. Mr. Kempaih said Tuesday was a historic day in the life of the Dalits, he added.

The Morang Times

NU crisis reaches Delhi

http://www.morungexpress.com/frontpage/45329.html

Dimapur, March 16 (MExN): A seven-member NUTA delegation held a meeting with the Ministry of Human Resource Development at Shastri Bhavan, New Delhi today. The team highlighted the current crisis in NU and demanded immediate intervention from the MHRD. This was informed by Rosemary Dzuvichu, NUTA's president, and Dr N. Venuh, secretary general of NUTA.

The NUTA's demands include immediate convening of an Executive Council meeting by Vice Chancellor Prof. Kannan to revoke the suspension of three NU teachers. The NUTA also apprised the MHRD that six EC members had written to the chairman of the EC (vice chancellor) raising their objections to the manipulation of the 23rd EC meeting 's minutes held at Dimapur. The letter from the EC members reveal that they did not approve the suspension of the three teachers.

According to the press note, the Ministry officials categorically stated that the Central Service Conduct Rules under which the three teachers have been suspended, can never be applied to University teachers as nowhere in Indian Universities, CCS Rules are applied to teachers. "University teachers are not Government servants and hence these rules are never applied to them. Only University employees and not teachers fall under the CCS Rules, and therefore, suspending and charging teachers under the Central Service Conduct Rules is highly illegal", the press note quoted as was stated by the MHRD officials.

It was also informed to the NUTA delegation that the autonomy of Universities allow teachers to be active members of political parties, stand for election and even become Ministers like in the case of Prof. Murli Manohar Joshi, and the present Prime Minister Prof. Manmohan Singh. Further according to the press note, the MHRD clearly stated to the NUTA that Universities allow freedom of expression and differences of political ideologies and the University is a place where different views are respected and debated.

While appreciating the unity of the teaching community on the struggle for justice, the MHRD has assured the 7 member delegation of NUTA that the Vice Chancellor would be immediately asked to fax the 6 letters of the 6 EC Members for the Visitor to take decision. According to the NUTA press note, "the MHRD is deeply concerned on the false information provided by the Vice Chancellor on the development at Lumami". The NUTA according to its press note has reiterated its stand that immediate infrastructural development must be initiated for the Headquarters and has demanded that a team be sent to Lumami for a factual study on the report given by the Vice Chancellor.
The press note also informed that the NUTA team is expected to meet the MHRD Minister and the Visitor on the NU crisis. They will also be meeting the SC/ST Commission at Delhi and representing on the atrocities being committed on the ST/SC teachers in the University.

International Herald Tribune

India's Disjointed Prosperity

By TIM SEBASTIAN

Published: March 15, 2010

NEW DELHI — When Madan Lal began work here among the madness, color and chaos of the Janpath pavement, Richard Nixon was in the White House and there wasn't a main street shop anywhere in the world selling computers.

At the age of 15 he sat down on the uneven concrete, in exactly the same place occupied by his father, and began shining the shoes of tourists and anyone else with the luxury of footwear to polish.

Behind him the rickshaws and hooting cars sped past, the world underwent cosmic change and 40 years on, with considerably fewer teeth, his hands engrained with shoe polish and a dirty yellow sweatband across his forehead, he's still there.

But his is not a story of dire misfortune — at least in Indian terms. His daily income of around $4 puts him ahead of no less than several hundred million of his countrymen, he can buy medicine for his son with a heart condition. He has married off his daughters and can afford to feed himself and his wife.

Life in India, could be and mostly is much, much worse.

And yet Mr. Lal is totally unaware of the new-age, look-at-me party India has thrown for its chattering classes; unaware that he and the other 900 million Indians who have not been invited, now risk being airbrushed from just about every picture that counts.

Don't get me wrong. India deserves its party. Its ingenuity, hard-work and brilliance in many fields provide plenty to celebrate. But increasing numbers of the non-invitees are no longer content to press their noses against the windows of the wealthy, beg at the traffic lights and hawk their new-born children around the tourist sites, hoping to prick a few foreign consciences.

The harsh fact is that a third of the country's districts are now fighting insurgencies, and unless more of India's citizens get a sense of belonging to their "shining," "incredible" country — as the PR disciples would have it — there are fears that the violence may increase substantially.

A former government minister, Mani Shankar Ayar, puts it this way: "We have a tiny elite that is obsessed with itself. If democracy doesn't deliver for the rest — we could be heading for violence. We're seeing a failure to bring 900 million people inside the system of entitlements. Without entitlements, you pick up the gun."

Pick up instead the New Delhi newspapers and you're whisked well away from any notion of a developing country and straight into cash-land India. Wherever you turn there's a blaze of high-end promotions, designed to suck in the gigantic wealth now generated by the world's most populous and powerful middle class. Let no one forget that India is home to the fourth largest number of billionaires and to 60 million people with a higher living standard than France or Britain — and commerce across the globe is chasing their money.

The statistics of modern India are breathtaking and point to an unprecedented event — the birth of an economic giant from within the poorest country on the planet. And that is why a thousand times a day every rule is defied and, every belief undermined. Just when you think you have discovered a basic truth, it laughs at you, runs away into the crowd and disappears for good.

A former journalist recently attended the wedding of an old friend's son. He was struck that the boy was marrying someone from a lower caste. When he mentioned it to his friend, the man denied it but the old reporter persisted. "I know it may be difficult for you," he said, "but the lady is from a different caste. That's a fact."

"You don't understand," his friend told him with a shrug. "He works for Chase Manhattan, she works for Chase Manhattan. Same caste."

One government official tells me that the only way two Indians know they are from the same country is because they speak a different language, worship a different God, read different books and like different music. "On the face of it they have nothing in common. So they must be Indian."

In Western societies we have little experience of the enormous contrasts that beset India. Drive a few minutes from the Members' Enclosure at Mumbai racecourse to some of the filthiest slums in the world and the Westerner will wonder if he has just left one country and entered another. He seeks order out of the chaos, explanations, synergies. The Indian will just accept.

Years ago, when I wrote novels, my editor told me "the difference between real life and fiction is that fiction has to make sense. Real life seldom does."

It's a thought that has often come to my mind in India.

I drive north to a campus of Delhi University. By the time I arrive I have a boxful of discordant pictures and sounds. A beggar holding a dollar bill, asking for change, a cow, a McDonald's, wild monkeys swinging from buildings, birds screeching from the trees, students in designer T-shirts. Species all mixed up and thrown together. And in this buzzy, hectic pantomime there's a feeling that almost anything is possible.

I ask Madan Lal if his son will take his place on the pavement when he decides to retire. He looks up at me and smiles. "My son? No, no," he replies. "My son is going to school."

Tim Sebastian is a television journalist and chairman of the Doha Debates.

--
.Arun Khote
On behalf of
Dalits Media Watch Team
(An initiative of "Peoples Media Advocacy & Resource Centre-PMARC")