Dalit Forced to Clear Human Waste, 2 Held
Dalits Media Watch
News Updates 06.07.14
Dalit Forced to Clear Human Waste, 2 Held- The New Indian Express
Fact-finding team demands security for Kalbeliyas in Udaipur- The Hindu
Budget Justice for Dalits and Adivasis- Mainstream Weekly
Dalit Rape Victim's Daughter Gets Mom's Community Status- The New Indian Express
Telangana to rename welfare with development- Deccan Chronicle
The New Indian Express
Dalit Forced to Clear Human Waste, 2 Held
NAMAKKAL : In what appears to be a case of caste discrimination at its worst, a Dalit was forced by a caste-Hindu couple to remove faeces after he was found attending to nature’s call along a common path near Velagoundanpatti.
On a complaint, police arrested a 50-year-old caste-Hindu, the perpetrator of the atrocity. According to police the victim, R Periyasamy, a resident of Arunthathiyar Street in Nallakumaranpalayam, while attending to nature’s call was caught unawares by Kanthasamy and his wife Sampoornam on Wednesday. It was a secluded place, about a km from the village. The couple verbally abused and forced him to carry out their dictates.
Kanthasamy allegedly assaulted Periyasamy and his friend, Dhanapal, and forced Periyasamy to remove the faeces.
“We held a probe on the incident and found the complainant was verbally abused and forced to remove the faeces. Subsequently, Kanthasamy was arrested and remanded in judicial custody on Friday”, Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), Velur, B Uthayakumar told Express.
The Hindu
Fact-finding team demands security for Kalbeliyas in Udaipur
A fact finding team that probed the recent incident of looting and arson on Kalbeliyas in Udaipur has demanded more security and rehabilitation of the community, particularly in Baghdara village from where the incident was reported.
It has even suggested that the victims should be provided with weapons for self-defence.
The team said in accordance with Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes Act rule 12 (4) each victim should be paid Rs 1.20 lakh without any delay and also three month rations for the families, the five- member fact-finding team of the Centre for Dalit Rights has said in its report.
The police should also ensure fair investigation, and improve its intelligence network to take preventive action.
Tension between the Dangi and Kalbeliya communities (both historically hostile to each other) started when a woman of the Dangi community was reportedly gangraped by an auto-rickshaw driver and his companion of the Kalbeliya community on June 23 while she was on way to a temple.
While the two accused Hiralal Kalbeliya and his cousin Vijay Hiralal, were arrested, the Dangi community reportedly decided to avenge the attack by resorting to looting and arson of Kalbeliya Colony in the village on June 28.
The violent crowd looted, torched and destroyed the houses of the Kalbailyeas resulting in huge damage to their property and also misbehaved with women in the Colony.
``For the police and Fire Brigade to arrive at the crime scene and clear the blocked passage of Jhamarkotda road, ‘lathi charge’ had to be enforced.
However by the time the police arrived on the crime scene, the houses of the nine affected families were already destroyed. This incident, incurred damage of an estimated 1.5 million rupees, ‘’ according to the fact-finding report.
The local police have registered two complaints in Pratap Nagar and Hiran Magri Police Stations under various sections including the SC/ST (PoA) Act against more than 200 accused.
Mainstream Weekly
Budget Justice for Dalits and Adivasis
by Bharat Dogra, Roopam Singh
At a time when the need for inclusive development is being emphasised time and again, it is shocking to know that year after year development funds meant for the weakest sections have been diverted to entirely different areas on a massive scale.
Difficult to believe this may be, but it is a well-documented fact that funds meant for development of Dalits and tribals have been usurped time and again for such unlikely expenses as those relating to the organisation of Commonwealth Games, construction of fly-overs or even distribution of sweets in a big way.
We are speaking here mainly in the context of the government funds to be allocated under the Scheduled Caste Sub-Plan (SCSP), also known as Special Component Plan (SCP), and Tribal Sub-Plan (TSP). The massive misuse, misallocation and diversion of these funds meant for the poorest and most vulnerable sections of our society has been admitted very recently in important government documents.
For example, the Twelfth Plan document says: “Despite the fact that strategies of TSP and SCSP had been in operation for more than three decades, they could not be implemented as effectively as desired. The expenditure in many of the States/ UTs was not even 50 per cent of the allocated funds. No proper budget heads/sub-heads were created to prevent diversion of funds. There was no controlling and monitoring mechanism and the planning and supervision was not as effective as it should be.”
One of the most serious flaws in the implementation of the SCSP/ TSP has been that while these require allocation of funds in accordance with the proportion of SC and ST population (16.2 per cent and 8.2 per cent respectively), this kind of allocation has never been made so far. In fact the actual allocations have fallen far short of the stipulated norm, as is evident from Table 1.
In a paper (2010) on the SCSP, Paul Diwakar and Abhay Kumar write: “The implementation of SCSP with respect to State budgets is also not encouraging. For instance, in the financial year 2009—10 the Government of Bihar allocated only 1.14 per cent under the SCSP and the govern-ments of Delhi and Rajasthan have allocated 2.14 per cent and 2.13 per cent of their plan outlay respectively.”
A similar review (2010) for the TSP, made by Shrish Kavadi and others, indicted “the low commitment to tribals which is evident from the fact that the proportion of total allocation for TSP from all departments/ministries is way below the expected amounts. What is really disturbing is the declining trend in allocation towards TSP...The budgetary allocations towards TSP never fulfilled the TSP norms and guidelines.”
Apart from meagre allocations the TSP and SCSP also suffer as a big share of even these meagre allocations is not spent. As the Planning Commission has admitted (2012), “The expendi-ture in many of the States/UTs was not even 50 per cent of the allocated funds.” This made worse by the fact that these Sub-Plan funds, when not utilised in a particular financial year, lapse and so are lost as far as the welfare of SCs and STs is concerned.
Last but not the least, even the Sub-Plan funds that get spent are mostly spent on general expenses and not very specifically on issues of high priority for the welfare of SCs and STs. Hence the expenditure stated to have been made for the welfare of Dalits and adivasis under the two sub-plans is often notional rather than real. As the paper by Paul Diwakar and Abhay Kumar quoted above says, “In a few States such as Orissa and Uttar Pradesh where the allocation seems in line with the norms of SCSP, an indepth analysis shows that 60 per cent of the allocated amount is being used for the construction of roads, bridges, buildings, jails and similar other expenses which are nowhere linked to the welfare schemes for the development of the SC community.”
However, the poor implementation of the SCSP and TSP led to increasing involvement of social organisations, particularly Dalit organisations, in opposing unjust diversion and other irregularities.
They also made many-sided efforts for improving the implementation of the SCP and TSP and the enaction of legislation for this purpose gradually became the focus of attention.
It was soon realised by this campaign that their demands should be supported by effective and strong legislation as only government/ Planning Commission directives are unlikely to achieve the desired results. Hence the demand for strong legislation to ensure the effective implementation of the SCSP and TSP in the right spirit started growing.
In June 2013 a Bill on the SCSP was released by the UPA Government. This was followed by a Bill on the TSP which was released in November 2013. Both Bills recommend statutory status for these sub-plans. They also recommend accountability mechanisms. However, they don’t have penalty provisions; also these Bills do not meet the demand for making the SCSP and TSP funds non-lapsable and non divertible. Never-theless these Bills are a significant step forward.
In his Budget speech 2013-14 the Finance Minster, P. Chidambaram, said onFebruary 28; 2013: “I propose to allocate Rs 41,561 crore to the SCSP and Rs 24,598 crore to the TSP.” This was stated as a significant gain for Dalits and adivasis, but the reality was quite different as was highlighted by the National Coalition for SCSP and TSP Legislation. In a critique the Coalition pointed out that if the proper norm of 16.2 per cent and 8.2 per cent allocation for the SCP and TSP was followed, then keeping in view the total Plan expenditure of this Budget of Rs 4,19,000 crores these Sub-Plans should have got much higher allocation. In fact compared to the proper norm SCSP and TSP had been denied about Rs 36,000 crores (Rs 26,327 crores plus Rs 9765 crores). Over the years these organi-sations have been making similar critiques which revealed that thousands of crores of rupees have been denied to Dalits and adivasis every year.
Keeping in view the large-scale and many- sided deprivation suffered by these communities, it is not difficult to see what a great difference the proper allocations and expenditures as per the norms of the SCSP and TSP can make to Dalits and adivasis, including women and children in these communities.
If properly spent, these additional funds can help to reduce the high rates of child malnutrition and mortality. Lives of lakhs of children can be saved. Literacy rates can be increased and drop-out rates can be reduced among children. Similarly, maternal mortality can be reduced significantly and many women can be saved from degrading and risky work. Improvement of water and sanitation in Dalit and adivasi bastis can improve health and provide many-sided relief particularly to women. New promising non-traditional occupations can be opened up for youths, land rights of Dalits and adivasis can be better protected and small-scale irrigation can help to improve their food security and livelihood. Keeping in view this many-sided potential of ensuring proper implementation of the SCSP and TSP, this task deserves the broad-based support of all social forces that stand for justice and equality.
Bharat Dogra is a free-lance journalist who has been involved with several social initiatives and movements. Roopam Singh is currently a free-lance researcher and writer.
The New Indian Express
Dalit Rape Victim's Daughter Gets Mom's Community Status
CHENNAI: Can a community certificate be issued to a girl on the basis of the community status of her mother? What is the caste of a daughter of a rape victim, who happens to be a dalit?
Taking into consideration the peculiar facts and circumstances of a case, the Madras High Court has answered in the affirmative.
The peculiarity in this case is that the mother, a dalit woman, was raped by a person belonging to a forward community. As he refused to marry her, he was convicted and sentenced. However, the child born out of the rape was raised under the complete custody of the mother. To admit her in a school, the mother applied for a community certificate on the basis of her SC certificate. But the authority concerned, by an order dated December 20, 2012 refused to do so on the ground that a certificate can be given only on the basis of the community status of the father. Hence, the nine-year-old daughter moved Madras HC for a direction to the Puducherry District Collector and Revenue and Disaster Management Special Officer to issue an SC certificate.
The mother, daughter of a poor cycle rikshaw puller, was staying in the SC Girls hostel in Yanam and studying intermediate course. One Adapa Mahesh sexually abused her, as a result of which she became pregnant. He refused to marry her and the woman lodged a complaint with the Yanam police. Later, the man was convicted and sentenced.
When the mother approached the authorities concerned for a community certificate for her daughter, it was rejected. For, a certificate could be issued only on the basis of the father’s community. In this case, the father belonged to a forward community, the authorities pointed out.
After a careful consideration of the respective contentions and an overall assessment of the peculiar facts and circumstances of the case, a Division Bench of Justices M Jaichandran and M Venugopal said they are coming to an inevitable conclusion that the rejection order is not a valid and legal one in the eye of law. In the reasoning of the Bench, the order did not take into consideration the factual aspect that Adapa Mahesh, responsible for the birth of the petitioner, had refused to marry the rape victim.
Taking into consideration the welfare of the minor petitioner, the judges directed the authorities to issue Scheduled Caste (SC) certificate to her within four weeks to enable the minor to secure admission.
Deccan Chronicle
Telangana to rename welfare with development
Hyderabad: Telangana government has renamed the social welfare department as Scheduled Castes Development department. Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao, who is giving top priority to welfare departments and is holding all the welfare portfolios, has decided to rename these wings as “development” departments.
Welfare departments for SCs, STs, BCs and minorities were created decades ago and continue to function even now. Ever since Mr Rao took charge as the first Chief Minister Telangana state, he has been conveying his displeasure over naming them as ‘welfare’ departments, saying that term ‘welfare’ refers to providing minimal level of wellbeing and social support to weaker sections, while his government has big plans for their development.
The TRS government plans to spend Rs 1 crore in the next five years for the development of these sections in all spheres. The government on Saturday issued orders renaming the social welfare department. Similar orders renaming ST, BC and minorities departments are also expected shortly.
The TRS government has decided to distribute three acres of land to each Dalit family in the state starting August 15 this year, and as per estimates it requires 54 lakh acres to distribute land to 18 lakh Dalit families.
The government has decided to seek ‘Bhoodaan’ from landlords and others to mobilise the land. It constituted a new ‘Telangana Bhoodaan Yagna Board’, manned by principal secretary of the revenue department and cancelled the existing AP Bhoodaan Yagna Board.
News Monitor by Girish Pant
.Arun Khote
On behalf of
Dalits Media Watch Team
(An initiative of “Peoples Media Advocacy & Resource Centre-PMARC”)
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On behalf of
Dalits Media Watch Team
(An initiative of “Peoples Media Advocacy & Resource Centre-PMARC”)
Pl visit on FACEBOOK : https://www.facebook.com/
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