Monday, May 23, 2011

[ZESTCaste] who is migrating out of south india

 

http://nrhm-mis.nic.in/UI/Public%20Periodic/Population_Projection_Report_2006.pdf Table 7 gives net migration rate for different states.

It is intriguing that developed states in south india (other than karnataka) are seeing an increase in net migration rate (2005-10). a question is are dalits being squeezed out of rural (development projects) and urban areas (because of labour from other states).

is this good or bad for them remains to be studied.

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Re: [ZESTCaste] 17 judges sacked. Was it because of their caste?

 

this reminds me of sacking of a friend from IIM who got in sc/St quota. What are the education support systems and redressal system provided for such people? Reservation is not enough without support and redressal mechanism for removal.

As everything is being privatilised soon we may have a privatised court...

Ranjani 

 

--- On Mon, 23/5/11, Siddhartha Kumar <mailsiddhartha.k@gmail.com> wrote:

From: Siddhartha Kumar <mailsiddhartha.k@gmail.com>
Subject: [ZESTCaste] 17 judges sacked. Was it because of their caste?
To: "zestcaste" <zestcaste@yahoogroups.com>
Date: Monday, 23 May, 2011, 5:24 PM

http://www.tehelka.com/story_main49.asp?filename=Ne280511JUDGES.asp

From Tehelka Magazine, Vol 8, Issue 21, Dated 28 May 2011
CURRENT AFFAIRS          
CHHATTISGARH

17 judges sacked. Was it because of their caste?

Baba Umar
New Delhi
Ravi Shankar Sai     PS Paikra     Lakhan Singh     Mansukh Karketta     Narsingh Usendi

Ravi Shankar Sai, 53
   

PS Paikra, 51
   

Lakhan Singh, 59
   

Mansukh Karketta, 54
   

Narsingh Usendi, 55

Photo: Ub Photos

FIGHTING DISCRIMINATION, can be a lifelong struggle for those born on
the 'wrong' side of the caste divide — even if they have served as
judges for 20 years. When 17 Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe
judges were ordered to take compulsory retirement by the Chhattisgarh
government on 26 March, they naturally wondered if they were victims
of personal or casteist vendetta. Having served and been promoted over
the years in the natural course, why were they suddenly fired? What
makes their predicament all the more galling is that the Chhattisgarh
government has not provided any reasons for this forcible retirement,
except for a vague, sweeping statement that their performance was not
up to the mark.

Apparently, the state law department took the decision on the basis of
the Chhattisgarh High Court's recommendation and was reportedly
equivalent to the punishment for serious 'misconduct' and alleged
involvement in 'nepotism'. However, all the SC/ST judges, most of whom
have 5-10 years of service still remaining, smell a "grand conspiracy"
in the decision. For them, as for the litigant public, justice will be
a long time coming. They have already appealed against their summary
dismissal in the Consumer Forum and the special court that hears cases
under the Scheduled Caste/Tribe Prevention of Atrocities Act. Then, if
this does not serve the purpose, the aggrieved judges also plan to
appeal in the Supreme Court.

Related

A judgement caste in stone
Justice watches as judiciary, legislature spar
Stir, My Beloved Country

Meanwhile, the early retirement forced on the judges is no time to
relax. "My past records and performance speak for me. I want to know
the yardsticks they chose to fire me. If it is my caste, they should
spell it out clearly," says PS Paikra, 51, of Korba district.

Paikra, who was serving as additional district judge in Durg, has nine
more years of service remaining. Until last October, he worked as
additional district judge (ad hoc) at a fast-track court and was soon
regularised as additional district judge in Durg district court.

"They regularised me for my performance, usefulness and integrity. I
don't understand what happened in a few months that I was considered
unfit for the task," he says.

In the unprecedented decision, these judges, who had either completed
20 years in service or were more than 50 years old, were ordered to
retire compulsorily under sub-rule 2 of Rule 13 of the state's Higher
Judicial Service (Recruitment and Condition of Service) Rules, 2006.
The recommendation was made to the state government by the legal
department, saying that this decision was based on their performance.
The recommendation was accepted by the state government and orders on
their retirement issued.

While the 17 were sacked, the general category judges got extensions
despite poor grading

OF THE total 17 judges, three are SC and rest are ST. They were
serving as district and sessions judges or additional district and
sessions judge at Surguja, Dantewada, Bilaspur and Raigarh districts.

Narsingh Usendi, 55, another ST judge was posted as additional
district and sessions judge in Bastar district's Kanker area and
retired in 'public interest' through an order 2309/756/XXI-B/C.G./2011
sent by the government's law and legislative affairs department.

He says had he performed badly during his decades-long career, there
would have been complaints and departmental investigations against him
"which actually never happened". So, if there is no body of evidence
against him, why the sudden dismissal which amounts to a stigma?

"I won't challenge the rule but its implementation. It has been used
to target officials belonging to the tribal community," alleges
Usendi. Adding, "Without any notification, preliminary investigation
or departmental inquiry, the government rule to compulsorily retire
officials has been bent."

Usendi and his colleagues also point out that this is against the
principles of natural justice.

Usendi says the Annual Confidential Report (ACR) — that takes note of
judicial officers' work every year — is prepared by district judges
and other higher judicial service officers "who have maltreated us by
giving us lower grades".

Outlining his case, he alleges, "Had it been judges of SC/ST category
preparing this report, we wouldn't be targeted. There is no district
judge of SC/ST category which is why our ACR has been wrongly
prepared. All this, to trigger our expulsion."

Most of the 'compulsorily retired' judges are from 1976-87 batches and
it is feared the government decision has an underlying agenda — to
benefit 20 judicial officers of the 1990 batch who will get promoted
to the positions they vacate.

Mansukh Karketta, 54, who was among 12 ST judges slated to get
selection grade, can't believe his fate. He says the 2006 law has
triggered fear among many other SC/ST judicial officers who are on the
verge of notching up 20 years of judicial service or crossing 50 years
of age.

"Adding to the insult is the method in which ACRwas prepared. There
are many in general category who have been rated as 'worst-performing
officers' every year according to their ACRs, yet they have been
retained," says Karketta of 1987 batch.

Citing examples of several other judges from the general category, he
said they have been granted extensions despite "poor grading". "I
still had six years of service remaining but my caste proved
unfavourable for me as well as others," he says.

As usual, officials chose to remain tightlipped about the issue.

Law Secretary AK Samantary told TEHELKA that the order had come from
the high court and the government had little role to play in the
matter. "Besides, the decision was taken during the previous Principal
Secretary's term. I have recently joined. I can't say much about it.
It would be better if you ask someone in the high court," he said.

When contacted, Chhattisgarh High Court Registrar General Arvind
Srivastava refused to speak on the issue. "We don't discuss official
matters with the press," he said, before ending the telephonic
conversation.

Baba Umar is a Correspondent with Tehelka.
babaumar@tehelka.com


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[ZESTCaste] Doubts grow over India's 'next PM' Rahul Gandhi

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5jQWzN3BYIYy6_ozPu05r9QS8Zscg?docId=CNG.2961e630fcbff1b543b086131b6b10f5.21

Doubts grow over India's 'next PM' Rahul Gandhi

By Penny MacRae (AFP) – 1 day ago

NEW DELHI, India — Just a few months ago, Rahul Gandhi, scion of
India's famed Nehru-Gandhi political dynasty, was widely tipped as a
future prime minister -- the only question was when he would take over
the job.

Now his appeal appears to be fading amid a stumbling performance in
his campaign to be champion of the nation's poor and a string of
corruption scandals that have rocked the ruling Congress party to
which he belongs.

Gandhi, 41, drew headlines last week when he accused police in India's
most populous state Uttar Pradesh of mass killings of farmers who had
been demonstrating for greater compensation for land sales to the
state.

Gandhi, son of Congress party chief Sonia Gandhi, described "a large
70-foot (21-metre pile of) ashes with dead bodies inside," adding, "We
can give you pictures" following clashes between farmers and state
police.

"There are quite severe atrocities taking place there. People have
been killed," he said. "People are being murdered."

Days later, Congress was forced into an embarrassing retreat with
Uttar Pradesh forensic officials calling the allegations nonsense and
saying preliminary tests showed the ashes were made up of "molten
synthetic" and "cowdung ash".

"Common sense" should have told Gandhi "there is some distance between
an inflamed accusation made by agitators and reality," noted veteran
commentator M.J. Akbar.

The incident, along with the poor performances of many of his
handpicked candidates in recent state elections, raised fresh
questions about whether Gandhi is prime ministerial material.

"Rahul in Blunderland," said The Hindu newspaper in an editorial,
commenting that the "predilection" of Congress's crown prince "to
shoot from the hip is proving to be a challenge for the party."

Since India's independence from Britain in 1947, power in Congress has
threaded from Gandhi's great-grandfather Jawaharlal Nehru, India's
first prime minister, to his grandmother Indira Gandhi, shot dead by
Sikh assassins, and then in dynastic succession to his father Rajiv,
slain by a suicide bomber.

It now rests with his Italian-born mother Sonia, seen as India's most
influential politician. She has carefully managed her son's career,
making sure he has had time to carry out his aim of learning politics
"brick by brick".

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, 78, a Gandhi loyalist picked by Sonia
to lead the government, is seen as keeping the premier's seat warm for
Rahul.

But Gandhi's record has been lacklustre. He is not a natural orator
like his younger sister Priyanka, who has opted to raise her children
and keep out of the political frame.

He has never dealt with such thorny issues as Pakistan or the economy,
preferring to be a grassroots activist embracing populist causes.

"Rahul does not have the fire in the belly... for ruling the nation,"
wrote Aditya Sinha, editor of Mumbai's DNA newspaper, in a recent
column.

Many pundits are betting that Gandhi will not be running to be prime
minister in 2014 when the next national elections are due, he added.

Corruption scandals, including a telecom scam alleged to have cost
close to $40 billion and last year's graft-plagued Commonwealth Games,
have taken the sheen off the mother-son duo Sonia and Rahul,
commentators say.

"Much of the muck has stuck to the Gandhis as Manmohan Singh is
considered to be personally honest and a figurehead prime minister
appointed by the Gandhis," said G.V.L. Narasimha Rao, managing
director of think-tank Development and Research Services.

Gandhi, who never has stated outright he wants to lead India, has said
becoming premier is not the only "job" in the world and there "are
many other jobs a person can do."

But Congress billboards drill home the message he is the chosen
successor, showing the elderly Singh, proud mother Sonia -- and in
front a handsome Rahul, poised to take the reins.

However, "with the gloss wearing out, Rahul Gandhi's political flight
seems to be sputtering on the tarmac before a take-off," commented
Rao.


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[ZESTCaste] Man killed for having food with Dalits in Uttar Pradesh

http://www.deccanherald.com/content/163005/man-killed-having-food-dalits.html

Man killed for having food with Dalits in Uttar Pradesh
Sanjay Pandey, Lucknow, May 20, DHNS:

In a shocking incident, an old man was strangled to death allegedly by
the members of his community for having food at a feast organised by a
Dalit family at a village in Uttar Pradesh's Jaunpur district, about
225 km from here. Ironically the victim also belonged to ''kurmi'' (a
backward community).

According to police sources here, 65-year-old Paras Nath Patel and his
members of his family were invited by the dalit family to attend the
wedding ceremony of a girl at Kuruthuwa village in the district on
Wednesday last. The "kurmi" community to which Paras Nath belonged had
decided not to attend the ceremony and have food with the dalits as
they considered them "untouchables".

Paras Nath, however, defied his community and his entire family had
food with the dalits at the feast, which enraged the "kurmi" community
of his village, sources said.

Irked over Paras Nath's defiance, the "kurmi" community held a
"panchayat" at the village on Thursday to deliberate on the matter and
take action against Paras. The members of the panchayat wanted to
expel Paras Nath from the community for defying the diktat.

The son of Paras, who was also present at the panchayat, alleged that
the community members used expletives against Paras following which he
had heated exchange of words with them.

Some members of the panchayat allegedly strangled Paras with a towel
killing him on the spot. A case of murder has been registered against
seven people, sources said. The culprits had been absconding.

Barely a few days ago, members of the "brahmin" community had refused
to have food with dalits at a religious feast at a village in UP's
Maharajganj district.


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[ZESTCaste] Dalits Demand Release of Encroached Land – Officials Act Immediately

http://www.daijiworld.com/news/news_disp.asp?n_id=102762&n_tit=Puttur%3A+Dalits+Demand+Release+of+Encroached+Land+%96+Officials+Act+Immediately

Saturday, May 21, 2011 12:16:42 PM (IST)

Puttur: Dalits Demand Release of Encroached Land – Officials Act Immediately

Daijiworld Media Network – Puttur (SP)

Puttur, May 21: Dalits from nearby villagers held a protest programme
at Kadaba in the taluk on Friday May 20, in protest against the
failure of the revenue department to drive away encroachers from 20
acres of government land located in Aittoor and Nekkiladi villages,
which have been earmarked for distribution among the dalits. The
revenue department, which swung into action in the evening, announced
that it had wrested back government land from six of the encroachers.

The protest was led by Dalit Sangharsh Samiti (Ambedkar). The
protestors said that six persons from Aittoor and three from Nekkiladi
village had encroached upon 20 acres of government land, and the
incessant demand for their eviction over the years had not been met by
the department. They demanded steps against the taluk tahsildar for
his failure to take back the encroached land and hand the same over to
the dalits. The protestors also accused MLA Angara, who got elected
from Sullia, a constituency reserved for scheduled communities, of
becoming a puppet in the hands of upper classes of the society and
rich people, and thereby ignoring the interests of the dalits.

When deputy tahsildar, Vishwanath Poojary, approached the protestors
and assured them to convey their grievances to higher officials, the
protestors refused to budge. They demanded for the presence of
assistant commissioner. At around 3 pm, assistant commissioner, Harish
Kumar, came to the spot, and promised them to recover the land in
question within a week.

Dalit Sangharsh Samiti Dakshina Kannada district president, S P Anand,
organizing convener, Sanjeev, Dalit Seva Samiti district president, B
K Sheshappa, and a number of other dalit leaders had participated in
the protest, along with local people.

The revenue department, in an operation undertaken on Friday evening,
announced that it succeeded in taking back government land from six
encroachers. They said that out of the balance three, one case is
pending in the court, whereas in two other cases, they are unable to
evict the encroachers, as residential houses are located in the sites
encroached by these families.


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[ZESTCaste] Athavale's alliance with saffron camp has Cong-NCP worried

 

http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2011-05-22/mumbai/29571144_1_congress-ncp-civic-polls-cong-ncp

Athavale's alliance with saffron camp has Cong-NCP worried
Prafulla Marpakwar, May 22, 2011, 12.35am IST

MUMBAI: The crisis-ridden Congress-NCP alliance is now worried about
RPI president Ramdas Athavale's decision to join hands with the
saffron combine led by Shiv Sena supremo Bal Thackeray, particularly
in view of the ensuing BMC polls.

Though MPCC president Manikrao Thakre and Mumbai Congress chief
Kripashankar Singh declined to comment, a senior NCP minister on
Saturday confirmed that the political impact of Athavale's decision
was discussed at length at the Congress-NCP coordination committee
meeting. "It is unfortunate that Athavale joined hands with such
political parties, which always opposed the ideology of Dr Ambedkar.
Before taking the decision, Athavale should have taken note of Shiv
Sena's history," the minister said.

Veteran Dalit leader Athavale snapped his two-decade old ties with the
Congress and later with the NCP after he was ditched by the
Congress-NCP alliance during the 2009 Lok Sabha polls and subsequent
assembly elections. As part of the electoral understanding, the
Congress-NCP did offer the reserved Shirdi parliamentary seat to
Athavale but never ensured his victory. In fact, when Athavale lost
the polls to Shiv Sena's Babasaheb Wakchoure, a former chief executive
officer of the Shirdi temple trust, he mounted an attack against
Congress and NCP leaders, saying that he was defeated by design. "It
was a conspiracy of the Congress and NCP to ensure my defeat,"
Athavale had said.

Since then, Athavale was weighing other political

After his defeat, Athavale called on Thackeray and later, BJP
president Nitin Gadkari. Subsequently, Athavale had a joint meeting
with Thackeray and BJP leader Gopinath Munde and decided to set up a
joint front, which will meet in Mumbai on June 9.

A senior Congress minister said ever since Athavale lost the polls, he
was at loggerheads with the Congress and NCP, but no efforts were made
to pacify him. As a result, he had no option but to approach the Shiv
Sena. "Athavale's main goal is to take the Congress-NCP alliance to
task and we will not be surprised if he succeeds in his plan," he
said.

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[ZESTCaste] Census no-caste option raises doubt

http://www.telegraphindia.com/1110523/jsp/nation/story_14017695.jsp

Census no-caste option raises doubt
BASANT KUMAR MOHANTY

New Delhi, May 22: Those unwilling to reveal their religion and caste
can choose the "no caste" and "no religion" options in the caste
census starting next month.

But such provisions in the caste census that is being conducted after
a gap of 80 years have raised questions over whether its findings will
be accurate.

"The enumerators will move from house to house and ask every citizen
their caste and religion apart from collecting information on their
economic condition. There will be options of 'no caste' and 'no
religion' in the forms and anybody unwilling to reveal their caste and
religion can choose them. Nobody will be forced to reveal his religion
and caste identity," said a senior official of the rural development
ministry, which is helping conduct the census.

Those who give out such information will not be asked for caste
certificates and their answers will be taken as factual information.
The data will not be subjected to scrutiny and be handed over to the
office of the Registrar General of India, which is in charge of the
census, to compile the report.

The caste census will cover minority communities too, the move
assuming significance in view of several reports that have highlighted
the poor socio-economic conditions of Dalit Muslims and Dalit
Christians even though such groups are yet to be recognised legally.

"The law does not recognise anybody as Dalit Muslim and Dalit
Christian. The census will get information on castes among minorities.
If the government decides to recognise certain groups as Dalits, this
data will help identify them and plan measures for them," the official
said.

The last caste census was conducted in 1931 and it had pegged the
population of OBCs at 52 per cent, SCs at 15.5 per cent and STs at 7
per cent.

But some believe making caste disclosures voluntary is not a good
idea. Academic Kancha Ilaiah apprehends that many among the upper
castes, who occupy 70 per cent of government jobs, could misuse the
"no caste" option. "People from upper-caste communities like Brahmins,
may not like to reveal their caste. They are likely to choose the no
caste option. That means the caste census may not give an accurate
picture," said Ilaiah, the director of the Centre for Study of Social
Exclusion and Inclusive Policy at Hyderabad's Maulana Azad National
Urdu University.

"Upper-caste people believe in the caste system very much. When it
comes to marriage, they prefer to marry in the same caste. They may
not reveal their caste in the census fearing that their interests
would be affected. This is intellectual hypocrisy," Ilaiah added.

The government, he insisted, should have made caste and religion
information mandatory. "There is no person without caste. What is the
problem in revealing the caste?" he asked.

Data collected from the census, expected to be over by March next
year, is expected to help draw up welfare schemes for backward castes.

The Union cabinet had last week given the green signal to conduct the
caste census along with a parallel count to gauge the number of people
living below the poverty line (BPL). Such a BPL census was last
undertaken over nine years ago.

A group of ministers headed by Pranab Mukherjee had earlier
recommended that the caste census be carried out separately, after the
biometric and headcount phases of Census 2011 got over.
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[ZESTCaste] Now, a telefilm on Ambedkar's wife

 

http://www.sify.com/movies/now-a-telefilm-on-ambedkar-s-wife-news-national-lfwrkiigeia.html

Now, a telefilm on Ambedkar's wife
2011-05-22 17:10:00

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New Delhi, May 22 (IANS) It is said that behind every successful man
there is a woman. Dalit icon Bhim Rao Ambedkar's wife, Ramabai, too
played a pivotal role in his life and a new telefilm 'Yug Stri Mata
Ramai' is set to chronicle her sacrifices.

Directed by Ashok Kambli and Rajesh Anshane, the Hindi telefilm is
based on a book 'Mahamata Ramai' written by Nathuram Jadhav.

The film shows how from a poor man, Ambedkar went on to become Baba
Saheb Ambedkar with the support of his wife and how, during the days
of struggle Rama Bai helped him by selling caked and dried cow dung.

'Yug Stri Mata Ramai' will show Rama Bai's devotion and sacrifices for
her husband who is also known as the father of the Indian
constitution.

The cast of the film includes Anu Kamal, Gajanan Sangle, Bhumija
Patil, Prajakta Jagatap, Sanket More and Neha Jadhav. The music of the
film has been given by Nitin Kumar and Ameer Hadkar.

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[ZESTCaste] Committee on SC/ST sub-plans to be revamped

 

http://expressbuzz.com/cities/hyderabad/committee-on-scst-sub-plans-to-be-revamped/276735.html

Committee on SC/ST sub-plans to be revamped

Express News Service
First Published : 22 May 2011 03:08:42 AM IST

HYDERABAD: Chief minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy on Saturday cleared the
proposals for reconstitution of the apex committee to review and
monitor the Scheduled Caste Sub-Plan (SCSP) and the Tribal Sub-Plan
(TSP).

He also okayed a proposal to reconstitute the state-level vigilance
and monitoring committee to implement the provisions of the SC/ STs
(POA) Act, 1989.

The Apex Committee on SCSP and TSP will comprise MLAs M Bhatti
Vikramarka, Arepalli Mohan, P Rajanna Dora, GV Seshu, and PM
Kamalamma. The State-Level Vigilance and Monitoring Committee will
consist of MLAs K Sridhar, VM Abraham, Savarapu Jayamani, Dirsam Padma
Jyothy, K Murali Mohan, Labbi Venkat Swamy, Rega Kantha Rao and
Nimmaka Sugreevulu. MLCs MS Prabhakar Rao, Sudhakar Babu and Bharathi
Nayak are also on the committees.

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[ZESTCaste] Reserved category students must fill pre-admission forms

http://www.hindustantimes.com/Reserved-category-students-must-fill-pre-admission-forms/Article1-700726.aspx

Reserved category students must fill pre-admission forms
Mallica Joshi, Hindustan Times
New Delhi, May 22, 2011

While the admission process has changed significantly for the general
category and other backward classes (OBC) students, pre-admission
forms will be the norm for those applying under other reserved
categories such as Scheduled Castes/ Tribes, Kashmiri Migrants,
Physically Handicapped and Armed Force
s.

These forms will be available from May 28 and are expected to be
available at four centres — Arts Faculty in the North Campus, Shyam
Lal College in Shahdara, Rajdhani College in Raja Garden and Delhi
University South Campus.

While the largest number of seats in the reserved category quota are
available in the OBC quota, its admission process is the same as that
for the general category.

Those looking for admission under this category will not have to fill
any pre-admission forms.

Their cut-off will be declared along with that of the general category
students. The difference between the cut-off for general category
students and OBC students can not be more than 10%.

Last year, many colleges were forced to convert the seats for OBC
students into those for general category students as the number of
applicants with high percentages were less.

Many college principals felt that the 10% difference was too high.

The university offers more than 27,000 seats for OBC students, more
than 12,000 for SC/ST students and has around 1,600 seats for
physically handicapped students.

While seats under the SC/ST category are filled easily in most
colleges, problems are faced in filling seats for the remaining two
categories.

University officials will check the caste certificates of all SC/ST,
Kashmiri migrant and physically handicapped students at the time of
registration. Cut off list 2010

It is important that these certificates are in the name of the
applicant and not in the name of their parents.

Admission to any course or college in DU is subject to verification of
these certificates. Getting certificates made with through agents
should be avoided as many of these turn out to be fake. The university
officials had, last year, caught more than 80 students with forged
certificates.
Admission musts

Students belonging to reserved categories— Scheduled Castes /
Scheduled Tribes/ Physically Handicapped/ Armed Forces/ Kashmiri
migrants — have to fill pre-admission registration forms.

These forms are expected to be available at the Arts Faculty in the
North Campus, Shyam Lal College at Shahdara, Rajdhani College at Raja
Garden and Delhi University's South Campus from May 28.

All certificates — eg caste or handicap — have to be in the name of
the applicant. Certificates made through agents are not reliable. Last
year, the university officials caught over 80 students with forged
certificates.


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[ZESTCaste] Athawale firm on joining hands with Shiv Sena-BJP

 

http://www.hindustantimes.com/Athawale-firm-on-joining-hands-with-Shiv-Sena-BJP/Article1-700792.aspx

Athawale firm on joining hands with Shiv Sena-BJP
HT Correspondent, Hindustan Times
Mumbai, May 23, 2011

Republican Party of India chief Ramdas Athawale reiterated the resolve
of his party to join hands with the Shiv Sena in a party rally held at
Somaiya grounds on Sunday. "We too have given much to you," said
Athawale, referring to the Congress-NCP alliance. "The RPI workers
will not be the slave of
any political parties in future," he added.

Athawale told a party rally on Sunday that the Congress did not have
any moral right to use Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar's name for political
gain, responding to allegations of his joining the Sena-BJP for
similar reasons.

The Dalit leader, who was a minister in the Congress-Nationalist
Congress Party state governments and later an alliance-sponsored Lok
Sabha member, said he wanted to work with the Sena-BJP to put up a
joint fight against the state and Centre governments.

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[ZESTCaste] Dalits to embrace Buddhism on May 24 - Udupi

 

http://www.dakshintimes.com/dakshina-kannada/udupi/news/11052029842/dalits-embrace-buddhism-may-24-udupi.html

Dalits to embrace Buddhism on May 24 - Udupi
May 20, 2011

UDUPI: Karnataka Dalit Sangharsh Samiti (Ambedkar group) state
committee member Sundar Master addressing the press persons informed
that that about 2,000 members of the Dalit community would embrace
Buddhism at the Bouddha convention to be held in Udupi on May 24.

This convention is planned to be organised at Sri Narayana Guru Sabha
Bhavana, Bannanje, Udupi.

The convention is being organised under the joint auspicious of
Karnataka Budha Mahasabha, Dakshina Kannada Buddha Mahasabha and
Abhidama Trust Bangalore to to mark the birth anniversary celebrations
of Gautama Buddha.

Buddhist Bhikkus (monks), Manorrakita Banteji, Bodhisatva Banteji,
Shriddhananda Banteji, well-known rationalist, K S Bhagawan Mysore,
former union minister and MLA, Srinivas Prasad, and several other
scholars and stalwarts will be participating in the convention. Prof
Krishnappa Trust Bangalore president, Indira Krishnappa, renowned
painter, K T Shivaprasad, Abidhamma Trust president, Nandakumar,
professor of archaeology in Shirva College, Prof T Murugeshi, All
India Dalit Sahitya Academy president, Anantapadmanabh Bhat, and a
number of other dignitaries will also participate in the
deliberations, he disclosed.

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[ZESTCaste] Exploited Dalit Girls Produce Garments in India for European and US Markets

 

http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/exploited-dalit-girls-produce-garments-in-india-for-european-and-us-markets-122341538.html

Exploited Dalit Girls Produce Garments in India for European and US Markets

AMSTERDAM, May 20, 2011 /PRNewswire/ --

- Companies Have Taken Steps, But Exploitation Remains Widespread

Big garment brands and retailers have their products made under
exploitative and unhealthy conditions by girls in Tamil Nadu, South
India. The girls, mostly younger than 18 and from a Dalit ('outcaste')
background are employed under the Sumangali Scheme. In its worst form,
this employment scheme stands for bonded labour, as described in
'Captured by Cotton', a report published today by the Centre for
Research on Multinational Corporation (SOMO) and the India Committee
of the Netherlands (ICN). The report features case studies of four
large manufacturers. These enterprises produce for Bestseller (e.g.
Only, Jack & Jones), C&A, GAP, Diesel, Inditex (e.g. Zara), Marks &
Spencer, Primark, Tommy Hilfiger, and many other European and US
garment companies. A number of companies have undertaken steps towards
the elimination of the Sumangali Scheme, but abusive labour practices
remain widespread.

Sumangali girls

The Sumangali girls are recruited with the promise of a decent wage,
comfortable accommodation, and, the biggest attraction, a considerable
sum of money upon completion of their three-year contract. This lump
sum, varying between 400 and 800 euros, may be used to pay for a
dowry. The reality stands in sharp contrast to the alluring promises:
wages below the legally set minimum, excessive overwork , non-payment
of overtime work, restricted freedom of movement, lack of privacy, no
possibility to lodge complaints or get redress, unhealthy and unsafe
working conditions, etc. This situation fits the definition of 'worst
forms of child labour' as laid down by the International Labour
Organisation (ILO) for children up to 18 years old. This is a clear
breach of international labour standards and Indian labour law.

The promised sum is not a bonus, but is made up of withheld wages. In
a number of documented cases girls have not received the lump sum they
were entitled to, despite having completed the contractual three year
period.

The girls' freedom of action is severely restricted with guards
keeping a constant eye on them. They are compulsory accommodated in
basic dormitories, often within the compound of the factory. This also
means workers hardly have a chance to get in touch with trade unions
or advocacy groups.

SOMO and ICN have shared drafts of the report with the companies that
are named in the report. Several companies have responded with
detailed feedback that has been processed in the final version of the
report.

Note for the press

More information about the research can be found at the SOMO website:
http://somo.nl/news-en/exploited-dalit-girls-produce-garments-in-india-for-
european-and-us-markets/

(Due to the length of this URL, it may be necessary to copy and paste
this hyperlink into your Internet browser's URL address field. Remove
the space if one exists.)

Download: Captured by Cotton:

http://somo.nl/publications-en/Publication_3673/view?set_language=en

Click here for the video interview with Martje Theuws (SOMO).

SOURCE SOMO

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