CHENNAI, March 25, 2011
'Few in UPA concerned about the plight of dalits'
Suresh Nambath
Ruling combine dominated by upper caste Hindus.
"While the UPA has focused on bettering the lot of the Dalit
community, it is dominated by upper caste Hindus, very few of whom are
genuinely concerned about the plight of dalits," the American Embassy
said in a cable sent under the name of Ambassador David Mulford on
June 22, 2005 (35177: confidential), and accessed by The Hindu through
WikiLeaks.
'Little upward mobility'
"This ensures that dalits will continue to be an oppressed,
discriminated group in India. Although the GOI [Government of India]
has passed legislation and established government bodies to administer
these laws, it has failed to attack the root of the problem," the
cable said. "There are success stories, but acts of violence and
prejudice against dalits, combined with government negligence, persist
and there is little upward mobility among the dalit population."
The Embassy wrote that without a broader, more comprehensive approach
to teaching tolerance and equality early in primary schools, it is
unlikely that the social acceptance of caste-based discrimination will
fade any time soon.
"The increasing dominance of the private sector in the economy could
also result in greater economic polarization if there is no mechanism
in place to combat job discrimination."
Embassy interlocutors reported that after one year of United
Progressive Alliance (UPA) rule, limited government efforts to improve
the socio-economic status of dalits have shown little success.
"Government reservation laws do not extend to the private sector, the
largest and fastest growing segment of the economy. Most experts
believe the key to ending discrimination is a comprehensive education
campaign starting at the primary level to teach acceptance of dalits,
a topic completely absent from India's public school system."
Failure to organise
"Despite the political success of dalits such as current Minister for
Chemicals and Fertilizers Ram Vilas Paswan, dalits' failure to
organize at the national level has limited their ability to demand
equal rights. Until the Indian majority increases pressure to change
the status quo, many dalits will remain trapped below the poverty line
in manual labor jobs with few mechanisms for upward mobility," the
cable went on.
(This article is a part of the series "The India Cables" based on the
US diplomatic cables accessed by The Hindu via Wikileaks.)
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