Latest News Update: Apr 27, 2011

Wednesday, April 27, 2011

[ZESTCaste] Watch the documentary 'The Death of Merit' on the suicides of Dalit students in Higher Education

One more suicide. Once more the death of merit.

On 16th April, 2011, Linesh Mohan Gawle, a PhD scholar at the prestigious National Institute of Immunology, New Delhi, became one more name in the long list of Dalit and Adivasi students, who have committed suicide in India's premier educational institutions in recent years.

The large number of Dalit and Adivasi students committing suicide clearly indicates the wide-spread prevalence of caste discrimination in the Indian education system, which perceives them as 'non-meritorious', not fit to belong there.

List of Dalit students committing suicide in last four years in India's premier educational institution

(List is also displayed at our blog www.thedeathofmeritinindia.wordpress.com)

When a student from the lowest strata of society fights against all odds to prove her merit and reach the best educational institutions in India, are those institutions proving themselves meritorious enough to recognize her worth, to accommodate, let alone nurture her aspirations?

When a Dalit or Adivasi student becomes an engineer, doctor, business graduate or scientist, it should be a cause of pride for not just the family or the community but for the entire nation. Instead, why do our nation and its educational institutions reward their merit with discrimination, humiliation, violence and death?

The Documentary

Last year, on March 3rd, 2010, another Dalit, Balmukund Bharti, final year MBBS student from All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi committed suicide. He was from Kundeshwar village from Tikamgarh district of Madhya Pradesh. He was a bright student from a very humble background.

Knowing the history of caste-discrimination in AIIMS our group decided to investigate the matter and went to Balmukund's home to meet his parents on 1st April 2010.

What came out of our interaction with his parents and other family members was a shocking tale of how a young and bright Dalit student from very poor background was victimized so much on caste grounds in one of the premier educational institutions of the country that despite his entire record of struggle all through his life, he finally lost his willingness to even live.

The Documentary 'The Death of Merit' is based on these testimonies and is a result of our amateur efforts to bring out the truth behind the kind of caste oppression suffered by Dalit and Adivasi students in higher education and the resulting suicides of our bright students like Balmukund Bharti.

Please watch the documentary embedded at our blog www.thedeathofmeritinindia.wordpress.com

or watch it by clicking at the link here

'The Death of Merit' - Part I: http://youtu.be/2L3y9O1HCBw

'The Death of Merit'- Part II: http://youtu.be/ADXnFf_5JT4

Please watch the documentary and share it widely among your friends and colleagues. We must not allow our educational institutions to become graveyard for Dalit and Adivasi students.

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[ZESTCaste] HC notice to govt over social boycott of Dalits in Dindigul

http://ibnlive.in.com/generalnewsfeed/news/hc-notice-to-govt-over-social-boycott-of-dalits-in-dindigul/662849.html

HC notice to govt over social boycott of Dalits in Dindigul
PTI | 10:04 PM,Apr 26,2011

Madurai, Apr 26 (PTI): The Madras High Court Bench here today issued
notice to the Government, including the Chief Secretary, on a writ
petition filed against alleged social boycott imposed on 300 Dalit
families by the dominant community in a village in Dindigul district.
Justices K Suguna and A Arumugaswamy admitted the writ petition and
ordered the notice, returnable in 15 days. The petitioner, Kaliyappan,
a Dalit of Therkutheru Velayutham Puthur in Dindigul district,also
sought a direction to abolish the 'double tumbler' system (plastic
tumblers for Dalits and glass tumblers for others) in three tea shops
in the village. Dalits in the village were also not permitted to enter
the three temples and offer prayers to the deity, he claimed. He
submitted that trouble started in the village, which has 1,400
families of caste Hindus as the dominant community, when Dalits
decided to fight against discrimination and start Dalits' Arts and
Literature Association on Nov 15, 2010. However, the local police
inspector refused permission to install even a board for the
association and detained three Dalit leaders, Kaliyappan alleged. He
claimed social boycott followed soon after, with the 300 Dalit
families living in the village not being called for farm work. The
local shops were also not allowed to sell goods and groceries to
Dalits, he claimed. Though the tahsildar held a peace committee
meeting on Nov 19, 2010 and ordered that Dalits be provided food and
other goods, shopkeepers did so only during police monitoring,
Kaliyappan alleged. The petitioner said Dalit families in the region
were facing hardships as they were being denied work in farms. PTI

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[ZESTCaste] Who is Angela Milind Teltumbde

http://www.hindustantimes.com/Who-is-Angela-Milind-Teltumbde/Article1-690126.aspx

Who is Angela Milind Teltumbde
Pradip Kumar Maitra, Hindustan Times
Nagpur, April 27, 2011
First Published: 01:56 IST(27/4/2011)

Angela Milind Teltumbde (41), who was arrested at Thane on Monday, was
very active in students' politics in Chandrapur in the 90s. Daughter
of a school teacher, Angela Sontakke, married Milind Teltumbde, now
the secretary of Maharashtra unit of CPI (Maoist) at Chandrapur in
1994. It was said
that Anuradha Ghandy, the then central committee member of Maoist
group, was present at the marriage reception. Anuradha, wife of CPI
(Maoist) politburo member, Kobad Ghandy, later died of malaria in
Bastar jungles. Kobad Ghandy was arrested in Delhi a few years ago.
Angela, who did MSc in Biology, was a school teacher in Chandrapur.

When Milind went underground, she left Chandrapur within a couple of
years because of police harassment. She shifted to Mumbai four years
ago and was associated with several rights groups.

Police were looking for her after the arrest of Sudhir Dhawale (42),
an alleged aide of Teltumbde, at Wardha. Dhawale, a resident of
Byculla was in Wardha to attend the Ambedkar Yuva Sahitya Sammelan
when he was arrested in January this year.

Incidentally, Milind Teltumbde, Sudhir Dhawale and Angela belong to
dalit community. Naxalite movement watchers in the region point out
that a large number of educated dalit youths were motivated and
drafted into the ultra-Left movement by naxalite ideologue Kobad
Ghandy and his wife, Anuradha, both of whom used to stay in north
Nagpur (a dalit dominated area in Nagpur) in the '80s. The Ghandys
were instrumental in setting off the civil rights movement in Nagpur
and Vidarbha during the period and involved more dalits to join them.

Later, they went underground and rest is history -- Kobad Ghandy
became a politburo member and Anuradha became the central committee
member of CPI (Maoist) before dying of cerebral malaria a few years
ago.

Milind Teltumbde, whose brother Anand, a dalit scholar, is married to
granddaughter of Babasaheb Ambedkar The deputy inspector general of
police (DIG) of anti-naxal squad, Ravindra Kadam, claimed that Angela
was one of the members of state committee of CPI (Maoist), Maharashtra
unit. "She was also involved in a case at Deori in Gondia district,"
he informed.

Kadam dismissed the rumours that a couple of suspected naxalites were
arrested in Vidarbha region after the arrest of Angela.

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[ZESTCaste] CII survey says India Inc. employs 18% Dalits

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/industry-and-economy/economy/article1766906.ece

CII survey says India Inc. employs 18% Dalits
Divya Trivedi

New Delhi, April 25:

In the first such mapping exercise of its kind, industry body
Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) has found that as much as 18
per cent of the work-force of its member companies are Dalits.

This was revealed by Mr B. Muthuraman, Vice-Chairman, Tata Steel Ltd,
in his first interaction with media as CII's new President.

Internal surveys by CII revealed that about 16.2 per cent of the work
force in the South, 22 per cent in the North, 16 per cent in the West
and 24 per cent in the East are Dalits.

On the face of it, these numbers sound positive, but as Mr Muthuraman
pointed out, most of them are employed in lowest grade jobs in
companies and their numbers in the managerial and other higher posts
are minimal or negligible.
Skills upgradation

We should have more skills upgradation programmes for them in order to
scale up their jobs, he added. But he was against making affirmative
action compulsory for companies. He said, "Nothing in life will work
if made compulsory. We should learn from the US's positive
discrimination."

Leading sociologist, Professor Surinder S Jodhka welcomed the news,
but added a word of caution. "We need to know the proportionate
numbers — whether the employees surveyed are permanent or contractual.
Also, there are variations in the types and categories of employees
and the industries they are employed in," he said. According to him,
Dalits may be employed in large numbers at the low-level jobs in
companies, but the problem is that discrimination happens at higher
levels.

The former Chairman of the University Grants Commission and Economist
Professor, Mr Sukhadeo Thorat, said, "I heard that CII conducted the
survey, and that there are State-wise variations. But is the survey
sample based? How have they mapped the employees? Will CII henceforth
maintain a record of their employees' social backgrounds?"

Both Prof Jodhka and Prof Thorat urged that the report be made public
by CII for more deliberations.

For the record, India Inc has been opposing government legislations on
affirmative action for the private sector.

A few years ago, a CII-Assocham committee had been formed under Mr
J.J. Irani, to prepare a report on what industry could do to deepen
representation of weaker sections in Indian industry

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[ZESTCaste] HC orders notice to govt on boycott of dalits

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/HC-orders-notice-to-govt-on-boycott-of-dalits/articleshow/8094839.cms

HC orders notice to govt on boycott of dalits
TNN | Apr 27, 2011, 06.48am IST

MADURAI: The Madurai bench of the Madras high court on Tuesday ordered
issue of notices to the home secretary, secretary of the Adi Dravida
Welfare, Dindigul collector and superintendent of police in a petition
alleging that the double-tumbler system and other caste
discriminations were rampant in Velayudhamputhur village in Dindigul
district.

In his petition, K Kaliyappan of Velayuthamputhur pleaded that there
was a social boycott of the members of the scheduled caste people
living in Therkutheru, Velayudhamputhur in Palani taluk. The teashops
in the village, run by S Chelladurai and N Kamaraj, supplied tea to
some dalits in disposable cups while the non-dalits were given glass
tumblers. He said out of the 1400 families in the village, 300
belonged to the SC community. They are also not allowed to sit on
benches in the shop on par with the non-dalits.

The dalits were also not allowed to offer worship in the three temples
in the village, the petition alleged. On November 15 last year, the
dalits had decided to inaugurate an association in the name of Dalit
Arts and Literature Association, but they were denied permission by
the inspector of police of Palani and four dalit leaders were detained
in the police station on November 14.

Justices K Suguna and A Arumugasamy before whom the petition came for
hearing ordered issue of notices to the respondents including the
shopkeepers of the village.

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[ZESTCaste] Dalits Raise Voice Against Land Usurpers

http://blip.tv/file/5069356

Dalits Raise Voice Against Land Usurpers

In Kanchiwaram, Tamil Nadu, Dalits are fighting to get land that had
been donated to them. Mani recently found a poster on the walls of his
house calling for a demonstration, against the grabbing of land that
belonged to a Dalit community. "Being a Dalit myself, I felt connected
with the protest, and I decided to report on the fight that takes
place to reinstitute this land to Dalits," said Mani. Panchami land in
Kanchiwaram was donated in 1893 to Dalit community, but till date they
haven't been able to use it, because real estate agents or higher
caste people have monopolized it. Panchami land is 11,000 acres, and
it would enable around 400 farmers and their families to make a living
by cultivating their own products, thus rising above their status of
casual labourer, of exploitation and impoverishment. Some Dalits have
attempted taking the case to court, since they possess the official
documents attesting to their ownership over the land. But because the
majority of them are poor and illiterate, they hardly receive any
support from the tribunal, and are treated with contempt. But today,
several NGO's and activists have started fighting for the
resinstitution of the land to Dalits. Shiva Kami, a retired IAS Dalit
Officer, and the Untouchability Eradication Movement have stepped in
the struggle, and are determined to support the cause of Dalits. Mani
deeply hopes that Dalits will get land back: "It is a big issue in
Tamil Nadu now… It could bring tremendous change in the lives of
Dalits here!"

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[ZESTCaste] Teachers single out Dalit students

http://ibnlive.in.com/news/teachers-single-out-dalit-students/150444-60-117.html

Teachers single out Dalit students
indianexpress Express News Service , The New Indian Express
Posted on Apr 26, 2011 at 07:05am IST

PARADIP: Dalit students of Keutapala Primary School under Balikuda
block in Jagatsinghpur district have stopped going to school for the
last five days.

They have been allegedly singled out by the teachers and made to clean
classrooms and toilets.

The 25 students and their parents complained that they were victims of
caste discrimination by the school staff since long.

The final straw, however, was when teachers refused to serve mid-day
meals to these children.

This prompted incensed parents not to send their wards to school. "Our
children were asked to maintain distance from upper caste kids. Even
more humiliating was when cook and some teachers, who were entrusted
with providing mid-day meals, abused some Dalit children and refused
to serve them food," said Babaji Mallick, the father of a Dalit
student.�

"We are not even allowed to take water from the pot at school,"
alleged a student Barasa Mallick.

The school headmistress, Joshnarani Swain, rubbished the allegations
of discrimination.

"We have been regularly providing mid-day meals to all students," she
said. Balikuda BDO Niranjan Chanda said the school inspector and
welfare extension officer have been asked to conduct an inquiry into
the matter.

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[ZESTCaste] Dalit man shot dead for opposing eve-teasing

http://ibnlive.in.com/generalnewsfeed/news/dalit-man-shot-dead-for-opposing-eveteasing/662635.html

Dalit man shot dead for opposing eve-teasing
PTI | 08:04 PM,Apr 26,2011

Muzaffarnagar (UP), Apr 26 (PTI) A 40-year-old Dalit man was allegedly
shot dead when he opposed eve-teasing by three men, police said today.
Karam Chand was shot dead by Amresh, Ramesh and Dhanpal -- belonging
to the Jat community -- when he tried to stop them from harassing a
Dalit woman at Nirgajni village, they said. The trio later threw the
body into the Ganga canal, they said, adding that the body has been
recovered and sent for postmortem. Security has been tightened in the
area following the incident. A search is on to arrest the absconding
trio. PTI Corr

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