DALITS/SCHEDULED CASTES - 2013 - Indian Social Institute

employment generation itself is in peril,” wondered A K Padmanabhan, explaining the union’s stand onthe issue. As the government is backing off from its role as a major employer, reservation would servenone in the future. So, reservation should be implemented in all sectors, wherever jobs are created, theconference demanded. (Indian Express 9/4/13)In Modi’s Gujarat, no Narmada water for dalits (2)CHITALIYA (RAJKOT): In the villages of Jasdan taluka in drought-hit Saurashtra, dalit women prefer toremain silent. That's for the fear of the upper castes in a state whose chief minister Narendra Modi is busytrying to conjure up an eclectic image to subserve his perceived prime ministerial ambitions for 2014polls. "Those people (upper castes) will abuse us again if we speak," mumbled one of the women, only tobe given a warning look by the others. The water scarcity in Saurashtra is due to deficient rainfall, but thecalamity is man-made for the dalits. Members of the community claim they are not allowed access toNarmada water, the only source of drinking water, by upper caste members. Ironically, upper castefarmers have their own borewells and don't need Narmada water as much. The dalits in ten villages of thetaluka allege they are not even allowed to draw water from the main sump. "We have to listen to casteistremarks and are even threatened if we get close to the sump," said Jaya Makwana, who fetches waterunder scorching sun from a source 3km farther. The worst affected are villages of Chitaliya, Khadvavadi,Kanesara, Parevala, Jivapar, Nani Lakhavad, Kothi, Barvala and Devdhari. There are around 100 dalitfamilies in each village dominated by Kolis. Unable to bear both injustice and thirst, women from thesevillages recently approached the deputy collector with their tale of woes. But the women were allegedlythreatened on their return for taking up the issue with the authorities. "Should we remain thirsty becausewe are untouchables?" Makwana fumed. Narmada water in Chitaliya is so erratic that villagers would noteven get supply once a week. After the trip to the deputy collector's office, water is being released once infive days. But the dalits say the main sump is still off-limits for them while the small one doesn't get adrop. The sump in the dailt area of Kothi village was never connected with the Narmada pipeline. "Ouronly source was a hand-pump which went dry last month,'' said Maniben Makwana, 65, a dalit. "We arelooking into complaints of discrimination. We have also directed the water resources department toconnect hand-pumps to the pipeline," deputy collector R H Gadhavi said. (Times of India 10/4/13)Dalit woman killed in Andhra Pradesh , incident assumes political overtones (2)Guntur: The incident in which a Dalit woman was killed after she was allegedly roughed up and pushedunder the wheels of a speeding truck at Tenali town by drunk miscreants, has now assumed political andcaste overtones. B Susheela, a 45-year-old housewife paid with her life on Monday night when she triedto rescue her teenaged daughter, who is a B Tech student, after seven drunken motor mechanics agedbelow 20 years attempted to molest her. Susheela's husband, a municipal school teacher B Babu Raohas alleged that the police control room which is about 300 metres from the scene of the tragedy, did notrespond to the commotion and that the police inspector with whom a complaint was lodged, played apartisan role. All the seven persons have been arrested. The incident occurred when Susheela and herdaughter were returning home after shopping at around 10 pm, when the seven men who had just comeout of a liquor bar owned by an affluent and upper caste Congress leader, began heckling them. Thehousewife shouted at them, which infuriated the seven men who allegedly roughed her up and pushedher under the wheels of a speeding truck, police said. Due to the public outcry after television newschannels reported the incident, Guntur's Superintendent of Police, initiated damage control measures bytransferring the case to the Deputy Superintendent of Police and arresting the liquor bar owner's sonNagaraju. When the incident took place, neighbours and passersby reportedly remained passivespectators and did not even bother to extricate the injured woman from under the wheels of the truck untilher husband arrived, though observers have attributed it to the fear of hoodlooms of the notorious liquorbar owner, who is also a Congress leader. (Indian Express 11/4/13)