They are forced to sit in separate rows, bring utensils from home or given food in plates marked boldly with permanent ink to distinguish them from the rest.According to a survey on social discrimination conducted by Jansahas, an NGO, and Unicef, in 24 villages across four districts – Ujjain, Sheopur, Katni and Jhabua – in Madhya Pradesh, more than 63 per cent of Dalit children are subjected to caste discrimination while being served mid-day meals in government schools.They are forced to sit in separate rows, bring utensils from home or given food in plates marked boldly with permanent ink to distinguish them from the rest.The Mid-Day Meal Scheme, funded by the government, is the world’s largest school lunch programme and covers 120 million children. Ironically, one of the key objectives of the scheme is to increase socialisation among children of different caste groups.“As many as 40 per cent of Dalit students facing discrimination were given mid-day meals inplates specially set aside for them,” Jansahas activist Ashif Sheikh told Hindustan Times. While some were asked to bring utensils from home, most were served their mid-day meals on leaf plates. Non-Dalits, however, were served on metal plates.The survey found that most teachers were insensitive to the discrimination against Dalits because of caste-based traditions being followed in rural areas, he said.In a majority of the schools surveyed, Dalit students were not allowed to sit in the front row. As many as 78 per cent of school-going Dalit students were backbenchers or forced away from the front row and subjected to casteist abuses.And 79 per cent of such students were compelled to clean the schools. In some schools, this chore was given only to Dalit girls.The survey found that the Anganwadi scheme, a government-sponsored mother and childcare scheme catering to children in the 0-6 age group, also discriminates against Dalits. About 59 per cent of Dalits said they desisted from sending their children to the local anganwadi facilities.The victims claimed that Dalit children were not allowed to enter the anganwadis and were forced to accept nutritional supplements outside the building.The survey concluded that caste discrimination is one of the prominent reasons for the absence of Dalit children from school.
Saturday, August 8, 2009
Apartheid funded by tax payers money
Thursday, June 11, 2009
UNTOUCHABLITY EXPLORED FOR BLIND EYES
20TH CENTURY
temple and General Secretary of Scholars
Association of Varanasi tells about Caste
System and Dalits.
reservation for Dalits and the priest continuing what
he has read in Vedas. And not to forget, the youth
wants justice.
was all history right!!!
Shrankacharya telling about what is pure and
what is impure.
castes or rather castes control Power. And
untouchability is not crime but a rule here.
in which society they are living or
just don't want to come out of their
dream world. Some castes mind deny
and do their best to bury the reality.
When I posted this video on the orkut
community named "India" which is the
largest Indian community present on
Orkut or may be on any social website
having more than 8 lakh members.
Firstly the thread was deleted 3 times.
then when convinced one moderator to
let it be, it got good and positive replies
about 100 in just one hour. But next
day other moderator deleted it and i
was removed from the community
quoting these videos cant be verified
by him so they cant allow it. While i
myself argued a lot about other such
threads already present in the community
and positive replies by the members on my
thread and even asked that let people
decide what is right and wrong,but
it was strict No.
But soon I found out the moderator was
member of Anti-reservation protests.
I asked her wether she is against
reservation for untouchables or against
untouchables itself.
She had no reply. This kind of mindset is
inherent in the people of India and that is
why such situation is still there.
I dont know what to expect from a
moderator of such a big online community
but it is clear at the top people are biased
and they want rest of the masses to view,
and think.
CASTEISM IN OTHER RELIGIONS
LEARN ABOUT HOW THIS EVIL HINDUISM CREATED, SPREAD FROM ITS ROOTS AND INFECTED THE TREES OF OTHER RELIGIONS
infected society.
Religion-obessed.
Friday, April 10, 2009
Childless Indian couples demand to know 'caste' of sperm donors
HT report:Playing God in caste-crazy Bihar
Patna, Bihar, April 06, 2009
Couples opting for sperm donations in Bihar are demanding to know the donor’s caste before they go ahead — and often getting their answers as well.
“Neither features nor height nor even IQ concerned us as much,” says Anuradha Rai (36), an Internet marketing manager from the Bhumihar community. “My husband felt if the sperm donor was from a different caste, the baby would not get the right genes.”
It is a stunning statement of how even young, urban, educated Indians, their lives transformed by the emerging India, have been unable to unshackle themselves from the centuries-old caste consciousness despite their desperation to have a child.
And it could have deep political meanings in a national election that will perhaps have caste as a far stronger factor than ever before, and likely throw up a government glued largely on the basis of caste politics.
After all, in a nation of more than 1 billion people, every fourth Indian is from a scheduled caste or scheduled tribe, the name given to lower castes in the Hindu social ladder. And at least 40 per cent belong to Other Backward Castes.
In Uttar Pradesh and Bihar are India’s biggest theatre of caste politics, every caste chieftain has realised the importance of reaching out to other castes also. For the first time, a Dalit politician — UP chief minister Mayawati — is being billed as a possible contender for the prime minister’s job and caste politics champions like Lalu Yadav, Mulayam
Singh Yadav and Ram Vilas Paswan are joining forces.
That’s because caste, which has long divided India, is also seen by many as the biggest uniting force. “Many couples feel if they know the caste, they know a lot about the person,” says R.N. Sharma, sociologist, Patna College.
Political churning is underway. In UP, Mayawati is trying to woo voters from other castes. And in Bihar, the intermediary
Kurmi community is seen as having broken away from their longtime leader Lalu Yadav, and are allying with Nitish Kumar’s Janata Dal (United) and the BJP.
Dr Himanshu Roy, a gynaecologist, says most couples ask about the educational and background of the sperm provider. “But the most common questions are about culture, health… and caste,” says Roy.
Sharma calls it’s the purity factor. “They want to ensure the bloodline stays pure,” he says.
Smriti Singh (34), a Rajput, says her family insisted on knowing the caste of the donor. “The argument was that the right caste would ensure healthy blood grouping,” she says.
“Name, address and contact details are kept anonymous, but people are insistent, almost fanatical, about caste,” says Dr Savanth Kumar, who owns sperm bank Frozen Cell. “We can’t give it on paper, but we find we have to tell them.”
reference:
http://www.hindustantimes.com/StoryPage/Print.aspx?Id=36796b57-3614-49f6-b031-9a9cbdbcfc1f
read more at the telegraph [uk]:
Friday, February 13, 2009
Dalits asked to drink cow urine to be part of yagna
Tension arose in the village last week when Sadhu Rameshwar Lal wanted to to perform a yagna' in Hanuman temple. "We were happy to know that a religious ceremony would take place in the village and all were ready to participate in it," said Chogalal, a Dalit veteran of the village.
The village has a population of 5,000 with 450 Dalit households.
A committee was formed to perform the ritual and fund collection started. "But they (upper caste men) refused to make us part of the ceremony and Sadhu Rameshwar Lal announced that no Dalit would participate in the ritual," said Kanaya Lal Khateek.
Bhanwar Singh, deputy SP Gulabpura said: "We received the information that there was certain dissatisfaction in the village regarding a religious ceremony. We came to know that villagers were not taking the contribution of Dalits and were not allowing them to be a part of the yagna. We called a meeting of every community on Saturday night and ensured that anyone willing to contribute did so and provide them a receipt for their contribution."
In the all-community meeting called on February 7, it was decided that no member of any community would perform rituals except the Brahmins.
When the Dalits showed their eagerness to be part of the ritual, Sadhu said if they wanted to participate in the ceremony, they will have to drink cow urine with dung.
"We too wanted to participate in the ritual, after all it is a ceremony of the village," said Hari ram Megwanshi.
Three castes -- Raiger, Khateek and Badai -- were banned to sit for the rituals and Sadhu's supporters allegedly published pamphlets stating that Dalits were not allowed to sit in the rituals. A group of Dalits then approached the district collector, asking him to intervene. "We met the district collector and told him that we want to give a memorandum to the chief minister," says Hari Ram.
This was followed by an all-community meeting convened by deputy superintendent of police Bhanwar Lal who was asked by the district collector to tackle the situation.
Despite reaching a unanimous decision that the Dalits can witness the ceremony, they were seen sitting almost 400 meters away from the ceremony.
Even as the situation remained tense, Ladhu Ram Jain of the organizing committee said: "There were some people who wanted to disturb the atmosphere. The Sadhu is performing rituals on his private property and has the right to invite anyone he wants."
TOI tried to contact district collector Bhagwan Singh Deta many times but he was busy making arrangements for the visit of chief minister Ashok Gehlot on February 10.
Saturday, December 27, 2008
SITUATION OF MIDDLE CLASS AND UPPER CLASS AMONG SC/STs
THESE ARE SOME IMPORTANT FACTS REGARDING THE ECONOMIC CONDITION OF SC/STs. IT EVEN SHOWS HOW MUCH STRENGTHENED IS MIDDLE AND UPPER CLASS AMONG SC/STs WHICH COMPRISE A THIRD OF THE POPULATION OF THE COUNTRY. INDIA IS SHINING FOR SURE BUT NOT FOR A THIRD OF ITS POPULATION. WITHOUT THEM INDIA WOULD NEVER ATTAIN ITS FULL LUSTER.
ALTHOUGH THESE FIGURES ARE A BIT OLDER [2005], BUT THE CONDITION HASN'T OVERTURNED EVEN NOW AND WE CAN STILL VISUALIZE THE SITUATION BUT ONY WITH OPEN EYES AND OPEN MIND.
THIS ALSO ACCOUNTS TO THE FACT THAT MIDDLE CLASS OF SC/STs CAN'T BE OVERLOOKED IN RESERVATION AS THEY ARE STILL FAR BEHIND FROM THEIR COUNTERPARTS.
* BSE, (Mumbai Stock Exchange) set up in 1875. 3500 companies traded every day, no Dalit
* CII (Confederation of Indian Industry), set up around 1895. 57,00 member organizations, and 80,000 individual members, no Dalit member till now.
* ASSOCHAM (Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India), set up in 1920. one lakh individual company membership, no Dalit company member.
* FICCI (Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry), set up in 1927. 1,500 corporate members, and over 500 chambers of commerce, no Dalit member in 1927, none in 2005.
* IIC (India International Centre), set up in 1962. With 4828 individual, and 296 corporate membership, no Dalit member in 1962, and none in 2005. owned company traded in 1875, none in 2005.
SOURCE: TIMES OF INDIA
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
Monday, June 23, 2008
MANUSMRITI - EPIC OF CASTE SYSTEM AND CASTEISM
[MANUSMRITI, ACCORDING TO UPPER CASTE HINDUS LIKE BRAHMINS IS ONE OF HINDU'S HOLY BOOKS. SOME EVEN DESCRIBE IT AS "ULTIMATE LAW OF NATURE"]
The Manu Smriti (Sanskrit: मनुस्मृति) is a work of Hindu law and ancient Indian society. It is also known as the Laws of Manu.
Manu divides Hindus into four varnas i.e. casteism. He not only divide Hindus into four varnas, he also grades them. Besides prescribing rank and occupation Manu grants privilege to swarnas and imposes penalties on the shudras.The status of the Shudras in the Hindu society as prescribed by Manu the Law-giver and the Architect of Hindu society. There are so many Codes of the Manu Smriti against the Shudras and Women which are below:
1. For the welfare of humanity the supreme creator Brahma, gave birth to the Brahmins from his mouth, the Kshatriyas from his shoulders, the Vaishyas from his thighs and Shudras from his feet. (Manu’s code I-31,)
2. God said the duty of a Shudra is to serve the upper varnas faithfully with devotion and without grumbling. (Manu 1-91) Manu is not satisfied with this. He wants this servile status of the Shudras to be expressed in the names and surnames of persons belonging to that community. Manu says:
3. Let the first part of a Brahman’s name denote something auspicious, a Kshatriya’s be connected with power, and a Vaishyas with wealth but a Shudra’s express something contemptible. (Manu II.31)
4. The second part of a Brahmin’s name shall be a word implying happiness, of a Kshatriya’s (a word) implying protection, of a Vaishya’s a term expressive of thriving and of a Shudra’s an expression denoting service. (Manu II. 32.)
5. A hundred year old Kshatriya must treat a ten year old Brahmin boy as his father. (Manu 11-135)
6. The Brahmin should never invite persons of other varnas for food. In case, the latter begs the Brahmin for food, the Brahmin may give them some left-over. Even these left-over must be served not by the Brahmin but by his servants outside the house. (Manu II2).
7. He who instructs Shudra pupils and he whose teacher is a Shudra shall become disqualified for being invited to a shradha. (Manu III. 156.)
8. A Shudra is unfit of receive education. The upper varnas should not impart education or give advice to a Shudra.It is not necessary that the Shudra should know the laws and codes and hence need not be taught. Violators will go to as amrita hell. (Manu IV-78 to 81)
9. “Let him not dwell in a country where the rulers are Shudras.” (Manu IV. 61)
10. He must never read the Vedas in the presence of the Shudras. (Manu IV. 99.)
11. Any country, where there are no Brahmins, of where they are not happy will get devastated and destroyed. (Manu VIII-20 to 22)
12. A Brahmana who is only a Brahman by decent i.e., one who has neither studied nor performed any other act required by the Vedas may, at the king’s pleasure, interpret the law to him i.e., act as the judge, but never a Shudra (however learned he may be). (Manu VIII.20.)
13. The Kingdom of that monarch, who looks on while a Shudra settles the law, will sink low like a cow in the morass. (Manu VIII. 21.)
14. Any Brahmin, who enslaves or tries to enslave a Brahmin, is liable for a penalty of no less than 600 PANAS. A Brahmin can order a Shudra to serve him without any remuneration because the Shudra is created by Brahma to serve the Brahmins. Even if a Brahmin frees a Shudra from slavery the Shudra continue to be a slave as he is created for slavery. Nobody has the right to free him. (Manu VIII-50,56 and 59)
15. A Shudra who insults a twice born man with gross invectives shall have his tongue cut out; for he is of low origin. (Manu VIII. 270.)
16. If he mentions the names and castes of the (twice born) with contumely, an iron nail, ten fingers long, shall be thrust red hot into his mouth. (Manu VIII. 271.)
17. If a Shudra arrogantly presumes to preach religion to Brahmins, the king shall have poured burning oil in his mouth and ears. Manu VIII. 272.)
18. A Shudra who has an intercourse with a woman of the higher caste guarded or unguarded shall be punished in the following manner; if she was unguarded, he loses the offending part; if she was guarded then he should be put to death and his property confiscated.” (Manu VIII. 374.)
19. A Brahman may compel a Shudra, whether bought or unbought, to do servile work for he is created by the creator to be the slave of a Brahmana. (Manu VIII. 413.)
20. No Shudra should have property of his own, He should have nothing of his own. The existence of a wealthy Shudra is bad for the Brahmins. A Brahman may take possession of the goods of a Shudra. (ManuVIII-417 & X129)
21. A Brahman may seize without hesitation, if he be in distress for his subsistence, the goods of his Shudra. The Shudra can have only one occupation. This is one of the inexorable laws of Manu. says Manu. (Manu VIII. 417)
22. A Shudra who wants to just fill his stomach may serve a Vaishya. If he wants a permanent means of living he can serve a Kshatriya. But if he wants to go to heaven or wants higher or superior birth in the next generation he must serve a Brahmin. (ManuIX334 & 335)
23. The most sacred duty of a Shudra is to serve the Brahmins, always, reciting the words “Brahman” with utmost devotion. Such a Shudra will get salvation. Otherwise he will die a worst death and will go to the worst hell. (Manu X-121)
24. But let a (Shudra) serve Brahmans, either for the sake of heaven, or with a view to both (this life and the next) for he who is called the servant of a Brahman thereby gains all his ends. (Manu X. 122.)
25. The service of Brahmans alone is declared (to be) an excellent occupation for a Shudra for whatever else besides this he may perform will bear him no fruit. (Manu X. 123.)
26. They must allot to him out of their own family (property) a suitable maintenance, after considering his ability, his industry, and the number of those whom he is bound to support. (Manu X. 124.)
READ TRANSLATION OF MANUSMRITI BY AN OXFORD UNIVESITY PROFESSOR:
http://www.sacred-texts.com/hin/manu.htm
Posts
