Dalits Media Watch – English News Updates 31.10.15

I was humiliated in my childhood for being a dalit: Parameshwara – Deccan Herald

http://www.deccanherald.com/content/509283/i-humiliated-my-childhood-being.html

Stay on quota for promotion to SC employees to continue – The Times Of India

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chandigarh/Stay-on-quota-for-promotion-to-SC-employees-to-continue/articleshow/49604194.cms

Release of Funds brings Relief to SC/ST Engineering Students – The New Indian Express

http://www.newindianexpress.com/cities/chennai/Release-of-Funds-brings-Relief-to-SCST-Engineering-Students/2015/10/31/article3106026.ece

CENTRE NOT RELEASING SCHOLARSHIP FUNDS FOR SC, ST STUDENTS: NEGI – The Pioneer

http://www.dailypioneer.com/state-editions/centre-not-releasing-scholarship-funds-for-sc-st-students-negi.html

Dalit killings in Faridabad: Fire started in room, not outside, say Haryana forensics experts – Zee News

http://zeenews.india.com/news/haryana/dalit-killings-fire-started-in-room-not-outside-say-haryana-forensics-experts_1816230.html

Bonded Labour, a Reality in Tamil Nadu – The New Indian Express

http://www.newindianexpress.com/cities/chennai/Bonded-Labour-a-Reality-in-Tamil-Nadu/2015/10/31/article3105514.ece

Govt mulls quota for Valmikis in HUDA sectors – The Tribune

http://www.tribuneindia.com/news/haryana/governance/govt-mulls-quota-for-valmikis-in-huda-sectors/152491.html

KLCA Criticises SC Order on Reservation – The New Indian Express

http://www.newindianexpress.com/cities/kochi/KLCA-Criticises-SC-Order-on-Reservation/2015/10/31/article3106394.ece

Deccan Herald

 I was humiliated in my childhood for being a dalit: Parameshwara

http://www.deccanherald.com/content/509283/i-humiliated-my-childhood-being.html

Bengaluru: Oct 31, 2015, DHNS:

A day after meekly agreeing to be a minister, senior Congressman G Parameshwara on Friday tried to assert his authority in the party with his supporters organising a ‘Sarthaka Samavesha’ to mark the leader completing five years as president of the State Congress unit.

He also made use of the occasion, attended by top State Congress leaders at the sprawling Palace Grounds, to position himself as a dalit leader.

He turned emotional as he narrated the humiliation meted out to him in his childhood for being a dalit. 

“We were not allowed to drink water using a glass. They (the upper caste) used to pour water from a bowl. It’s been 67 years year since we got Independence. How many more years do we have to undergo this humiliation?” he asked.

The event was organised in such a way as to depict Parameshwara as a mass leader and project that he had a significant role in bringing the party back to power in the 2013 Assembly elections.

Short film

Parameshwara had tried hard to get the post of deputy chief minister, but he was forced to accept a Cabinet berth. A short film on his political career and his contribution to bring the Congress back to power in 2013 was screened at the event. 

A booklet in this regard was released and Parameshwara was made to cut a cake to mark the occasion. 

There was so much clamour for greeting and felicitating Parameshwara that the chief minister was forced to wait to make his speech.

The KPCC president further said the evil system of untouchability was still being practised. “You don’t have to go too far. About 20 km from here, in Anekal, there are separate drinking water glasses for dalits. 

Though my father was an MLC, I was not allowed to enter a salon. So, my father used to cut my hair at home,” he said and added that his aim was to ensure dignity for the dalits and the deprived section by following in the footsteps of B R Ambedkar.

Though Siddaramaiah said many programmes initiated by Parameshwara as the State Congress president helped the party win the 2013 Assembly polls, he made it a point to highlight the ‘padayatra’ taken out from Bengaluru to Ballari against illegal mining in 2009 when R V Deshpande was the KPCC president. 

He said the ‘padayatra’ marked the beginning of the downfall of the BJP government in Karnataka. The chief minister also said he had no differences with Parameshwara.

‘Prepare for 2018 polls’

Both Siddaramaiah and Parameshwara exhorted the party workers to prepare for the 2018 Assembly elections and stop the BJP from coming back to power. 

“Merely focusing on development will not do. We should not repeat the mistakes we committed in 2004 when the focus was only on development and not politics. Along with development, we should carefully handle politics in the 2018 polls. If the BJP can win three elections in Madhya Pradesh, why not the Congress get a second term in Karnataka?” Parameshwara asked.

The Times Of India

 Stay on quota for promotion to SC employees to continue

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chandigarh/Stay-on-quota-for-promotion-to-SC-employees-to-continue/articleshow/49604194.cms

TNN | Oct 31, 2015, 06.42 AM IST

CHANDIGARH: Stay on reservation for Haryana government employees belonging to Scheduled Caste category in departmental promotions would continue as the Punjab and Haryana high court on Friday adjourned the case for November 28.

The matter came up for hearing before a bench headed by Justice Rajive Bhalla, who adjourned the matter for arguments. The court, however, ordered to continue the stay orders.

Manohar Lal Khattar-led BJP government in Haryana had issued the notification on May 15, providing benefit of quota in promotions of employees of SC category with effect from April 1, 2013. The notification was challenged before the high court by Dinesh Kumar Sharma and others, who are working as assistants in the Haryana civil secretariat. Hearing their plea, bench headed by Justice Amita Rawal had ordered stay on the notification on May 27.

According to the petitioners, who were from the general category, the representation of Scheduled Castes in the cadre of assistant was more than 20%. They prayed that a further benefit of 20% reservation through the notification would amount to reverse discrimination causing immense injustice to the general category employees of Haryana.

They had also pleaded that in M Nagraj case and several other judgments, the Supreme Court had ruled that provision as contained in Article 16 (4) of the Constitution enables the government to provide for reservation only at the stage of initial recruitment and not for the subsequent stage of promotion.

It was also argued that reservation in promotion was held to be violative of Article 14 of the constitution by the apex court on several occasions.

The New Indian Express

 Release of Funds brings Relief to SC/ST Engineering Students

http://www.newindianexpress.com/cities/chennai/Release-of-Funds-brings-Relief-to-SCST-Engineering-Students/2015/10/31/article3106026.ece

By Ram M Sundaram Published: 31st October 2015 04:54 AM Last Updated: 31st October 2015 04:54 AM

CHENNAI: While hundreds of Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe engineering students were not being allowed to take their practicals as the government had not reimbursed their fees for 2015-16, the Adi Dravidar and Tribal Welfare Department only now sanctioned Rs 458 crore for the academic year 2014-15.

Under the Post-Matric Scholarship (PMS) scheme, all SC, ST, converted SC and ST Christians with an annual parental or guardian income less than Rs 2.5 lakh a year and admitted in government, aided and self-financing institutions are exempt from college tuition fees from 2012-13.

The Cental and State government together reimburse the institutions with all compulsory non-refundable fees and maintenance charges under this scheme.

Around 7,67, 698 students have enrolled in higher education institutions across Tamil Nadu during 2014-15.

In a letter to the department secretary by the director, Adi Dravidar department on June 26, 2015, he said that out of the Rs 1147.11 crore to be reimbursed, only Rs 686.53 crore was sanctioned and distributed and the remaining Rs 460.57 crore was needed to benefit the remaining 40,273 students.

However, the government while explaining the mechanism through which the funds were allocated said that of the total demanded reimbursement (Rs 1147.11 crore), Rs 353.53 crore was sanctioned during the last financial year and Rs 334.77 crore has been been provided in the 2015-16 Budget Estimate (BE). The remaining Rs 458.81 crore has been sanctioned through a GO dated October 26, 2015.

M Bharathan, State Convenor, Ambedkar Kalvi Centenary Movement said several engineering colleges in Chennai, Coimbatore and Tiruchy forced the students pay the fees upfront or quit the colleges halfway as college managements restricted them from attending the semesters.

Retired IAS official R Christodas Gandhi said there was no mention of the current expenditure in the 2015-16 BE, delaying PMS reimbursement sum for 2015-16 even more.

“While the colleges send their admission details by August, the department was needlessly humiliating SC/ST students by delaying the fund release every year,” he added.  Bharathan added the authorities could use the Rs 1413.29 crore (6.67 per cent) allocated for the SC Sub-Plan 2015-16.

The Pioneer

 CENTRE NOT RELEASING SCHOLARSHIP FUNDS FOR SC, ST STUDENTS: NEGI

http://www.dailypioneer.com/state-editions/centre-not-releasing-scholarship-funds-for-sc-st-students-negi.html

Saturday, 31 October 2015 | PNS | Dehradun | in Dehradun

Thousands of students belonging to the Scheduled Caste (SC) and Scheduled Tribe (ST) category are deprived of scholarships as the Union Government is not releasing the budget meant for them, said the Health and Social Welfare Minister Surendra Singh Negi while addressing  the media here on Friday.

He said that the scholarship scheme for SC and ST students who have passed the class X and want to study further is funded entirely by the Union Government for last many years but now the State Government is not receiving any funds under the scheme due to which disbursal of scholarship to these students is affected.

The Minister also  claimed that an amount of Rs135.89 crores is pending with the Union Government. He informed that he has apprised the situation to the Prime Minister and Union Social Welfare Minister, Thawar Chand Gahlot in a letter dated October 18 but he is yet to get response. Negi said that the scholarship scheme aims to strengthen weaker sections of society by helping them to get higher education but the delay in arrival of funds is hampering this noble cause.

In response to a question the newly appointed Social Welfare Minister said that the declaration of handing over laptops to the meritorious students of weaker sections of society would soon be implemented. “I have ordered the Additional Chief Secretary to expedite the process of purchase of laptops and their distribution within a time period of one month,” Negi said. 

He blamed the five member of Parliaments (MP) from Lok Sabha for not taking up the case of the people of the State with the Union Government due to which the State is being deprived of the Central assistance. The Minister said he has asked the officials of his Department to make arrangements to inform about the various welfare schemes on the mobile phones of the general public.

Zee News

 Dalit killings in Faridabad: Fire started in room, not outside,

say Haryana forensics experts

http://zeenews.india.com/news/haryana/dalit-killings-fire-started-in-room-not-outside-say-haryana-forensics-experts_1816230.html

Last Updated: Friday, October 30, 2015 – 12:58

Zee Media Bureau

Faridabad: Days after an arson attack in Faridabad district left two Dalit children dead,Haryana forensic experts have concluded that the “origin and source of fire was from inside the room and not from outside”.

According to The Indian Express, experts have also found a kerosene oil plastic bottle, which is half-burnt, under the partially burnt bed. A burnt matchstick has also been found lying on a slab next to the window of the room, says the daily on Friday.

The team is likely to submit its report to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) by this weekend.

The findings contradict the complaint filed by Jitender who had claimed that his house in Sunped village near Ballabgarh was set on fire by a group of upper caste people after throwing petrol from an open window.

Jitender’s wife Rekha, four-year-old son Vaibhav and eight-month-old daughter Divya had received burn injuries. Both children succumbed to their injuries. The wife is battling for life in a hospital.

The daily has quoted sources in the FSL as saying that the forensic report mentioned that “no traces of outside entry” into the house were found when the alleged attack took place.

The team also concluded that “splatter’s pattern on the scene of crime was circular, which indicates that it was not thrown from a distance, but poured from the place where it was later put on fire.”

The Haryana government had ordered a CBI probe into the arson attack.

Police had earlier said that an incident that took place on October 05, 2014, when three people were killed in clashes between two groups of the village, may have led to October 20 arson.

The New Indian Express

 Bonded Labour, a Reality in Tamil Nadu

http://www.newindianexpress.com/cities/chennai/Bonded-Labour-a-Reality-in-Tamil-Nadu/2015/10/31/article3105514.ece

By Aditi R Published: 31st October 2015 04:54 AM Last Updated: 31st October 2015 04:54 AM

CHENNAI: “It took me a while to get used to a life where I do not have to seek permission to go to the toilet or sit down,” said S Shankar, a 30-year-old rescued bonded labourer from Cheyyur taluk. He worked in a tree cutting unit for a paltry sum of `200 a week for 10 years. “We had taken a loan from the employer and worked there for 10 years to pay it back. My children were also born there,” he said. 

After years of toiling in inhuman conditions, they were rescued by government officials and a crew from the International Justice Mission (IJM) a few months back. They were later sent back to their respective native villages. In order to ensure their well being, volunteers from IJM visit their villages and provide them life training skills.

“Being rescued is the first step to freedom. After that comes healing, then reintegration, which is an arduous process,” said Loretta Jhona, director, IJM’s aftercare programme.

“It takes a while to make them realise that they are their own masters and don’t need to seek anyone’s permission. Many who are born to bonded labourers grow up with no dreams of a better life. Everyone, including the adults, lose their mental capacity to make their own decisions.”

So what is done to break such mental barriers? “We involve them in our three-day in-house training programme, provide the children with art therapy, enroll them in schools, teach them how to save, take care of their health and hygiene, and other life skills,” she added.

If the labourers decide to leave, the volunteers from IJM make follow-up visits to their respective places for a year. In 2015 alone, IJM has facilitated rescue of 505 bonded labourers from Tamil Nadu. Between 1999 and 2014, they had rescued nearly 10,000 bonded labourers across the country, out of which, 92 per cent lead normal lives. “The percentage of those who go back to bonded labour is negligible.”

The Ministry of Home Affairs has listed bonded labour as one of the various forms of human trafficking in India, which is an offence under Section 370 of the Indian Penal Code. However, the conviction rate for users of bonded labour is low, as the offender is detained for less than eight hours for a human rights crime. Almost 86.6 per cent of bonded labourers belong to the Schedule Caste and Scheduled Tribes.

“Rescuing and rehabilitating them is not enough. We need an approach to end this crime,” said Hephzibah Sunder, IJM Chennai’s director of system reforms. “We need a State level officer who can monitor these crimes. We have requested the government for that…let’s see what happens.”

The Tribune

 Govt mulls quota for Valmikis in HUDA sectors

http://www.tribuneindia.com/news/haryana/governance/govt-mulls-quota-for-valmikis-in-huda-sectors/152491.html

Tribune News Service Mahendragarh, October 30

The BJP government is studying a proposal for an adequate quota to the Valmiki community in all HUDA sectors, said Education and Tourism Minister Ram Bilas Sharma during a social function at a Valmiki temple in Narnaul town, about 25 km away from here, recently.

“I have suggested to Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar to ensure at least 10 per cent quota for this community in HUDA sectors ,” said Sharma.

The minister said the previous UPA Government policy not to fail any student from Class I to VIII had compromised the level of education but the BJP government had decided to restore the previous system.

Sharma said the government would soon restore the services of those guest teachers who were terminated a few months ago. The announcement in this regard would be made before Diwali after getting approval from Punjab and Haryana High Court, he added.

The New Indian Express

 KLCA Criticises SC Order on Reservation

http://www.newindianexpress.com/cities/kochi/KLCA-Criticises-SC-Order-on-Reservation/2015/10/31/article3106394.ece

By Express News Service Published: 31st October 2015 05:32 AM Last Updated: 31st October 2015 05:32 AM

KOCHI: Flaying the Supreme Court’s recent observation on reservation in the higher education sector, the Kerala Latin Catholic Association (KLCA) on Friday said it was nothing less than anti-democratic.

The Association stated that by adopting such a stance, the Apex Court had turned its back on the ground reality.“The stance of the Supreme Court has given new hopes to fascist forces, who have been demanding cessation of the reservation system. The Court has intentionally neglected the fact that it is ‘money that has the final word in higher education’. If the observation of the court is implemented, students belonging to backward communities would no longer get opportunity to pursue their higher education dreams. Our point is that a re-look is needed into the matter,” said Kerala Latin Catholic Association president Joseph Velivil.

News monitored by AMRESH & AJEET