Dalits Media Watch
News Updates 03.07.13
Tribal, dalit officers are soft targets for Maoists- Hindustan Times
Notice to officials for ignoring dalit headmistress' plea against persecution- The Times Of India
Dalit girl humiliated, ends life - The Hindu
http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/tamil-nadu/dalit-girl-humiliated-ends-life/article4874141.ece
'Dalits should make use of enabling environment for entrepreneurship'- Business Line
Ambedkar Nagar to have its first home-grown medico- The Hindu
http://www.indiapress.org/gen/news.php/The_Hindu/400x60/0
SC student waits in vain for education loan- The Times Of India
http://www.indiapress.org/gen/news.php/The_Times_of_India/400x60/0
3 Dalits injured in attack- The Times Of India
http://www.indiapress.org/gen/news.php/The_Times_of_India/400x60/0
NOTE : Please find attachment for HINDI NEWS UPDATES (PDF)
Hindustan Times
Tribal, dalit officers are soft targets for maoists
The death of Pakur police superintendent Amarjeet Balihar in Tuesday's attack in Jharkhand's Dumka district
has been a blow to the Maoist image among the tribals and dalits of the state.
The self-proclaimed champions of these two marginalised sections, the people now feel, have turned the gun
against them.
"The Maoists have always singled out the tribal and dalit officers and killed them. Tribal officers are soft
targets," said a relative of Balihar on condition of anonymity.
In fact, the tribals and dalits have been hit once too often. While hundreds of Jharkhand policemen — a
majority of them tribals — die during anti-Maoist operations every year, Balihar was the third prominent police
officer to be targeted.
In October 2006, Maoists beheaded special branch inspector Francis Induwar. In September 2010, they killed
Bihar military police jawan Lucas Tete.
The caste war is rooted in the Maoist fold too, at least in Jharkhand. In 2001, a chunk of Ganjhu cadres —
members of a scheduled caste — defected and formed a parallel outfit, Tritiya Prastuti Committee, which is the
biggest enemy of the Maoists.
The Times Of India
Notice to officials for ignoring dalit headmistress' plea against persecution
MADURAI: The Madras high court ordered notices to top district authorities for their failure to take action on a
complaint filed by a dalit headmistress in Tirunelveli district.
As her complaint against harassment from her colleagues didn't evoke a response, the 39-year-old who tried to
protect the rights of dalit students in her school and thereby provoked a few, sought police protection to
discharge her duty by filing a writ petition at the Madras HC. She also sought direction to the Ayyapuram police to register her complaint lodged on April 12.
In her petition before the Madurai bench, S Amali Annal, headmistress of panchayat union primary school at
Nayakkarpatti village, said she was targetted for objecting to the exploitation of SC students by the school's
noon meal staff, Nagaraj, and another teacher, Palaniammal. They made the students clean the teachers'
toilet with bare hands, massage their feet and do other menial tasks, she said.
After Amali raised the matter with the assistant elementary education officer in December 2012, she was
threatened by Nagaraj and Palaniammal. She filed a police complaint on January 13 and both parties decided
to resolve the matter. Thereafter, she went on medical leave and joined duty on April 12. Following her
complaint seeking police protection on April 10, a constable was deployed for two hours at the school on April
12. As soon as the constable left, Amali was threatened by one Ponnuthai and six others.
Six days after the complaint, she was called to the police station, 35 km from her residence, where inspector
Athilingam Bose asked her to reach a compromise and withdraw her complaint. Though she withdrew her
complaint on the next day, she was continuously harassed by them, forcing her to approach the police again.
When she insisted on registering the case against her persecutors, she was told that the case would be
registered only after enquiring with the AEEO. But, till date, the police had not taken any action, she charged.
Even after raising the matter with the district collector, superintendent of police SP, deputy inspector general as
well as the district educational officer (DEO) in April, no action was taken in the matter. Hence, she filed writ
petition through her counsel T Lajapathi Roy against the opposite parties, including the SP, collector, DEO
and others.
Amali is now on leave due to fear of life threat. Her petition had come up before Justice N Kirubakaran on
Monday, who ordered notice to be issued to the opposite parties.
The Hindu
Dalit girl humiliated, ends life
http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/tamil-nadu/dalit-girl-humiliated-ends-life/article4874141.ece
A Dalit teenage girl, a victim of alleged sexual harassment, committed suicide following humiliation and threats
to her family. The 16-year-old girl of Kokkaneri village near Pazhavoor is said to be the second victim in the
family.
The FIR says Krishnamoorthy (30) and Rajesh (26) of the same village humiliated the girl by tying her up and
beating her.
According to Madurai-based NGO Evidence members who had conducted a field enquiry, Krishnamoorthy,
belonging to Nadar caste, asked the girl's mother to get her daughter married to him. However, she refused
stating that the girl was a minor.
The girl consumed poison on June 22, three days after Krishnamoorthy and his friend Rajesh allegedly tortured
her.
A.Kathir, Executive Director said five years ago, her sister committed suicide following sexual harassment.
Business Line
'Dalits should make use of enabling environment for entrepreneurship'
Hyderabad, July 3:
There is an immediate need for entrepreneurs to emerge from the socially underprivileged sections, according
to Milind Kamble, Chairman, Dalit Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (DICCI).
Speaking at a motivation campaign to promote entrepreneurship among Scheduled Castes and Tribes,
organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) here on Wednesday, he said economic reforms since
1991 had created a conducive environment for Dalit entrepreneurs.
A proactive approach and support from industry was the need of the hour. "We should move from being job
-seekers to becoming job-givers," he added.
B. Ashok Reddy, Chairman, CII-AP, said entrepreneurship was an enabler for empowerment of the socially
oppressed sections.
The Hindu
Ambedkar Nagar to have its first home-grown medico
http://www.indiapress.org/gen/news.php/The_Hindu/400x60/0
In spite of poverty and emotional distress, P. Suresh Kumar, a Scheduled Caste boy, has won a medical seat.
Ambedkar Nagar, where he lives, is ecstatic about Suresh's achievement as he will be the first boy in the
colony to become a medico. The colony has more than 100 families and around 10 college-going youth.
"We have boys in the colony studying engineering and arts and science courses but this is the first time a boy
from our colony has got a medical seat and this could pave the way for other secured youth to follow suit,"
said Vigneshwar a B.E. graduate.
Suresh scored 1130 marks in the Plus Two examination and secured a seat in the Theni Medical College. He
couldn't afford private tuition. He did not have creature comforts at home. And there were days when food was
scarce. But none of this stopped him from achieving his goal.
A student of St. Mary's Higher Secondary School, Suresh was selected under the 'Special Scholarship
Scheme for SC/ST and SC/Christian Converts.'
But for the scheme, he would have discontinued his studies, his mother P. Shanthi told The Hindu.
Suresh lost his father when he was six-years-old and was raised by his mother, an agricultural daily wage
labourer.
The youngest of three, Suresh was a bright student who always topped the exams in school. He scored 483 in
the Class X exams and emerged the topper at the Government High School at Thiruppachethi in Sivaganga
district.
His home in Ambedkar Nagar is a single room partitioned to accommodate a kitchen. When this reporter
visited his house, he was convalescing from a bout of Chicken Pox. He said poverty forced his sister Usha
Nanthini (22) to sacrifice her studies and work in a mill to support the family. His brother Saravana Kumar (20)
suffers from mental retardation and requires assistance.
"These conditions prompted me to work harder, and my aim is to serve the poor who have no means of getting
quality healthcare," Suresh said with resolve.
"Our economic condition is so bad that we have to borrow Rs.10,000 to travel to Chennai to attend the
counselling. But I am happy that my son will be a doctor soon and will alleviate our condition," said Shanthi,
unable to hold back her tears. Still, the family needs financial support and is looking forward to voluntary
organisations and individual donors who can help the deserving candidate complete his studies.
Rev. Fr. Arokiasamy, hostel warden of St. Mary's School, remembers him as an exemplary student with good
grasping power. Principal Rev. Fr. A. Kulandairaj said that the school provided regular coaching for Plus Two
students and a special diet was given to them at examination time.
A. Jaganathan, a PhD scholar from Madurai Kamaraj University, said that Suresh should be applauded
because as a member of a disadvantaged community, he beat great personal odds to achieve a milestone in
education.
The Times Of India
SC student waits in vain for education loan
http://www.indiapress.org/gen/news.php/The_Times_of_India/400x60/0
BANGALORE: K Holiyappa, a 23-year-old student from a small hamlet in Chitradurga, applied for a student
loan of Rs 1.3 lakh over 18 months ago from the Dr B R Ambedkar Development Corporation Ltd. Now,
towards the end of his post-graduate course, he's yet to get the sanctioned loan.
This first-generation learner from Bommavvanagathihalli completed his B.Ed. course and enrolled for the
Master's of Social Work in 2011 at Davanagere University. He applied for a loan in December 2011. That's
when his tale of woes began.
For the first time, under the National Scheduled Castes Finance & Development Corporation (NSFDC), the
Karnataka government invited SC students pursuing higher education to apply for student loans in September
2010 and 238 students applied for them. Of these, 78 students were short-listed but only 26 got the loan
sanctioned. The rest didn't receive any communication from the agency.
The purpose of NSFDC was to help SC students from the lower economic strata of society and give them
financial aid during their studies. "The lethargy of the staff has defeated the purpose of this scheme. I'm
almost done with my course and had a tough time mobilizing resources for my education so far. Who is
responsible for this?" a disappointed Holiyappa told TOI.
Holiyappa wrote several letters to the corporation asking about the delay and personally visited the Bangalore
office many times but got no response. "I was once told my application was not approved in Delhi. But the
same department sent a letter stating I'd got the loan,'' he said.
According to department sources, the timeframe for loan disbursal should not exceed three months. "If
students send all the required documents immediately after we call for applications, we send the list to the
NSFDC head office. We get a response within two months. From then, cheques can be issued within two
weeks. This process should be quick as it must help students," said a retired officer of the department.
Incidentally, the department website still lists him as a district manager.
Official speak
Officials at the corporation admitted to the delay. "In Holiyappa's case, we're still verifying if his eligibility like if
he stayed in any government hostel. We must make sure that applicants are not beneficiaries of similar
government schemes. We formed a sub-committee to scrutinize applications and identify the beneficiaries,"
said GR Mohan Kumar, general manager (industries and training, direct loan) of the corporation. "The sub
-committee will check if the student is still pursuing studies or has dropped out of college," Mohan Kumar told
TOI.
The Times Of India
3 Dalits injured in attack
http://www.indiapress.org/gen/news.php/The_Times_of_India/400x60/0
BHOPAL: Members of a dalit family were allegedly beaten up at Kenwar village in Ashok Nagar district on
Monday night over a dispute between Ahirwars and Yadavs.
In the incident, Govind Ahirwar, 35, his mother Raton Bai, 70, and his wife sustained injuries. Two persons
from the other side also sustained some injuries.
Investigating officer Hari Singh Raghuvanshi said, "Ahirwars accused that Ramji Lal Yadav, Kamarji Yadav
and others attacked them. Yadavs accused that Govind Ahirwar attacked them. A case has been registered
against both groups and investigations are underway."
News Monitor by Girish Pant
--
.Arun Khote
On behalf of
Dalits Media Watch Team
(An initiative of "Peoples Media Advocacy & Resource Centre-PMARC")
...................................................................
Peoples Media Advocacy & Resource Centre- PMARC has been initiated with the support from group of senior journalists, social activists, academics and intellectuals from Dalit and civil society to advocate and facilitate Dalits issues in the mainstream media. To create proper & adequate space with the Dalit perspective in the mainstream media national/ International on Dalit issues is primary objective of the PMARC.
Peoples Media Advocacy & Resource Centre- PMARC has been initiated with the support from group of senior journalists, social activists, academics and intellectuals from Dalit and civil society to advocate and facilitate Dalits issues in the mainstream media. To create proper & adequate space with the Dalit perspective in the mainstream media national/ International on Dalit issues is primary objective of the PMARC.
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