-The Hindu The Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved the amendments to the Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Bill, 2012, piloted by the Union Social Justice and Empowerment Ministry. The Bill is intended to eradicate manual scavenging. The amendments incorporate provisions like identifying manual scavengers through a nation-wide survey and the mandatory inclusion of women in vigilance committees at all levels. The Bill was introduced on September 3, 2012,...
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Half of India’s dalit population lives in 4 states -B Sivakumar
-The Times of India CHENNAI: Four states account for nearly half of the country's dalit population, reveals the 2011 census. Uttar Pradesh stands first with 20.5% of the total scheduled caste (SC) population, followed by West Bengal with 10.7%, says the data released by the Union census directorate on Tuesday. Bihar with 8.2% and Tamil Nadu with 7.2 % come third and fourth. Dalits form around 16.6% of India's population. The 2011...
More »Panchayats under the shadow of the ‘khaps’- Sahil Makkar
-Live Mint Despite being declared unconstitutional by SC, ‘khaps' continue to hold sway in parallel with the state machinery Rohtak/Bhiwani: Ravinder Gehlawat and his wife Shilpa had been married for less than four months when they were marched out of their village-Dharana in Jhajjar district of Haryana-by men of the local community and warned never to return. Their fate was sealed on 24 April 2009 when the local khap panchayat, which translates...
More »Panchayats: hope for dalit rights- George Mathew
-Live Mint Panchayat-related caste violence continues unabated and has become a part of the social reality today In ancient India, the panchayat system was based on the age-old caste system, social status and family. Although the local self-government concept was introduced in 1882, it took more than 100 years for the local self-government institutions to become a part of the Indian Constitution. While tremendous possibilities have been opened up in the...
More »Mani Shankar Aiyar, diplomat-turned-politician interviewed by Nidhi Sharma
-The Economic Times My target for fulfilling Rajiv's vision has always been 2018. We can get there in less than 5 years if govt acts on our recommendations, says diplomat-turned-politician Mani Shankar Aiyar. You have been passionately talking about Panchayati Raj. But your party doesn't seem to share the same passion lately... Mani Shankar Aiyar: I don't agree with you here. The commitment of the party to Panchayati Raj and devolution of...
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