Brahmins kill Dalit to promote Hinduism

Narmedh Yagya (human sacrifice), called Bhoonda Mahayagya in the local language continues in Himachal Pradesh. And a person from the Beira caste (Dalit) is always selected by the Brahmin priests of the temple. On Dec.25, 2005, a Dalit was killed in the name of “nonviolent” Hinduism in the Shimla district at Rorhu, the constituency of Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh. India’s Brahminical media has given lot of publicity to this heinous crime saying it is a religious celebration as part of their Hindu tradition and culture. All the three TV channels (Star News, Aaj Tak and Zee News) had glorified this heinous crime by live coverage. The Chef Minister was the chief guest.

Virbhadra Singh is said to belong to a royal family, son of Raja Padhma. Dalit Voice was the only paper which covered last year’s human sacrifice in detail but the Gandhian ahimsa lovers did not bother about kiling a Dalit in the name of their religion.

Anti-national anthem ?

Will any of your learned readers satisfy me on our national anthem written by Rabindra Nath Tagore? It is a fact on record by Tagore himself that he was approached by a high govt. official to compose a befitting paean in honour of George-V on the occasion of his visit to India on Dec.12, 1911 to commemorate his coronation as Emperor of India. The net outcome was Jana-Gana-Mana which was widely criticised in Bengal for its obvious pro-imperial strain in profusion, in the background of the poet’s refusal to oblige Bipen Chandra Pal when the latter approached him to compose a song comprehending the country and goddess Durga in the same canvass. The composition reflected the composer’s own soul and with it the soul of the country. The poet was sore, his reaction was sour, he was mortified to see that his countrymen could come so low to dismantle him with shower of insinuations. I have written to English and language dailies that the unmentioned official was Asutosh Chowdhury, a close relative of Tagore. None was published. Why Tagore did not specifically name the official? Was he over-balanced by a sense of delicacy to fall in silence? However, Prabodh Chandra Sen, ex Vice-Chancellor of Visva Bharati, in his monograph on national anthem said that the Jana Gana Mana was not sung at all in the Delhi Durbar. In its place a Hindi song was sung. My questions are:

1. If the revelation of Sen is true (a) which Hindi song and by whom Jana Gana Mana was replaced? (b) Who had sung the composition? (c) Why was Tagore’s song withdrawn? (d) Where has the Hindi song gone? (e) Why was it hushed up? and (2) what does the imperial record say about it?

Crisis in America’s Black leadership : salute to services of Dalit Voice

My interest in the Black presence in India began as a university student in the early 1970s when I read a book called the Destruction of Black Civilization by the African-American historian, Dr. Chancellor James Williams. In the Introduction Dr. Williams mentions Black people as the first people in India. Years later I began to hear about the Black Untouchables of India. Only later did I hear the name “Dalit.”

In 1986, I began to correspond with Brother V.T. Rajshekar, Editor of the bi-monthly publication Dalit Voice. Through his intervention, in 1987 I began to travel to India. I returned in 1998 and led an African-American tour group to India in 1999. These three trips are arguably the most momentous travel experiences of my life, and Editor Rajshekar was instrumental in all of them.

HYDERABAD CONFERENCE

In 1987, I spoke at the historic First All-India Dalit Writer’s Conference in Hyderabad, India, and visited the cities of Bombay, Hyderabad, Bangalore, and Madras. In 1998, I traveled over even more of India, speaking at Nagpur and Trivandrum. Leading a tour group to India in 1999 caused so much scrutiny that became exceedingly difficult for me to return.

My travels to India have been a wonderful addition to all of my years of research on the subject of the Black presence in India. And yet the complexities of ethnicity and caste, class and gender are so complex that it is difficult for even the best intentioned observer to clearly understand. That has been my experience with India and I am afraid that it may be Brother Rajshekar’s experience with America.

EDITOR’S VISIT TO AMERICA

After decades of tireless struggle in India, in July 2006 Brother Rajshekar, this distinguished, brilliant and dedicated journalist, made his first visit to the US. His passport was impounded for 20 long years. Had I been in the US at the time I would have joined him. Some of his observations from his trip are posted below. Read his email. I think that it might surprise you.

How the once revolutionary Blacks got tamed and enslaved by the Whites?

Holocaust, according to some Christian critics of zionism, has become a huge world industry generating billions and billions of dollars. They say holocaust is a bogus and powerful blackmail racket.

Our Editor on July 11, 2006 visited the world famous “Holocaust Memorial Museum” in Washington DC, occupying a prime place in the capital of the world, close to the White House and surrounded by several Federal apex offices. For want of time he spent only half-hour but collected some books on holocaust. Admission is free.

BLACKS SERVING WHITE MASTERS

It was founded by Elis Wiesel, a Nobel Laureate. Incidentally, the Nobel Foundation itself is a Jewish institution. Its well stocked book shop has hundreds of books, expensive from Indian standards. Only a couple of books he could pick up.

The entire security force for the Memorial, which gets flood of visitors daily from all parts of the world, is manned by well-built Blacks, who have become totally docile, tame, fat and most obedient slaves of the Whites. The Jews controlling the Holocaust Museum are all White. Yet the Black security underdogs are with pleasure serving their White masters.

The Jews encouraged the Blacks to fight the White Christians once but today the Blacks are leaderless, a third of them in jails, divided among themselves and badly let down by their Jewish mentors. This needs a separate study.

HARLEM VISIT

The Blacks, the once most revolutionary group within America fighting the “White racists”, have today become the most loyal slaves. A day’s visit (July 5, 2006) to Harlem, the Black stronghold next to Manhattan, gave us a shocking picture of the pathetic state of the Blacks. The Editor’s famous book, Dalit — The Black Untouchables of India, published by a noted Black publishing house, Clarity Press, Atlanta, introduced the revolutionary US Blacks to India’s Black Untouchables and we had several Black delegations. Brother Runoko Rashidi was DV’s American representative for a long time. But today the Black subscribers of DV from USA have fallen to just two.

How the once revolutionary Blacks are today so silent and loyally serving their White masters? Why they did not join the Muslims in their current fight against the Whites?

This needs a separate study. Our Black Brother in US, Runoko Rashidi, will help us answer this million dollar question.

The Editor is deeply worried over this mellowing of the once burning Black brothers and sisters whose Black Panthers movement inspired and ignited India’s historic Dalit Panthers who too have melted away.

CRISIS IN LEADERSHIP

The following is my reply to Brother Rajshekar:

Thank you for your letter and your observations. I am pleased that you finally made it to the US and I thank you for your many years of hard work and sacrifice on behalf of the Black people around the world, whether they be the Dalits of India or wherever we find ourselves struggling for our inalienable rights as human beings.

You have touched on a crucial and yet sensitive issue, that is the crisis in African-American leadership. And, yes, there is indeed a crisis.

Much of what you say is true. There is a tremendous incarceration rate among African-American men and, increasingly, African-American women.

The last statistics that I received say that one out of every three African American men between the ages of 19 and 29 is in the US criminal justice system. This is a phenomenal statistic.

FLAWED CONCLUSIONS

And then when you count the African American men who are addicted to drugs, who hate themselves, who hate Black people, who love America in spite of all that it has done to us, then we can really see that Black men in the US are virtually an endangered species. It certainly does not paint a positive picture. But when I look at what we have gone through in the US and around the world I would say that our very survival itself is a tribute to our tenacity and resilience and greatness as a people. We should never overlook that.

Now certainly I do not claim to be an expert on anything. I have done no scientific surveys nor conducted exhaustive polls. I am simply responding because of your request and out of intense concern. However, I must say that I believe that your analysis and conclusions are flawed due to your distance and lack of on-the-ground familiarity with our situation here. Your comments remind me in some ways of my own
attitudes and views about India around the time of my first visit there in 1987.

NO JEWISH MENTORS

First, about the Jews. Although certainly there were some Jews who participated on some level in what is called the Civil Rights Movement, this movement was overwhelming African in content and character. And to speak of our “Jewish mentors” is absolutely ridiculous. Perhaps I am misunderstanding you here as we have never had Jewish mentors.

As for fighting White Christians I would say that, in general, Black folks (Africans) in America tend not to make a distinction between White people based on their religion. Certainly there are class distinctions that we can take into consideration but Africans in America and around the world have suffered historically at the hands of White people in general, irrespective of their religious persuasion.

BLACK MUSLIM MOVEMENT

There has always been a Muslim population among African people in America. Indeed, many of the Africans who were captured and enslaved and brought to the Americas were Muslims. Now with the rise of the “Nation of Islam” founded in the 1930s by the Elijah Muhammad and later championed by Malcolm X and Minister Louis Farrakhan the visibility of Muslims in America was greatly increased. But I do not see a large mass movement of African-Americans heading towards Islam. Perhaps the Western media in the aftermath of developments in both America and Europe since Sept. 11 has had a tendency to dramatize such a conversion. I, for one, simply do not see it.

Indeed, many African-Americans seem as alarmed about what the media portrays as the rise in Islamic
fundamentalism as White people do, and in some case even more so. For me, religion is a deeply personal thing and I, for the most part, respect the right of people to worship in the way that best fits them. As our great Ancestor Malcolm X said, “When we come together we put our religion in the closet.”

BLACK EVANGELISTS

Now if you want to talk about the African-American church that is indeed a topic to dwell on. I would say that historically most of our greatest leaders have had a Christian persuasion. Certainly there are exceptions, including those already mentioned. But, going all the way back to slavery days, outstanding Black leaders like Gabriel Prosser and Denmark Vesey, who planned massive insurrections, and Nat Turner, who actually led a small but one of the most significant ones, Black nationalist Bishop Henry McNeil Turner, and even the Marcus Mosiah Garvey (in my opinion the greatest leader we have ever had, perhaps on either side of the Atlantic) had Christian persuasions. And, in a more modern era, Martin Luther King, Jr. epitomized the Christian minister activist.

Alas, those appear to be the days gone by and it would seem that today the African-American minister has become far less active in the liberation struggle and even complacent.

Many would argue, and I tend to agree, that, in general, they have been bought off and paid more and
are mere lackeys to the powers that be. What a shame. You see the big name African-American televangelists on the TV screens with their mega church congregations but what they are doing to advance the cause of Black liberation is anyone’s guess. I personally find them disgusting. They have so much power and influence and yet many of them seem only concerned with material aggrandizement and whether or not Jesus Christ is your personal lord and savior. There seems very few exceptions here that I am aware of.

Although there is clearly a crisis in African-American leadership, and African-American life itself for that matter, there is certainly no decline in consciousness.

Many of us, myself included, are looking at history as a way of inspiring our people. We believe that we suffer from a lack of self-esteem and we are trying to look at some of the great things that we have done in order to lay the basis for development. Added to that is our quest to develop a sense of global Black identity, based on Mother Africa, as a way of maximizing our efforts.

BLACKS OF INDIA

I cannot speak to the issue of African-American subscriptions to Dalit Voice. You would know that
better than anyone. But that does not reflect a lack of consciousness concerning the Black presence in
India, particularly regarding the Dalits.

We are increasingly aware of the Black presence in India and many of us realize that the Dalits are the world’s largest oppressed minority.

And we realize that the Dalits are our people. I would like to think that both you and I have had something to do with this and I have never ceased to champion the cause of the Dalits: The Black Untouchables of India whether it be in my writings, lectures, my radio and television interviews.

RACIST HINDUS

But this is countered by the racist white Hindus that we see every day in the US, in Canada, in England and France, in Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Southern Africa, in Trinidad, Guyana, Surinam and Fiji. So there is a constant need for education.

I think that the lack of activism in America is not confined to Black people. One might ask what happened to the student movement that was so prominent in the 1970s? There is a lack of political activism in America, I think, in general. Critical thinking is discouraged and individualism, consumerism and materialism are on the rise. Unfortunately, that is life in America right now.

LOUIS FARRAKHAN

Finally, for now, what about African-American leadership? I agree, we are surely lacking. Certainly you cannot point to people like Dr. Rice, Colin Powell or Clarence Thomas. We can rule them out. And then you have what some might call the old guard leadership led by the most prominent example, Jesse Jackson. But Reverend Jackson does not have nearly the clout and stature that he once had.Many would consider Minister Louis Farrakhan a great leader and I tend to agree. But his health has suffered of late and that has left an even greater void. I have already expressed to you my general contempt for Christian ministers, although certainly there are some notable exceptions.

I have a lot of respect for Dr. Leonard Jeffries but most would probably see him more as a scholar than a ”leader.” The one person that I think that I have the most respect for in regard to leadership is Attorney Alton Maddox, based in New York.I am not sure if you met brother Alton when you were in New York. If you had I am sure that you would remember. He has done pro bono work on a number of cases where Blacks have been abused and has lost his ability to practice law as a result of it. He is consistently forthright and outspoken and this has cost him a great deal.

GLOBAL LINKUP

What I think that is we are in a kind of lull, but a temporary one. I think that we are at a pivotal point in history and as the movement progresses a new leadership will emerge and that the masses of our people will bring forth the kind of leadership that we so desperately need.

So I am very confident. Sure, I get frustrated and even a little depressed sometimes but I remain supremely confident and I think that the future is ours. So let us continue to work to link our common struggles and unite with the Black liberation struggle that is global in approach, for in spite of what it appears, as one of the brothers that I mentioned likes to say, “We are walking on a victorious path.”

I hope that these few comments are of some value to you and your readers. Again, thank you for the tremendous energy that you have expended on the cause of our people in India and around the world. I salute you. (runoko@yahoo.com)

Dalit Christian dilemma

Dalit Christians account for over 70% of India’s total Christian population of 25 million. That they account for nearly 19 million people. Consequently, they account for 9.5% of the total Dalit population of 200 million in India. The sheer numerical size of the Dalit Christian population suggests that the issue of Dalit Christians cannot be ignored by the govt. as well as the church. Yet the Dalit Christians are in a dilemma.

1. Dilemma of conversion: Dalit Christians have been converts from the Untouchable castes, a peculiar feature of Indian society. These castes include the Pulayans (Kerala), Pariahs (TN), Tigalas (Karnataka), Malas and Madigas (AP), Chamars (MP, UP and Bihar), Churhas (Punjab), Vankars (Gujarat) and Mahars (Maharashtra) (Lobo, 2001:242).

The Dalits used conversion as a means for outward and upward mobility to escape from the bondage the caste system inflicted on them. However, since the caste system is deeply rooted in the Indian psyche reflected in the socio-economic and political structures in India, the Dalit Christians face all the disabilities, atrocities and social exclusion experienced by any other Dalit in India.

Studies have shown that the situation of Dalit Christians was either the same as or slightly worse than that of other Dalits. Rural Christian Dalits live in the same kinds of villages and are dependent upon the same kinds of landowners, suffer the same kind of disabilities and atrocities are subject to the same social and economic pressures, and face equally limited opportunities for occupational mobility as do other rural Dalits (Webster, 1994: 177-178).

Dalit Christians, who have migrated to urban areas, may have achieved some cultural change but not upward mobility. They have achieved spatial mobility, viz, from rural they have gone to urban areas. But despite change of physical location, they continue to remain in the lower segment of the urban economy (Lobo, 2001, 245-246). Studies confirm that Dalit Christians suffer from four types of discriminations:

(a) from the state, (b) from the church (lay as well as clergy), (c) from the upper castes and (d) from the lower castes.

2. Dilemma of exclusion from govt: The constitution has banned untouchability and provisions were made for affirmative action in favour of Dalits. This awakened the hopes of millions of Dalits for empowerment and emancipation. However, the communal bias of the upper castes became evident in the Presidential Order of 1950 which denied reservations to about 30% Dalits who got converted to Sikhism, Budhism, Christianity and Islam. Agitations by Sikhs and Budhists forced the govt. to amend the Order to include Sikhs in 1956 and Budhists in 1990.

But Dalit Christians remained excluded despite assurances of successive govts. to include them for the last 16 years. Dalit Christians on account of their not being recognized as Scheduled Castes are unable to avail all the welfare measures of the govt. for SCs. Consequently, Dalit Christians have remained socially marginalized, economically backward and politically powerless.

The irony is that in spite of being a Dalit and treated as a Dalit by the society, a Dalit Christian is not recognized as a Dalit by the constitution of India and the Govt. of India.

The Dalit Christians thus feel orphaned and disowned by its own country and its own govt. A Dalit Christian faces the paradox of being in free India, which does not permit him/her the freedom to practice a religion of his/her own choice. A Dalit Christian faces a dilemma of being in a secular India, which blatantly discriminates between Dalits practising deferent religions.

3. Social exclusion within the church: Christianity does not recognize the caste system. But it preaches equality as all are considered of one loving god. In spite of such teaching of equality of all, Dalit Christians experience that they are discriminated against by their own fellow upper caste Christians. According to a report from Tamil Nadu:

“... they are segregated inside the church during the liturgy. They cannot serve at mass or read the readings during mass or be part of the church choir. Their dead cannot be buried in common cemeteries. In many villages there is no funeral mass for them because they are not allowed to bring their dead to the church. During the washing of the feet on Maundy Thursday, only upper caste Christians can sit and have their feet washed by the priest. They have no participation in the decision-making process in the parish or pastoral committees. Church properties like lands and groves are taken on lease by upper caste Christians. They are not allowed to cycle or walk with their dhotis worn hanging upto the heels even in Christian villages. The decorated car during the parish festival is not permitted to pass through streets inhabited with SC Christians. Candidates for vocation camps in schools are seldom selected from among SC Christians. They are served in separate (aluminium) tumblers in tea shops in their own Christian villages”. (Thangaraj, 1990:39).

Such situations have often resulted in conflicts between the Dalit and upper caste Christians.

Dalit Christians have to reconcile themselves to the paradox of accepting a faith which preaches equality but whose adherents do not practice it in reality.

4. Ignored by the church leaders: The Dalit Christians hoped that the church leaders, including the clergy and the religious men and women who exert considerable clout because of their prestigious educational institutions, would come to their aid and empower them. However, as P.A. Augustine says in his book, The Caste Factor:

“The clergy and religious men and women are no less tainted by it... Many clergymen are somewhat averse to taking meals in the homes of Christians of Scheduled Caste origin... by an exercise of ingenuity avoiding the occasions of invitations for meals... A number of clergy have retained their caste surnames... Support and sympathy run on caste lines (Thangaraj, 1990: 25).

The church leaders have done something for Dalit Christians on the educational front but little on the economic front. Some impact on Dalit Christians is seen in personal ethics, ritual behaviour, manners, etiquette, dressing and decorum. In one word cultural change. The church hierarchy has certainly given them a different cultural identity but done little in the way of their economic advancement. They also run schools, but put its resources at the disposal of the upper castes, ignoring Dalit Christians (Lobo 2001: 250-254). Consequently, Dalit Christians have had an historical advantage in education and literacy, an advantage which the more recent studies indicate they may be losing and which they have not always been able to translate into occupational mobility or higher wages. There are signs that without the advantages compensatory discrimination provides, Dalit Christians are finding it increasingly difficult to compete for scarce economic resources just to survive, let alone get ahead (Thangaraj, 1990: 177-178).

Dalit Christians did not have an outstanding leader of its own and therefore they had to accept the Indian Christian elite and the church leaders as their spokespersons. However, they soon realized that though the church leaders have from time to time raised a voice of appeal and condemned this denial of rights to Christian Dalits, these appeals have not been pressed with enough vigour and constancy to produce tangible results.

The cries for justice by the Dalit Christians had been largely ignored by the church hierarchy for nearly four decades.

5. Exclusion by upper castes despite conversion: Conversion has been a means of protest by Dalits against the discrimination they faced as Hindus. However, even after converting to Christianity, the upper castes continued to humiliate them and treat them as Untouchables. There have been several instances of atrocities on Dalit Christians by upper castes. Besides, the non-Christian upper castes (Hindus) are against extending reservation benefit to Dalit Christians due to their paranoia that such a move will result in largescale conversion of Dalits to Christianity, which is the most organized religious group.

6. Conflict with non-Christian Dalits: There are also fears that non-Christian Dalits may not show much enthusiasm and support to the demand of Christian Dalits for reservations probably because their share of the cake may be minimized (Lobo, 2001,:249) or because they have been converted to Christianity. However, many Dalit groups as well as political partes have expressed their support for the cause of the Dalit Christians.

In the context of this scenario, there is a serious and urgent need to ensure that justice is done for Dalit Christians, by recognizing them as SCs and giving them all the rights and privileges, including reservations, welfare measures and legal protection, normally granted to all other Scheduled Castes. The following are some of the measures that need urgent consideration:

1. Constitutional measures: A constitutional amendment should be made to rectify the injustice done by including Dalit Christians also in para 3 of Article 341 (1). Such a measure will give Dalit Christians the right to seek civil protection and safeguards provided to all Dalits under the Protection of Civil Rights Act 1976, the Untouchability (Offences) Act 1955, and the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act 1989. Such a Constitutional measure will also make Dalit Christians eligible for benefitting from the special provisions for the advancement of Scheduled Castes mentioned in Articles 15, 16, 17, 46, 330, 332, 335, 338 and 340.

(2) Welfare measures: (a) No Dalit Christian should be denied admission into Christian minority institutions. The fees of Dalit children must be subsidized so that schooling is affordable for Dalit Christians. There should also be scholarships given to Dalit Christian students. Besides, special hostels and remedial classes for Dalit students will help them come up to the level of other students in educational institutions. Vocational training in job-oriented courses in Community Colleges, technical training institutes, polytechnic institutes, etc. should be provided for Dalit students who are unable to cope up with regular academic studies.

(b) A substantial percentage of jobs in Christian minority institutions in states where there is a sizeable Dalit Christian population must be allotted to Dalit Christians who have the necessary qualifications.

(c) Sufficient attention must be given for the development of Dalit culture like song, dance, theatre, art, crafts etc.

(d) Awareness programmes especially in rural areas to educate the people to stop discrimination and atrocities against all Dalits must be undertaken by the government as well as church authorities.

Due to long neglect of Dalit Christians, the govt. as well as the church authorities of all Christian denominations must ensure that their human rights are not violated and that they are provided with the constitutional, legal and administrative framework to guarantee their human dignity and their socio-economic, political and cultural development through educational, employment and other welfare measures.

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Church is the culprit — not govt.

Brother Denzil may be a new comer to this field. So he does not know the pioneering work done by DV to liberate the Dalit Christians. After good deal of thought we have come to the conclusion that there is no point in blaming the govt. which in India has to be a Hindu Govt. Whichever party comes to power, the ruling Brahminical upper castes continue to rule India. And this class will be always against Dalits and more so, the Dalit Christians. The main culprit here is the country’s powerful church and its upper caste leadership. Specially the Roman Catholic church. This church leadership is united with its jati cousins in the ruling class to keep the Dalit Christians out.

The foreign funds, which the Brahminical rulers love, come from the Christian West of which our rulers are slaves. The church could have asked the West to stop the flow of funds to these India for discriminating against Dalit Christians and also the upper caste violence against church itself. Did the church do it?

Did the church leadership take up the question of sanctified racism practiced by the Brahminical apartheid rulers? When the church itself, specially the more powerful Catholic church, is so rabidly pro-Brahmin what right it has to talk of the discrimination outside the church? — EDITOR.

INDIA SHINING

Country of illiterates

New Delhi: Forty per cent of children in the 6-14 age group remained out of school even after four years of the Sarva Siksha Abhiyan (SSA) and despite a whopping expenditure of Rs. 11,133.57 crore. A performance audit of the SSA by the Comptrollr and Auditor-General of the India for the year ending March 2005 has concluded that the programme could “achieve only partially the target set”. The scheme was launched to enrol all out-of-school children in schools and start education guarantee centres, alternate schools and back-to-school camps by 2003. However, it was extended to March 2005. Still, 40% (1.36 crore) children remained out of school.

—(Hindu, Aug.20, 2006).

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Health neglected in India

Bangalore: Jeffery D. Sachs, Director of the Earth Institute and Professor of Health Policy and Management at Columbia University, said the Indian Govt. investment in health sector was just 1 per cent in the country. India is condemned to be a leader” on the twin issues of extreme poverty and environment degradation. These are its two big problems, noted economist Jeffrey D Sachs, adviser to the UN Secretary-General and director of Earth Institute, Columbia University. He said: extreme poverty can’ be solved with economic growth due to little trickle down. It will require a role for public sector taking along with it the private sector.

—(Deccan Herald, Aug.5, 2006).

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Science in India deteriorating

New Delhi: Prime Ministe’s chief scientific advisor Dr. C.N.R. Rao says the health of Indian science is deteriorating while China is making rapid strides.Three decades ago, India used to contribute almost 10% global knowledge. But the share has come down to only 2.7% in 2006. Govt. spending on higher education has gone down to 1.3% of GDP in 2005-06 from 1.58% in 1990-91. While India spnds 0.78% of its GDP on R&D, China spends almost double the amount.

—(Deccan Herald, Nov.19, 2006)

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Farmers in distress

The Maharashtra Govt.’s findings now show us that over 75% of all farm households in Vidarbha are in distress. The data also show that farm suicides were 25 times higher this year than in 2001. But conscius jugglery works to play down the numbers.

— (Hindu, Nov.22, 2006)