(Safai Karmachari Andolan, Nov 1, 2010)
Former manual scavengers to storm Delhi
demand total eradication of manual scavenging and rehabilitation package`Government should apologise to us´ New Delhi, 1 November 2010
Around 1,000 safai karamcharis from 20 states, who were until recently
engaged in the
outlawed practice of manual scavenging, assembled in Delhi today and
resolved to
return to Delhi on 1 January 2011 if their demands were not met.
"We are giving the government time to announce a special package for the
rehabilitation of manual scavengers," said Bezwada Wilson, national
convenor of the
Safai Karamchari Andolan, at the meeting held in Mavalankar Hall at the
Constitution
Club. At the programme, liberated manual scavengers from various parts of the country shared their experiences. Narayanamma from Karnataka, who was the first to quit the practice, reported how the large dry latrine she used to collect 16 buckets of night soil from, every day, was now a school. Anita from Uttar Pradesh spoke how she is trying to make sure her children do not have the same fate as hers. "They would give us rotis as though we were dogs," she said, "We could get water only from the river." Saroj from Ambala in Haryana recalled how she fell from a ladder when and the collected excreta fell over her. The house owners refused to help her get up, only pushing her with a stick, due to untouchability. Each speaker demanded an apology from the government. Supporting their demands were Harsh Mander and Aruna Roy, members of the National Advisory Council, the Communist Party of India´s D Raja, former secretary to the government of India PS Krishnan and Planning Commission member Bhalchandra Mungekar, amongst others. The event was a culmination of a month-long bus yatra from five different places in the country. They came from Srinagar in Kashmir (Jai Bheem Marg), Kanyakumari in Tamil Nadu (Periyar Marg), Dibrugarh in Assam (Birsa Munda Marg), Khurda in Orissa (Jhalkari Bai Marg) and Dehradun in Uttaranchal (Savitri Bai Marg). Along the way, the bus went to Dalit bastis in 172 districts in 20 states to persuade those still engaged in the practice of manual scavenging to quit.
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