September 04, 2008	Thursday	Ramazan 3, 1429

DELHI: Dalits, the ‘untouchables’ at the bottom of the Hindu caste system, are the last to be rescued and are getting the smallest rations in the aftermath of the floods in north India, claim aid agencies working in the inundated villages.

Even in the moment of greatest need the lowest castes, who traditionally eke out a living on the outer fringes of Indian society, have been subjected to “relief discrimination.” Hundreds of thousands of people are huddling in relief camps after the Kosi River changed course in Bihar and swamped hundreds of square miles.

“We have seen that in districts such as Supaul and Madhepura, boats out rescuing people either take the lowest castes last or do not take them at all,” said Anuradha Maharishi of Save the Children.

“We have also recorded instances where [Dalits] are not getting enough to eat. At the same time we have seen higher castes being rescued and getting supplies. It is unacceptable but a fact out there.”

In one camp, it was reported that a Dalit man had been rescued by boat because he was the village headman but that his family had not been picked up, despite promises that his wife, four children and the rest of the community would come later.

“It’s been six days and since then no boat has come from the village,” Mohan Parwan told the Associated Press.

Another group of Dalits said that rescuers were saving the upper castes and the rich first, leaving their people to suffer without food and clean water.

When India created its constitution in 1950, “untouchability” was made illegal. However, experts say the practice remains a degrading part of everyday life in Indian villages where the complex caste system remains all-pervasive.

Dalits in rural areas are often bullied and assigned menial jobs such as manual scavengers, removing human waste and dead animals.

There are frequent reports of untouchables being barred from temples or being beaten for transgressing the social order.

However, commentators say that what is happening in Bihar is probably better than what went on in the past.

“In the past Dalits would not even have been rescued. They would have been left behind. In fact, the cattle would have been taken and the Dalits left,” said Chandra Bhan Prasad, the only Dalit columnist in the Delhi press.

“Bihar is a really backward place, an almost tribal area in these rural places. So it’s no surprise.”—Dawn/The Guardian News