Chapter
22
Safeguarding
the Marginalized
Successful
Governments have been promising to do away with past social and economic
Injustices and to eradicate inequality and discrimination. They aim to give primary education to all the
citizens of India, eradicate poverty and ensure health schemes for all. But even after more than 20 years, an
overwhelming majority of people in India are still backward - socially,
economically, educationally and politically.
These victims of Do You Know?
backwardness comprise the present Scheduled Castes (SCS), Scheduled
Tribes (STs) and Other Even though, SC / ST / OBCs are generally referred to as
Backward Classes, the nature Backward Classes (OBCs). Many minority and magnitude of their
backwardness is not groups also suffer from backwardness. These the same are the marginalized groups in
India. Marginalisation means the social
process of discriminating and isolating an indvidual or a group to a lower or
an outer edge and treating them as 'inferiors'.
In most cases, the deprivation leads to impoverishment and unemployment. ses)) beroende 04 It is unfortunate that in
spite of ban by the Indian Constitution, discrimination on the basis of sex,
religion, race, class or place of birth continues in one way or the other. Under the circumstances, it is the duty of
the state to take steps in order to provide additional benefits to those
classes which have lagged behind historically in terms of education, economy
and employment due to exploitation and discrimination. It is necessary to materialize the goals of
social and economic equality, which are enshrined in the Preamble to our
Constitution. Let us now study some of
the Constitutional Provisions which safeguard the marginalized sections of
society. CONSTITUTIONAL PROVISIONS 1. Fundamental
Rights (a) Right to Equality: Our Constitution lays down that there will be
social equality and no person shall be discriminated on the basis of caste,
color, creed, sex, religion or language.
The State can make special provisions like Protective Discrimination. It also ensures equality of opportunity in
matters of public employment and entrusts the state to make provision for the
reservation of appointments or posts for backward classes. The practice of untouchability has been
abolished under the Right to Equality
Protective
Discrimination means that the state can make special provisions to protect the
interest of the socially and economically backward classes. The government can implement special schemes
and measures so that they can get opportunity to occupy better socio - economic
positions, at par with the individuals of other castes and forge new social
relations with others, irrespective of caste consideration, untouchability is
an inhuman product of the caste
system. It is an anti-social practice of
touching a person of a certain caste.
But in reality, it is a form of social isolation of certain castes /
communities. Dalits face certain
prohibitions from the dominant castes.
They are prohibited from eating with the dominant caste members,
marrying out of their own caste, taking water from the wells controlled by
higher castes or entering into their villages, etc. (b) Right against Exploitation: The
Constitution provides for abolition of trafficking in human beings, begar or
'forced labor', and ban on the employment of children below the age of 14 years
in dangerous jobs like mines and factories.
The Fundamental Rights guarantee that SC / ST / OBCs can live with
dignity and be treated as equals. Many
Dalits have filed appeals under the Fundamental Rights and drawn the attention
of the government to provide social, political and economic justice to them, as
provided under the Constitution. (c)
Special Provisions for Minorities: The Fundamental Rights like the Right to
Freedom of Religion and Cultural and Educational Rights have special provisions
for the minorities to protect their distinct culture and safeguard it from the
influence of the majority. Do you
know? The Fundamenal Duties (Article
51A) of the Indian Constitution safeguard the interests of the Minorities. It lays down that it is the duty of all citizens
to promote harmony and the spirit of common brotherhood amongst all the people
of India, transcending religious, linguistic and regional or sectional
diversities. It is the duty of all
Indians to value and preserve the rich heritage of our composite culture. 2. The Directive Principles of State Policy
The Directive Principles of State Policy are not enforceable by law but they do
lay down important fundamentals in the governance of the country. They direct the states to apply these
principles while making laws to secure a social order for the promotion of the
welfare of the people. They aim to
minimize the inequalities in income and eliminate inequalities of status. Along with providing facilities and
opportunities, the Directive Principles ensure that the material resources of
the country are utilized for the common good.
255
PROTECTING
THE RIGHTS OF MARGINALSIED RESERVATION - an Unending Issue or an Equal
Opportunity Issue? Initially,
reservation was provided for SC / STs only.
Later on, OBCs were also included and now the other minorities are
demanding reservations as well. In such
a situation, the seats left for the majority would not be in proportion to
their population. There has been a lot
of discussion for and against reservation.
But discrimination and suffering, still continues in many parts of the
country let us take a look at some of the steps taken by the Indian
Government. The Scheduled Castes and the
Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities Act, 1989) This Act prevents offences
of atrocities against the members of SCs / STs.
It provides for relief and rehabilitation to the victims. Special Courts for the trial of the following
offences have been set - up for the trial of the offenders and to punish them
if proved guilty. • Forcing a member of SC / ST to
drink or eat any inedible or obnoxious substance. •
Insulting or annoying any member of a SC / ST.
Wrongfully dispossessing a member of a SC / ST from his / her land. Compelling to do 'begar or bonded labor. •
Forcing anyone not to vote or to vote for a particular candidate. Use of force on any woman belonging to a SC /
ST. Causing destruction of a building
which is ordinarily used as a place of worship or human dwelling The Government
of India has made all efforts to safeguard the dignity of all sections of
society. The Employment of Manual
Scavengers and Construction of Dry Latrines (Prohibition) Act in 1993 was an
important step in this direction. This
law prohibits the employment of manual scavengers as well as the construction
of dry latrines. Safai karamcharis filed
a PIL (Public Interest Litigation) in 2003 to get the manual scavenging banned
from railways also, as it violated their Fundamental Right against exploitation
and discrimination. Do you know? A manual scavenger is a person who removes
human waste or excreta using brooms. tin
plates and baskets from dry latrines and carry it on the head to the disposal
grounds some distance away. This low -
paid job is mainly done by Dalit women who are exposed to sub - human
conditions of work and face serious health hazards like infection of eyes,
skin, respiratory and gastrointestinal systems, etc. Unfortunately, the system still prevails in
many parts of the country, 256
Measures
Taken by the Government for Rehabilitation of Manual Scavengers Self -
Employment Scheme for Rehabilitation of Manual Scavengers (SRMS) This scheme
was introduced in January 2007 with the objective to rehabilitate the remaining
manual scavengers and their dependent alternative occupations. After the enactment of 'Prohibition of
Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Act 2013, SRMS was
revised. Swachh Bharat Abhiyan was
launched on October 2, 2014 to have a clean India by October 2, 2019. This
national mission targets to achieve the following: 92 1. To construct
toilets. (India 2. To eradicate manual
scavenging. 3. To change people's attitudes to sanitation and create awareness.
The goal of Swachh Bharat Mission includes the elimination of open defecation,
conversion of insanitary toilets to flush toilets, eradicating manual
scavenging and municipal solid waste management
(MSWM). The national campaign led by the Government of India aims to
make the streets do you know? And infrastructure clean by October 2, 2019 on Mahatma
Gandhi's 150th birth anniversary. Dib Alwar is the first city in our country
that has Swachh Bharat Mission can only
be made been declared free from manual scavenging successful if manual
scavenging in the states is completely eliminated and replaced with modern
toilets. The progressive rehabilitation of those dependent on scavenging has to
be planned simultaneously through skill development programmes so that they get
suitably rehabilitated Moreover, Swachh Bharat
Mission will succeed only when each and every Indian be comes responsible about creating, managing
waste and not littering public places.
Pogrammes Launched by the Government for the Upliftment of the Weaker Sections
Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY) - It is primarily a welfare housing scheme
launched by the Central Government. The
houses would be distributed to the needy sections of society and a subsidy on
loan would be provided by the Central Government, thereby making affordable
housing for the economically weaker sections of the country. Special preference would be given to senior
citizens, women and SC / STs in allotment of these houses. Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) Under
the PMJDY, any individual above the age of 10 years and does not have a bank
account can open a bank account without depositing any money. The scheme targeted the people living below
Poverty Line (BPL) but is beneficial to everyone, who does not have a bank
account. Stand - Up India Scheme - The
scheme aims to promote entrepreneurship among SC / STS and women. It provides composite loan for setting - up
any new enterprise between Rupees 10 lakh and up to One Crore. 257
•
Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana (PMGKY) - Under this Income Declaration
Scheme, the government would mobilize the money for utilizing and meeting the
welfare needs of the poor population Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana (SSY) - it lays
special emphasis on financial empowerment of the girl child.
Through this scheme, the parents of any girl child below 10 years can
open a saving account for their daughter and operate it till she attains an age
of 21 years. After that time they can
withdraw the money and use it for her marriage or higher education. The scheme offers a higher rate of return
even much higher than PPF (Public Provident Fund). •
Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojna (PMSBY) -This scheme provides social
security to the people. A large number
of population in India live in rural areas and these people do not have access
to insurance schemes. PMSBY is an
initiative to cater to such sections of our population so that they can enjoy
the insurance benefits at minimum contribution PEOPLES 'ASPIRATIONS AND OUR
NATIONAL GOALS India has captured the imagination of the world. There is a definite possibility that India
can become a prosperous nation if we get rid of poverty, ignorance and
disease. Our growth processes will be
more inclusive to ensure that the marginalized and the weaker sections benefit
from economic growth. They should ensure
the improvement of social infrastructure, particularly, in ields of health and
education. The important challenges we
face today are the unevenness of our growth processes and the nequalities that
remain in our social institutions. We
must ensure that the interests of Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, Backward
Classes, Minorities, women and children are protected and ustice is provided to
them. The continuing crimes against
weaker sections, women and children are matter of disgrace in a civilized
society that has emerged as a leader in science and technology, keywords below
Poverty Line (BPL): It is an economic benchmark used by the government of India
to identify economically disadvantaged
individuals who need government assistance and aid. enshrined: preserved in a form that ensures
it will be protected and respected.
manual scavenging: removal of human excreta from toilets manually PPR
Public Provident Fund scheme is a popular long - term investment option backed
by government of India. 258
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