It is a nicely written article. The private sector should do something to uplift the SC/ST and BC people. The society will have harmony only when there is some level of equivality. The digital divide that has been created by IT industry is going to harm the social fabric further.
I read with much interest Mr. Praful's article.He is a kind of person,for whom anything Indian is bad.He always sees everything with the glasses of jealous against the so called upper caste.
He is talking about reservations.How the reservations in education and industry helped dalits?It is continuing since independance and what purpose it served?Now people like Mr. Praful wants this to extend it to Private sector.Public sectors are already collapsing with the burden of reservations and all govt. installation are on the verge of being collapsed.
Baba Saheb Dr. Ambedkar had recommended reservation only for 10 years.But these people like Mr. Praful, who are inherently anti indians do not want India progress.So they are making such hue and cry.I want to ask a few question from this champion of Dalits:
1.Are all upper caste people getting unlimited chance of growth and dalits do not have this growth oppertunities?
2.Is this not true that the growth oppertunity is more related to possesing money and not birth?
3.Can a upper caste poor man dare to educate his offspring in good schools?
I challenge Mr Praful on ManuSmriti.He should know that it was based on karma and not on birth
and be happy . There is a 70% quota on all the admissions to any colleges.
Where in the world would any institution fill 70% of the future pillars of the country with not-so-good candidates.
You are right about varnasrama dharma, it's now a revenge fest in the reverse direction.
Curiously, it appears that your presence in rediff ismore so much about your "diverse" opinions rather than their actual merits.
And in the US, there is no quota, what is available in the US is "equal oppurtunity" and not "proportional oppurtunity" . To make the cut, you have to prove yourself.
What if the upper castes make up 95% of the population , and if that 5% of lower caste is the creme of the society, will your proportional model still hold good ?
How does it become equality when one person's dream is better than the others' just because of his birth ? and if its tit-for-tat for the past mistakes lets kill each other.
Bidwai's anger has got the better of him. That the OBCs and Dalits need to be uplifeted is undeniable. Yet Bidwai goes to absurd extents to portray their plight as if 57 years of affirmative action has meant nothing.
Barring stray cases of oppression by feudal elements in rural areas no OBC or Dalit faces any insulting or hostile discrimination in modern India. As if in the US today, such discrimination against blacks do not exist despite years of affirmative action.
The private sector must invest in providing education, health services and other avenues for employment (including creating suppliers of components and services fromm members of such communities) so that they can be made economically strong as only economic independence leads to self confidence and full participation in the nation's polity.
Mere ranting against the government and the private sector will be of no avail. Why does Bidwai not talk about the 57 years of "reservation" for SC/ST/OBCs in the public sector and its failure in leading to any major change in the life style of these communities ?
I don't know how can he write an article like this.If reserving seats and jobs would have solved the problem why hasn't this problem been solved after 50yrs of freedon,and why not a particular reservatio be made on the basis of economic basis than caste or color of skin.In all this article by Mr.Bidwai is trash.
In a subtle change in tactics, based upon the fact that the most dedicated leftists now realize that communism is dead, kaput, finito, the hated capitalist USA is now held up as an example for positive change!. Of course, the usual staples of a Marxist-written column continue: Bramhin bashing, quoting from the 1500 year old Manusmruti text,etc. As soomeone who has lived in the US for 40 years, let me correct Bidwai. The equal opportunity effort in the USA succeeded because it was spearheaded by the private sector including premier private Universities in the 1960's, NOT by the ineffectual quotas prescribed by Federal, State or Local Governments. The goal was to use prominent alumni to mentor, finance and motivate minority High School students who showed potential, including a guarantee of a free Harvard, Yale etc. education. It succeeded beyond expectations (the African-American CEO of American Express and tens of thousands of very successful minority men and women are living testimony). Will a Marxist like Bidwai, who loves more and more Government control, ever support anthing like this in India? ?
RE:Bidwai's back
by vijay on Aug 21, 2004 04:36 PM
Dear Arul, u r right when u say that the pvt sector in the US took upon the cudgel of affirmative action and made it into a success story, but their is a stark difference between the mindset of the pvt sector in the states as compared to its feudal-minded counterpart in our country. Can u name even one pvt sector in india which has shown this kind of spirit. We would not have required reservations even for 25 years since, if and only if,it were to be implemented correctly where it was compulsory and by the pvt sector voluntarily with a missionary zeal. Its time we should stop blaming the politicians for all the mess around us and instead focus on what we can do to eliminate these huge economic-social gaps within our society. The pvt sector should implement reservations without compromising on merit, it is not impossible but difficult, but unless we make a begining we cannot overcome the pitfalls. Reservations are condemned on the grounds that the benefits are cornered by the elite amongst the backwards, hence it would not be out of place to suggest that the creamy layer concept should also be implemented vigourously so that the benefits reach the needy and not the greedy.
Would be interesting if Praful Bidwai would preface each article with his personal religious background, he seems to be quoted often on all pakistani websites as if he is a hindu with a name like praful. Bidwai grow up and own up as to who you really are.
Reservations are more often than not counter-productive. They only offer an easy way for people from backward castes and tend to make them not work hard enough to get a job or a seat in higher educational institutions. I have seen lots of supposedly backward caste people who are otherwise quite rich misusing reservations.
Injustice in the form of reservations can never hope to balance historical social injustices. The only way forward is to give the poor help through good quality primary education, educational scholarships and business loans.
"If a Shudra threatens a Brahmin with a stick, he shall remain in hell for a hundred years"
Where did this Bidwai chap get these quotes from, the real Manusmriti or from paki sites like pakistandefenseforum and pakdalits, or mainstream dalit crib sites like dalitstan.org ? Stupid article without any meaning, and in any case the author has zero credibility.
I completely agree with your views. But you have left out the software industry in India which does not follow any guidelines. Discrimination by the upper caste against lower caste , No concept of employment benefits, e.t.c.(e.g. Infosys,WIPRO,e.t.c) Take for example TVS where you will hardly find a Non-Brahmin working. The Indian education system is one of the best which even US does not have. It provides opportunities to the lower caste based on reservation and also thanks to the British Raj.
I really consider Aug 15 as a Independence day for lower caste people against upper caste since only the British considered providing education to all caste by setting up schools and thanks to the great person like Ambedkar who wrote the great constitution which changed the socio-economic situation of lower caste in the last 50 years.
