Harijans In India

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Harijans in India, individuals who are at the bottom of or outside the Hindu caste hey were traditionally sweepers, washers of clothes, leatherworkers, and those whose occupation it was to kill animals. The term is also sometimes applied to the hill tribes of India, who are considered unclean by some because they eat beef. Originally called untouchables or pariahs, they were given the name Harijans by the Indian political and religious leader Mahatma Ghandhi, who worked for many years to improve their lives. Many now refer to themselves as Dalits to indicate their oppressed position outside Hindu society; legally the Indian government groups them as "scheduled castes." Although many Dalits live in the city, they hardly belong to it; they are…show more content…
We may be a democratic republic, but justice, equality, liberty and fraternity-the four basic tenets promised in the Preamble of our Constitution-are clearly not available to all. Dalits continue to be oppressed and discriminated against in villages, in educational institutions, in the job market, and on the political battlefront, leaving them with little respite in any sphere or at any juncture of their lives. DISCUSSION Dalit Students : A life of…show more content…
Mentioned below are some of the widely spread forms of discrimination and humiliation that the dalit students face in the name of caste discrimination in their day to day life and at school, college or universities. • Dalit students in schools are purified by sprinkling cow urine on them. • There are separate pre-nursery schools (anganwadis) for the Dalits and non-Dalit students. • Many Dalit students are forced to commit suicide because of caste discrimination at schools. • Scholarships for Dalits students aren’t issued on time or many times diverted. • Dalits students are forced to clean school toilets • Dalits students are forced to sit at the back benches of the classroom or sometimes even out of the classroom. • Some schools have separate attendance registers for Dalits. • In many schools, Dalit students are not allowed to drink water from the tap. • So-called upper caste students don’t eat food cooked by the Dalit cook. • In many schools, Dalit Students are made to sit separately for lunch. • Because of caste discrimination, many schools forbid Dalit students from participating in school

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