Shanty Towns in India

Discussion in 'Links' started by maulanax, Apr 1, 2010.

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  1. maulanax

    maulanax Active Member

    Data collected by Prime Minister?s High Level Committee, headed by Justice (retd) Rajinder Sachar on their social, economic and education:



    In rural areas: 94.9% of Muslims living below poverty line fail to receive free food grain.



    Only 3.2% of Muslims get subsidized loans,

    Only 2.1% of Muslim farmers have tractors, while just 1% own hand pumps.

    54.6% of Muslims in villages and 60% in urban areas have never been to schools. In rural areas, only 0.8% of Muslims are graduates, while in urban areas despite 40% of the Muslims receiving modern education only 3.1% are graduates. Only 1.2% of Muslims are post-graduates in urban areas.



    While West Bengal has 25% Muslim population, only 4.2% are employed in state services. In Assam , with a 40% Muslim population, only 11.2% are in government employment. Kerala has 20% Muslims, but only 10.4% of government employees are Muslim.



    A better picture is projected by data collected in Karnataka, where against Muslim population of 12.2%, 8.5% are employed in government services. While in Gujarat, of the 9.1% Muslim population, 5.4% are in state jobs , in Tamil Nadu, against a 5.6% Muslim population, 3.2% are employed in government.



    Though West Bengal is known as a political bastion of the left bloc, the ones who have always spoken strongly against parties entertaining communal bias, the state has zero% Muslims in state PSUs. While Kerala has 9.5% in state PSUs, Maharashtra has only 1.9%.



    Though the Sachar committee was not able to secure data regarding the presence of Muslims in the armed forces, it is fairly well-known that their percentage here is not more than three.



    Muslims form only 10.6% of the population in Maharashtra , but 32.4% of the prison inmates here are Muslims. In New Delhi , 27.9 % of inmates are Muslims, though they form only 11.7% of the population here. While in Gujarat , Muslims form 25.1% of the ones imprisoned, they form 9.1% of the population. In Karnataka, Muslims form 12.23% of populace and 17.5% of those imprisoned.



    Interestingly, the majority of the Muslim inmates have not been imprisoned for ?terrorism.? This raises the question whether most of them are behind bars only for petty crimes or because of the bias displayed against them by Indian police forces. Of the total inmates serving sentences up to one year, in Maharashtra , Muslims constitute 40.6% of their population. The high percentage of Muslims presence in jails is also said to be an indicator of their being victims of discrimination and suspicion, particularly as their prevails a tendency in India to blame largely Muslim groups for terror attacks taking place here. The report also holds poverty among Muslims as being responsible for turning them towards crime. Poverty and prejudice entertained against them is said to have further contributed to their presence in jails.



    Against the backdrop of dismal facts having surfaced regarding social, economic and educational status of Indian Muslims, the Sachar panel has made some recommendations in their favor.



    Stating that the future of Muslims does not rest in madrasa education, the Sachar panel recommends more English and Urdu medium government schools in Muslim-dominated areas.



    The Sachar panel also recommends allocation of 15% of all government funds to Muslims under all central schemes. It favors greater representation for Muslims in sectors such as health and teaching and also sensitization of government employments towards Muslims? requirements.



    The Sachar panel has made a strong argument for all Indian Muslims, except the creamy layer.



    With the Sachar report having already served as an eye-opener to the harsh reality about the status of Muslims in Indian society, the question is whether in fact this will propel the government to take some constructive steps towards improving their conditions or would its relevance be confined to noise made in media circles and a little bit of political rhetoric.

    This is the status of muslims in India. good luck to them?!
     
  2. Wadood

    Wadood Veteran

    No, maulana. I am on about the OBCs, SCs, STs, and Muslims who make up 90% of the population of the shanty towns. Delhi has 900 shanty towns.

    Dharavi in Bombay is an interesting one.

    I want to analyze the reasons behind the formation of these. And by far the biggest reason that comes up from everywhere is caste and communal discrimination.
     
  3. maulanax

    maulanax Active Member

    Are you on about the slum dogs that live in bombay?
     
  4. Wadood

    Wadood Veteran

    I wanted to post a piece above that I wrote recently regarding this issue, but it did not appear.

    However, recently, I read one of the best books to have come across concerning the terminology of the caste divisions in India and the politics and current affairs. It is 'The OBCs and the Ruling Classes of India', written by a low caste OBC Indian HS Verma, a university professor in India. I found his work genuine, excellent, and learned a lot from it. The work is also recent. He is such a brave man, with no fear.

    He particularly gives attention to the Muslims in India unbiased and full of concern. There was a sub-topic written by an Indian Muslim regarding Muslims of India, which was the only bad section in the entire book. It seemed as if he had some antagonism against his own fellow Indian Muslims. I do not know why HS Verma decided to include it in his book. There are other good researches on the divisions between the Muslims of India, that would explain that the Muslims of India are certainly not a monolith community.
     
  5. Wadood

    Wadood Veteran

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