Uttarakhand village boycotts Dalit families over drummer's no show
Gopeshwar (U'khand) (PTI): Dalit families of a remote village in Chamoli district were boycotted after a person from the community failed to turn up to play the drum at a temple due to illness.
The boycott was announced on Sunday by the local panchayat of Subhai village, located in the Niti Valley, near the India-China border.
There are about half a dozen scheduled caste families in the village which have been playing drums for generations at social, cultural, and religious festivals in the village.
However, when one Pushkar Lal could not turn up to play the drum at a religious event due to sickness, the local panchayat ordered the entire community's social boycott.
A member of the panchayat was caught in a video allegedly announcing the boycott and threatening the villagers with similar consequences if they did not follow the order.
According to the panchayat's order, the SC families were barred from using the forest and water resources in the village, buying essentials from shops, commuting in vehicles, and visiting temples.
The victim's families lodged a complaint at Joshimath Police Station, accusing two men, Ramkrishna Khandwal and Yashvir Singh, of being the architect of the order.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
AIITA welcomes Karnataka’s ban on obscene songs in school events
Bhatkal: The Karnataka unit of the All India Ideal Teachers Association (AIITA) has welcomed the Karnataka government’s decision to strictly ban school children from dancing to obscene songs during educational and cultural programmes in government, aided, and private schools across the state.
AIITA Karnataka State President M. R. Manvi congratulated the government for taking what he termed an important step to preserve the sanctity of education.
“Such decisions to safeguard the dignity of school children and uphold the values of education are the need of the hour. This rule should not be limited to government schools alone but must be strictly implemented in all private educational institutions as well,” he said.
He further urged the government to address other concerns within school programmes.
“The government should not only prohibit obscene dances in the name of school anniversaries, but also ensure that plays and dialogues that incite religious hatred are avoided. Schools should be centres of harmony, not platforms for spreading hatred,” he added.
According to a recent circular issued by the Department of School Education and Literacy, obscene dances are adversely affecting the mental health and moral values of students.
In this regard, schools have been advised to use songs that promote nationalism, positive thinking, the greatness of Kannada culture, and value-based traditions instead of inappropriate content during programmes.
The circular also emphasises that students should be dressed in decent attire.
AIITA also backed the department’s warning that disciplinary action would be taken against head teachers if such guidelines are violated. The association has further demanded that district Deputy Directors of Public Instruction strictly monitor the implementation of these rules.
