Kolar: SC/ST students in Malur residential school made to clean septic tank
Kolar: In a shocking incident at Morarji Desai Residential School in Yaluvahalli, Malur taluk, students, all belonging to Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe communities, were allegedly forced to clean a septic tank. The incident came to light through a viral video shot by a teacher on a mobile phone.
According to reports, five to six students in Classes 7 to 9 were made to enter and clean the septic tank, with the principal and a teacher present. In the video, the students can be seen sharing their distress, describing the harsh conditions they endure at the school. They allege being subjected to punishment, including kneeling outside the hostel at night, and physical abuse, as captured by CCTV footage.
"We are undergoing a lot of torture here and only wish to escape from here. At nights, we are made to switch the lights off and carry our bags outside the hostel, where we have to kneel down before facing the torture at their hands. Our appeals against such punishment, even if we say we are tired, are ignored." The children can be seen saying.
The school, hosting 250 students from Class 6 to Class 10, with residential staff, has faced severe criticism for the alleged violation of the Abolition of Manual Scavenging Act 1993, which prohibits employing Dalit children for such hazardous tasks.
Nagarathna, District Child Welfare Officer, conducted an immediate visit upon learning of the incident. She submitted a report recommending strict action against the responsible parties to the Joint Director of the Social Welfare Department.
R Srinivas, Joint Director of the Social Welfare Department, confirmed an inspection and instructed the school's principal and teacher not to involve children in such tasks. He has written to higher authorities to take stringent action against the implicated school staff members accused of both the septic tank incident and nighttime torture.
Public outrage has intensified, demanding justice for the students and accountability for the alleged violations.
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Rupee gains 12 paise to 90.66 against US dollar in early trade
Mumbai (PTI): The rupee recovered from a low level and traded with a gain of 12 paise at 90.66 against the US dollar in early deals on Monday, tracking a retreating greenback against major overseas rivals.
However, persistent outflow of foreign funds from domestic equity markets and higher crude oil prices overseas amid a volatile geopolitical situation kept investors cautious, forex analysts said.
At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened at 90.68 and gained further to trade at 90.66 against the greenback, registering a gain of 12 paise from its previous closing level.
The rupee crashed 44 paise to settle near its lowest level at 90.78 against the US dollar on Friday, after losing 17 paise in the preceding two sessions.
Meanwhile, the dollar index, which measures the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading 0.21 per cent lower at 98.99.
Analysts said that the domestic currency found support amid a sell-off in dollar after US President Donald Trump announced imposing tariffs on European countries if they resist his plan to buy Greenland.
Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, was trading 0.17 per cent higher at USD 64.24 per barrel in futures trade.
On the domestic equity market front, the Sensex declined 482.80 points or 0.58 per cent to 83,087.55, while the Nifty fell 129.30 points or 0.50 per cent to 25,565.05.
Foreign institutional investors offloaded equities worth Rs 4,346.13 crore on Friday, according to exchange data.
