Karnataka - Bidar   

Untouchability exists in Bidar villages

Bidar: Untouchability continues to exist in 65 per cent of the villages in Bidar district.

In a declaration submitted to the State Government, the district social welfare office has identified nine methods of caste-based discrimination.

According to a report, the population of the Scheduled Castes in the district is 20.34 per cent. There are 588 villages and six towns in the district.

Dalits are not allowed to enter public places such as temples, shops and hotels freely in 193 villages. There are 63 such villages in Bidar taluk, 55 in Bhalki, 58 in Aurad, 11 in Basava Kalyan and six in Humnabad.

There are 97 villages where Dalits are given separate set of plates and glasses in hotels. Of them, 48 are in Bhalki, 22 in Bidar, 12 in Aurad, nine in Basava Kalyan and six in Humnabad.

There are restrictions on Dalits on using public taps and rivers, wells, tanks and ponds in 64 villages.

There are 32 such villages in Bhalki, 11 each in Bidar and Aurad, six in Humnabad and four in Basava Kalyan.

Services of barbers, laundry etc., are not freely available to Dalits in 29 villages. Such practices are followed in 13 villages in Bhalki, seven in Bidar, five in Basava Kalyan and four in Aurad.

Dalits are not allowed to bury their dead in public burial grounds in 14 villages. They include seven villages in Bhalki, five in Bidar, and two in Aurad.

Agriculture Minister Bandeppa Kashempur said that the Government viewed the problem seriously.

“We will take steps to ensure peace and harmony between various communities. We will organise meetings of leaders of various castes and help change the way the deprived classes are treated,” he added.

Social Welfare Minister Balachandra Jarkiholi said that he would seek a detailed report on the issue from the officials and act on it.

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