Monday, June 20, 2011

Dalits in Disasters-the Forsaken ones


Though disasters are not caste prejudiced, but the bitter fact is that the ethnic minorities in the country, the Dalits and Tribes, with their women, children, disabled and aged turn out to be most vulnerable of the vulnerable. Here are some findings of the monitoring studies that were undertaken by National Dalit Watch along with its state allies in Bihar, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Delhi, to assess the inclusion of the Dalits and other marginalised sections in disaster risk reduction and disaster relief and rehabilitation measures. These findings speak volumes of the existing menace in our country which opposed and supported the annihilation of aparthied in S. Africa.

Waters of Despair



A documentary on Bihar Flood, 2008, by Praxis India

Friday, June 10, 2011

Training of Task Force Members on Vulnerability Mapping (VM)- Inclusion Monitoring(IM) in Karnataka & Assam


These trainings were held in Karnataka and Assam for the identified villager, comprising Dlit youth, women and men. While NDW aims to capacitate task forces, a cadre of 25-30 volunteers in the states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Assam, initially, where it is currently operating, it also expects other humanitarian agencies working on DRR to work on such a model and replicate the same in their field of operation. For NDW, the task force would comprise community (Dalit) leadership, NGO personnel and social activists. This task force is equipped to intervene through vulnerability mapping in normal times as well as emergencies in emergencies – to undertake monitoring of exclusion of Dalits, with adequate training in using the tools and following up with the governments on the information so generated. The objectives of the workshop were (i) to develop a clear conceptual and practical understanding of exclusion of Dalit communities in disasters and learn methods to monitor and record such practices of exclusion; and (ii) to equip the state / organizational representatives to train their front line staff in inclusion monitoring during and after disasters.