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The Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh, has said that
the Government is committed to redress imbalances and eradicate inequities
in our society, so that everyone can have an equal share in the growth of
the country. Speaking after inaugurating Dalit-Minority International Conference
here today, the Prime Minister said that there is a need to “to come up with
universally acceptable policies that are not viewed as a zero‑sum game,
but as win-win solutions through which everyone is better off and no one is
worse off”. Dr. Singh said that while absolute poverty may be reduced by growth,
inequality can get sharpened, which can be socially and politically destabilizing.
Hence, “we have to take steps that reduce social and economic inequalities,
without hurting the process of growth and without reducing the incentives
for individual enterprise and creativity.”
Referring to the findings of Sachar
Committee, the Prime Minister said
that some minorities especially the Muslim Community in certain parts of our
country, have not had an equal share of the fruits of development. “It is
incumbent upon any democratically elected government to redress such imbalances
and eradicate such inequities. I assure you, our Government is indeed committed
to doing this”, Dr. Singh said.
The Prime Minister assured that the
problems of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes and Minorities will get
the attention they deserve and practical ways of redressing the inequalities
will be found.
Former Prime Ministers Shri V.P. Singh,
Shri Inder Kumar Gujral, Union Cabinet Minister for Chemicals & Fertilizers
and Steel Shri Ram Vilas Paswan, Deputy
Chairman Rajya Sabha, Shri A. Rahman Khan were among those present.
Following is the text of the Prime
Minister’s speech on the occasion:
“I
am delighted to be here to speak at this very important conference. I compliment
my colleague, Ram Vilasji, for taking the initiative to organize an international
conference focusing on the theme “power to the powerless”. I am very happy
that delegates from all parts of the world have come here . I extend to all
of them my greetings and best wishes.
In studying the problems captured by this theme, it is necessary to
make a distinction between the problems faced by dalits in India and
the problems faced by “minorities” in all societies. Dalits have faced
a unique discrimination in our society that is fundamentally different from
the problems of minority groups in general.
The only parallel to the practice of “untouchability” was Apartheid
in South Africa. Untouchability is not just social discrimination. It
is a blot on humanity. That is precisely why the Father of our Nation,
Mahatma Gandhi declared, “My fight against untouchability is a fight against
the impure in humanity.”
It is for this reason
that social reformers, leaders of our freedom movement and the makers of our
Constitution adopted a special approach to deal with the discrimination against
dalits and .
They banished the practice of untouchability and empowered dalits in various
ways. The Indian Constitution, written by such great patriots as Dr. Babasaheb
Ambedkar, is a unique affirmation of fundamental human rights. It guaranteed
social empowerment through Constitutional means. India’s unique experiment
of social and economic revolution through peaceful and democratic means holds,
I believe, lessons for all societies in transition, for all nations divided
by social and economic disparities and discrimination.
I recognize, even after 60 years of Constitutional and legal protection
and state support, there is still social discrimination against dalits
in many parts of our country. The political, social, cultural and intellectual
battle against such discrimination must continue. I assure you, our Government
is deeply and sincerely committed to the equality of all sections of our society
and will take all necessary steps to help in the social, educational and economic
empowerment of dalits. This is our solemn commitment.
In fact, our Government has taken several steps
in the past two years to empower Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes both
through affirmative action and reinforcing our Constitutional commitment to
reservations. Above all, we have paid special attention to empowerment through
education because, as the life of Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar tells us so
eloquently, this is the most powerful means of overthrowing the one uncivilized
aspect of our ancient civilization.
Your conference is also focusing on the status of minorities. The principle
that explicit measures should be taken to protect the interests of minorities
is an idea embedded in our political discourse and in our Constitutional provisions.
In an international
conference like this it is relevant to recognize that a minority in one country
or region could be a majority elsewhere. Indeed, every social and religious
group can claim to be a minority somewhere or the other. Hence, the social,
political and economic principles that modern, democratic societies adopt
in dealing with the specific problems of minorities should ideally be based
on certain universal principles.
What are these universal
principles, in my view these beliefs are defined by the idea of equality before
law, the universal application of the rule of law, commitment to basic fundamental
human rights, and the right of minority groups to protect, preserve and promote
the values cherished by such groups.
Some minorities in
India have done better than others. For example, in India, minority communities
like the Jains and the Sikhs have fared relatively well from the process of
social and economic development. However, other minorities, especially the
Muslim community in certain parts of our country, have not had an equal share
of the fruits of development. This has most recently been established by data
provided in the Report of the High Level Committee on the Social, Economic
and Educational Status of the Muslim Community of India, popularly known
as Sachar Committee. It is incumbent
upon any democratically elected government to redress such imbalances and
eradicate such inequities. I assure you, our Government is indeed committed
to doing this.
It is incumbent upon us to ensure that
the growth process is not only equitable but is seen to be so. Even as absolute
poverty may be reduced by growth, inequalities can get sharpened. This can
be politically and socially extremely destabilizing. Hence, we have to take
steps that reduce social and economic inequalities, without hurting the process
of growth and without reducing the incentives for individual enterprise and
creativity.
Administrative measures taken by Government to develop the capabilities
of weaker groups are not the end-all and be-all of positive action against
social discrimination and disparities. We need a change in mindsets. This
requires a wider, broad-based social, political and cultural movement against
all forms of discrimination and injustice prevalent in our society. The battle
for social equality has to be waged and won in the minds of our people.
We
have to recognize that even in a free society there are glass windows and
glass ceilings. The first step in dealing with such problems is to recognize
their existence. The second step is to come up with universally acceptable
policies that are not viewed as a zero‑sum game, but as win-win solutions
through which everyone is better off and no one is worse off.
Shri V.P. Singh has touched upon a
number of issues. I won’t like to go into the details of various valuable
suggestions that he has made. This has been true that the Muslim minorities
in our country has not got an equitable share of the fruits of development.
Therefore, practical ways and means have to be explored to redress this basic
inequity in the functioning of our democracy. I assure you, I will, with the
help of my colleagues in the Cabinet apply myself to this task. There are
problems facing Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, problems arise when it
comes to acquiring land for certain purposes, the problems of the displaced
persons and their livelihood and those who are forced to migrate in search
of their livelihood to cities, the growing homelessness in urban conglomerates,
these are all genuine issues and they, I can assure you, will receive the
attention they deserve.
In conclusion, I
would like to say that a conference like this must pay more attention to finding
solutions to a problem rather than merely harp on the problem. You must also
focus your attention on success stories that guide people and give them a
ray of hope. The life of Babasaheb Ambedkar gives us hope as well as courage.
It gives every dalit hope and courage, it gives every Indian hope that a just
society is not merely a false dream. It should give every modern democratic
society hope.
There are today thousands of young men and
women whose life mirrors that of Babasaheb. My young friend Dr. Narendra Jadhav
of the Reserve Bank of India is one such. I invite you to read his book “Outcaste”.
I was deeply moved when I read. It was a soul stirring account of empowerment
and liberation. Such are the examples of empowerment that must inspire and
give us confidence that problems of social and economic inequalities can be
dealt with and will be dealt with effectively. I hope your conference is able
to impart this positive message to our people. I wish your conference all
success”.
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DS/LV/SKS
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Government committed to redress inequities: PM
