Bezwada Wilson, Magsaysay awardee, had said, "who wants award from this govt?", when chased for Padma

By A Representative
Bezwada Wilson, national convenor of the Safai Karmachari Andolan (SKA), who has won the Ramon Magsaysay Award for 2016 for “asserting the inalienable right to a life of human dignity” was being “chased” by the Narendra Modi government for the Padma award, one of India's highest awards.
However, Wilson showed “no interest” in the matter.
A well-known scribe, Vidya Subramaniam, says in a Facebook post, “Top official at the social Justice ministry told me they had been chasing him for a Padma award a few months back, and he showed no interest. When they persisted, he told them he is hard pressed for time and couldn't be bothered filling up forms.”
When th scribe crossed checked with Wilson, he told her: "That's true, but who wants an award from this government?"
Others who have been chosen for the Magsaysay award, also called Asian Nobel prize, are South Indian classical musician TM Krishna, Philippine ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales, Indonesian charity organisation Dompet Dhuafa, Laos’ free ambulance service Vientiane Rescue and Japan Overseas Cooperation Volunteers.
In its citation for award, Magsaysay recalls Wilson and SKA's fight against manual scavenging, calling it a “blight on humanity in India”, insisting, thanks to lobbying by him and SKA, in 2013 a new law that includes rehabilitation support for scavengers was passed in Parliament..
Pointing out that “SKA has grown into a network of 7,000 members in 500 districts across the country. Of the estimated 600,000 scavengers in India, SKA has liberated around 300,000”, the citation says, it has been vigorously involved in raising awareness about scavenging, the caste system, and the 1993 Prohibition Act, training local leaders and volunteers for the movement.
Giving examples of SKA's campaign, the citation says, “In 2004-2005, it undertook a mass latrine demolition drive across Andhra Pradesh; exposed the occupational violence faced by female scavengers; and met with officials to demand the demolition of dry latrines and the provision of alternative occupations for scavengers.”
Then, it says, “In 2010, SKA led an India-wide march for the total eradication of scavenging, and again in 2015 undertook a 125-day bus journey across 30 states to mobilize the public against manual scavenging.”
Wilson launched these campaigns in a country riddled with “structural inequality”, in which the Dalits' most exploited section, manual scavengers, work for “removing by hand human excrement from dry latrines and carrying on the head the baskets of excrement to designated disposal sites.”
“A hereditary occupation, manual scavenging involves 180,000 dalit households cleaning the 790,000 public and private dry latrines across India; 98 percent of scavengers are meagerly paid women and girls”, it citation says.
Wilson was born in the Kolar Gold Fields township in Karnataka state where his family had been engaged in manual scavenging for generations. However, Wilson was spared the labour to be the first in his family to pursue a higher education.
Treated as an outcast in school and acutely aware of his family’s lot, Bezwada was filled with great anger; but he would later channel this anger to a crusade to eradicate manual scavenging. Beginning by “changing the mindsets of his family and relatives” – that being a Dalit is not their fate but a status imposed by how society has been organized – in 1986 made his first public intervention by sending a complaint about dry latrines to the authorities of their town.
When he was ignored, he sent the complaint to the Prime Minister, threatening legal action. As a result, the town’s dry latrines were converted into water-seal latrines and the scavengers transferred to non-scavenging jobs. This emboldened him move to other states, and working with Dalit activists, launch SKA in 1993.
Its first major policy intervention was, when it initiated a public interest litigation (PIL) in the Supreme Court, naming all states, union territories, and the government departments of railways, defence, judiciary and education as violators of the 1993 Prohibition Act banning dry latrines and the employment of manual scavengers.

Comments

Is vaccine the Voldemort of modern medicine to be left undiscussed, unscrutinised?

By Deepika* Sridhar Vembu of Zoho stirred up an internet storm by tweeting about the possible link of autism to the growing number of vaccines given to children in India . He had only asked the parents to analyse the connection but doctors, so called public health experts vehemently started opposing Vembu's claims, labeling them "dangerous misinformation" that could erode “vaccine trust”!

Budgam by-poll to decide if National Conference still holds the ground in J&K

By Raqif Makhdoomi “Zoun ho Zoun ho, PDP’an Zoun ho” — the chant echoes through the streets of Budgam as election fever grips the district. Despite the dipping temperatures, people continue to gather at late-night rallies with enthusiasm. The slogan gained popularity during the 2024 assembly elections when People’s Democratic Party (PDP) leader Iltija Mufti, while campaigning, inadvertently mispronounced it as “Zoon ho Zoon ho,” a moment that went viral and has since become a fixture in local political rallies.

Justice for Zubeen Garg: Fans persist as investigations continue in India and Singapore

By Nava Thakuria* Even a month after the death of Assam’s cultural icon Zubeen Garg in Singapore under mysterious circumstances, thousands of his fans and admirers across eastern India continue their campaign for “ JusticeForZubeenGarg .” A large digital campaign has gained momentum, with over two million social media users from around the world demanding legal action against those allegedly responsible. Although the Assam government has set up a Special Investigation Team (SIT), which has arrested seven people, and a judicial commission headed by Justice Soumitra Saikia of the Gauhati High Court to oversee the probe, public pressure for justice remains strong.

N-power plant at Mithi Virdi: CRZ nod is arbitrary, without jurisdiction

By Krishnakant* A case-appeal has been filed against the order of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) and others granting CRZ clearance for establishment of intake and outfall facility for proposed 6000 MWe Nuclear Power Plant at Mithi Virdi, District Bhavnagar, Gujarat by Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL) vide order in F 11-23 /2014-IA- III dated March 3, 2015. The case-appeal in the National Green Tribunal at Western Bench at Pune is filed by Shaktisinh Gohil, Sarpanch of Jasapara; Hajabhai Dihora of Mithi Virdi; Jagrutiben Gohil of Jasapara; Krishnakant and Rohit Prajapati activist of the Paryavaran Suraksha Samiti. The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has issued a notice to the MoEF&CC, Gujarat Pollution Control Board, Gujarat Coastal Zone Management Authority, Atomic Energy Regulatory Board and Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL) and case is kept for hearing on August 20, 2015. Appeal No. 23 of 2015 (WZ) is filed, a...

From the black liberation struggle to exile: The story of Assata Shakur

By Harsh Thakor* Assata Shakur , former member of the Black Liberation Army and a prominent figure in the Black liberation movement , died on September 25 in Havana, Cuba , at the age of 78.

Where are the graphs for the emergency? The missing data behind the climate crisis narrative

By Bhaskaran Raman Ever so often, we are reminded by the media that we are living in a “climate emergency.” This especially happens after every natural disaster, such as after the recent floods in North India. While nature’s fury and its victims are not trifling matters, is there anything new about this that warrants a declaration of “crisis” or “emergency”?

What happens when cricket is turned into 'dharmayudh' between India and others

By Vidya Bhushan Rawat* India ‘lost’ the World Cup. Winning or losing is part of the game, but what happens when the game becomes part of the political propaganda and the audiences are not sports lovers but fans who hate others? An Uttar Pradesh daily gave a headline for the final game as ‘dharmyudh’. The game of cricket is being used for political purpose. As cricket is a powerful business in the country, every non-playing dignitary in the game earns much bigger sum than the player.

Govt claims about 'revolutionary' rice varieties raise eyebrows: SC order reserved since Jan '24

By Rosamma Thomas * In a matter of grave importance for agriculture, public health awaits Supreme Court ruling, even as top Government of India bureaucrats stand accused of “willful and deliberate disobedience” of the top court. While a contempt petition filed by Aruna Rodrigues , lead petitioner in the Genetic Modification (GM) of crops matter remains pending in the Supreme Court since July 2025, the Union ministry of agriculture asserts that two home-grown gene edited rice varieties are of superior quality, and hold potential for “revolutionary changes in higher production, climate adaptability, and water conservation.” In May 2025, the Press Information Bureau released a press release stating that a “historic milestone” had been reached, under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi ; the new varieties, DRR Rice 100 (Kamla) and Pusa DST Rice 1 , the press release stated, offer both benefits – increased production and environmental conservation.

Ex-civil servants warn of ecological disaster, demand fiscal support for Himalayan states

By A Representative The Constitutional Conduct Group (CCG), a collective of 103 former civil servants, has written to Dr. Arvind Panagariya , Chairman of the 16th Finance Commission, urging that the Commission give special consideration to the ecological fragility and economic vulnerability of India’s Himalayan states . The group has called for the creation of a substantial “ Green Fund ” or “Green Bonus” to compensate these states for their contribution to the country’s environmental stability and national well-being.

Search This Blog