திண்ணை

மலர்மன்னன்

Dear Editor:

I thank your reader Sri Mani Manik for enlightening me on the percentage break up of the population of Bharat. I am NOT a schemer to calculate the percentage of each category of our people and plot against any particular section.

To be frank, I am more of an activist than a writer now-a-days. And my concern is to help the needy to the best of my capability irrespective of caste considerations. However, since I know our vanavasi brethren are more exploited and marginalized by all of us, my work revolves around them. Presently, I am officiating as the president, Vanavasi Seva Kendram, Chennai Mahanagar-Tiruvallur-Kancheepuram region (besides, I am also working for people living with HIV/AIDS–women are the easiest target of the infection, woman victims of acid attack, etc.).

We conduct medical camps regularly for the benefit of vanavasi brethren in our allotted region for all sorts of ailment. We have health volunteers to educate them on health and hygiene, and to find out related problems prevalent among them. We also provide nutritious diet alternates to meet their deficiencies. A substantial portion of our personal income also go into these, in addition to collecting funds and materials from like minded persons.

Our unit is now working for setting up a free boarding and lodging, clothing and personal care facility at Tiruvallur for about twenty Irula boys who are to continue their studies in higher secondary schools after passing out from eighth standard (we have secured a suitable premises to run the hostel). As the president of our unit, I am spending more of my time in raising funds besides utilising money from my own income. Our Tamiznadu Kendram is running middle schools on Karumanthurai in Salem and Coimbatore to provide free education with hostel facility to vanavasi children.

Personally, I am more concerned about providing such facilities to Irula girls for their education but it takes time for want of a full time committed lady to take care (however, I give priority to girls and women in providing medical care, as there is no room for any complication in this).

I am NOT trained to divide our brethren according to percentage and my concern is to identify people need based. As such, I admit that I am a layman and NOT an intellectual as somebody has described me and that I don’t understand the intricacies of this percentage wrangles. My impulse does NOT function according to statistics but on practical experience. I have no grudge against the so called Backward and Most Backward brethren, and I have no reason to attempt for an alliance between my brethren of the so called forward communities and SC and ST brethren to sandwich our poor Backward and Most backward in between!

However, I have a disturbing question in my mind: Is percentage the scale to measure every aspect of human endeavour and efforts? If so, what is the percentage of economically sound people in the 15.4 % category? This is essential to know because economic condition makes a big difference among people. And what is the percentage of the people among those who could achieve economically sound position on the basis of their academic qualification? I have seen so many from these categories flourish and prosper not because of any academic qualification but through other skills and business acumen. This applies to my brothers comprising 56.6 % also and I have seen many FCs serving under prosperous BCs and Most BCs successfully running business and small and medium level industries. I have also seen many BCs and MBCS shining in software and IT industries settled abroad (I know the offsprings of many DK and Dravidian movement leaders have settled in the UK and US and blaming that FCs have deserted their homeland after securing higher education is NOT fair. Our governments do NOT provide suitable job opportunities to scientists and technocrats, as every thing goes by one’s capacity to garner support politically; as such blaming successful students as ungrateful may not be right).

My brother Sri Mani Manik says that the percentage of backward castes is 56.6. If so, I wish to know the percentage of each backward caste among that 56.6% so as to avoid bias in extending reservation to each backward caste according to its percentage. Also, on what ground a particular caste is decided as backward? For SCs and STs, there is no complication in deciding on their backwardness because they are despised and neglected by rest of the communities including the so called most backward classes. Now, had there been any survey and authentication for the determination of backwardness? Please do NOT cite Mandal or any other commission, as they had no access to wholesome facts and figures. Is NOT one caste included in the backward and then promoted (?) to the most backward category according to its strength that is “vote power” and at the whims and fancies and the greed of political parties to increase their seats in the legislature?

Today, while having my lunch, one brother who happens to be from a backward caste and also from rural background regretted that they had no opportunity to know about the availability of competitive examinations for Indian Administrative Service (IAS), Indian Police Service (IPS) etc. If that were the issue, care should be taken to give wide publicity on the availability of such courses and the school/college authorities should also be asked to educate students on these matters. Lack of information cannot justify reservation in vocations and selection.

My consideration is NOT based on percentage but derived from human right and commonsense approach, identifying the needy in its real term. I know such needy are in the so called forward, backward and the most backward also but considering my limited capabilities, I concentrate on finding ways and means to improve the lot of Dalits and Vanavasis, who are branded as SCs and STs, the most objectionable terms to refer to the part and parcel of our society.

I may be excused for taking so much of your space and valuable time of your readers.

Yours truly,
MALARMANNAN

Mani Manik

Dear Editor,

I would like to react the malarmannan view about reservation. The way he is arguing against reservation is nothing but calling the SC/ST community for making the alliance with FC to make combined defence against the rest of the community (OBC). The technique is two hundered years old and it is usually practiced by British and then by the FC ruling class in the post-independent India. Somehow the tamil community survived against these types of back-fighting in-spite of its indifferences and now become the role model to the rest of the states.

Reservation – facts and figures.

Total population of India constituted by 15.4 % forward castes, 56.6% of backward castes, 18.1% of scheduled castes, 9.5% of scheduled tribes and 0.4% un-classified.

So the total population of SC+ST is 18.1%+9.5%=27.6%. In the so-called higher learning institutions 22.5% of seats are already reserved for SC/ST based on their total population.

The remaining 77.5% of the seats are open to all. But based on the recent judgment of Supreme Court, not more than 50% of the seats in the private institutions have to be reserved to OBC+SC+ST.

Out of 50% of the total reservation 22.5% of seats are already ‘enjoyed’ by SC/ST the remaining 27% reservation supposed to go to OBC. While 18.1% total SC population enjoyed 15% of totals seats and 9.5% total ST populations enjoyed 7% of total seats, the 56.6% of OBC population supposed to enjoy 27% of the total seats.

However 50% of the unreserved seats will automatically goes to the 15.4% of the forward castes for open competition, those doctors and pre-doctors jumbling over the streets of Delhi against the reservation. We have to note one thing here. If 15.4% (FC) of the total population behave like this, what will happened if 56.6%(OBC) of total population come on the road. The real fact is, those 56.6% don’t know what is happening in Delhi and what for.

If somebody is thinking that the reservation in higher learning institution will reduce the quality of education and as a consequence it will humiliate the progress of India than I can suggest two options to those patriots (I mean ‘nation lovers’ don’t think that American missile).

How many of you will agree to seize the passport of those people who are studying/studied in higher learning institution, so that that they may not fly over to their dream land.

If the government put a restriction that the people who studied in higher learning institution could not join under Private/Multi National Companies and they have to compulsorily join under government service in administrative/scientific positions, than how many of you, will agree to this ‘imposition’?

With thanks,
Mani Manik

பெரியசாமி

Director Cheran ‘s Dhavamai dhavamirunthu is a good film to be watched. I don ‘t know how that govindarajan was able to find mistakes in that film. Probably he might have some political mindset to do so. Today, while PhD holders are running for jobs here and there, students who underwent teacher training and diplomas just after their schooling are better employed and well placed.Then why doubt ? I think that no tamil film in recent years portrayed the financial problem, a man or a family can experience it like cheran. Kudos to him. He has touched the real aspects or the hard realities of life in his film and has portrayed them well too. I did ‘nt watch, metti oli serial. So regarding this aspect, I can ‘t say anything. But generally people from rural background or mindset will not find fault with the film since it touches their real life experience in some manner fantastically. It is a film for striving people. Length can be a problem but not that much. I severely condemn Mr Govindarajan for taking the film lightly.

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