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| India-Pakistan |
| Reversal of Fortune Isolates India's Brahmins |
| 2007-12-30 |
| CHENNAI, India — Brahmins, as Hinduism's priestly and scholarly caste, have traditionally occupied a place of privilege in India. Brahmins have been advisers to Maharajas, Mughals and military rulers. Under British rule, they served as administrators, a position they kept after Indian independence in 1947. But in today's India, high-caste privileges are dwindling, and with the government giving extensive preferences to the lower-caste majority, many Brahmins are feeling left out of the economy's rapid expansion. R. Parameswaran has suffered that reversal of fortune. The 29-year-old starts every day with a prayer to the Hindu god Shiva, marking his forehead with red and white powder to let the world know he is a Brahmin. In his home village, his caste's mark brought him respect, but since he moved to Chennai, a sprawling high-tech city in the southern state of Tamil Nadu, in the late 1990s, he has found his status a liability. |
| Posted by:john frum |
| #14 September... Communal trouble brewing up in Kandhmal District October.... Communal tension in Kandhamal Kui tribals up in arms in Kandhamal district Despite promises from the Chief Minister and officials, Kui tribals of Kandhamal district are continuing their agitation, seeking action against persons who instigated dalits of the district to categorise them as tribals. 'Kui' tribals monopolize the Scheduled Tribe Affirmative Action quotas. The 'Pana' want a piece of that quota rather than their own Dalit quota (probably a lot of other Dalits around) so they claim tribal status. December.... Christians move to camps to avoid Hindu attacks and Maoist whiff in Kandhamal violence |
| Posted by: john frum 2007-12-30 17:40 |
| #13 #10: "But as the mutiny progresses, it becomes a startlingly modern tale. Change the dates, places and people and it could be Iraq 2005/6 as jihadis flood in to fill the vacuum caused by the mutiny/war and the British set up FOBs to retake the cities in street level fighting." Everything old is new again, phil. |
| Posted by: Barbara Skolaut 2007-12-30 13:44 |
| #12 Rats. I'd rather enjoy reading about Delphi during the Indian Mutiny. ;-) |
| Posted by: Seafarious 2007-12-30 13:42 |
| #11 That should have been 'Delhi'. |
| Posted by: phil_b 2007-12-30 13:41 |
| #10 The long little finger fingernail is fairly common affectation amoung SE Asian Chinese as a mark of someone who doesn't do manual work. BTW John, I am reading Dalrymple's The Last Mughal, which is about Delphi during the Indian Mutiny. It describes how the mutiny started largely because the British didn't appreciate the importance of ritual purity to high caste Hindus. But as the mutiny progresses, it becomes a startlingly modern tale. Change the dates, places and people and it could be Iraq 2005/6 as jihadis flood in to fill the vacuum caused by the mutiny/war and the British set up FOBs to retake the cities in street level fighting. |
| Posted by: phil_b 2007-12-30 13:40 |
| #9 they can thank the "Brahmin" of Boston, Jahn Karry, for the term to be a term of derision in the U.S. |
| Posted by: Frank G 2007-12-30 12:38 |
| #8 Hint: Changing the order of the preference of the castes is *not* the same as changing the caste system... |
| Posted by: Seafarious 2007-12-30 12:34 |
| #7 Tax concessions by various State Governments... |
| Posted by: john frum 2007-12-30 10:48 |
| #6 which is why there is a campaign to extend the affirmative action into the private sector as mandatory quotas rather than incentives to private industry That's interesting. What kind of carrots are currently offered to private-sector employers for adopting affirmative action policies? |
| Posted by: mrp 2007-12-30 10:28 |
| #5 Do Brahmins, in general, prefer government work? Or is it just a personal preference on his part? There is a well known stereotype of the Brahmin preference for a Government job... the Brahmin clerk with the fingernail of his little finger grown long... the better to open letters and files ... a status symbol to others (he obviously doesn't perform manual work) Government jobs are no longer so highly favored... a job in the private sector..in IT, is now the prize... which is why there is a campaign to extend the affirmative action into the private sector as mandatory quotas rather than incentives to private industry |
| Posted by: john frum 2007-12-30 09:55 |
| #4 And the NREGS rural employment system is the latest plum to be divided amongst myriad castes... that is why "tribals" are fighting for "SC" rather than "Dalit" status, why "Christian Tribals" are fighting with "Hindu Tribals" for SC sub caste places.. why there are Muslim, Christian and Sikh "Dalits"... there are billions of dollars up for grabs.... |
| Posted by: john frum 2007-12-30 09:43 |
| #3 Indeed a lot of the religious/caste violence you see in India is all about politicians using this quota to reward their supporters. The quotas provide the patronage they use to keep a hold on the political machinery.. they can dole out jobs, college places etc |
| Posted by: john frum 2007-12-30 09:37 |
| #2 Why is it considered necessary to put a "caste" designation on a job application? Because of the reservation quota (affirmative action) system KR Narayan (a Dalit or untouchable) used this quota to get his son into college, ahead of classmates with better grades. At the time he was President of India |
| Posted by: john frum 2007-12-30 09:32 |
| #1 From his makeshift home where he sleeps with a blanket on a desk most nights, Mr. Parameswaran still applies for government jobs. He pulls out his latest application form and shows a visitor where he always gets stuck: the three squares where he has to write the abbreviation indicating his caste. Why is it considered necessary to put a "caste" designation on a job application? "I want government work," he says, shaking the application, "but they have no jobs for Brahmins." Do Brahmins, in general, prefer government work? Or is it just a personal preference on his part? |
| Posted by: mrp 2007-12-30 09:20 |