Udupi / Mangalore: Udupi Zilla Panchayat CEO Prabhakar Sharma lamented that inadequate efforts in the direction of implementing the ideals of Constitution drafted by Dr B R Ambedkar has evaded the downtrodden class especially Dalits against social and educational empowerment.
Speaking after inaugurating the 122nd birth anniversary celebrations of Dr B R Ambedkar, the CEO said that the situation even today is that the Dalit community people do not come forward to get benefits from the authorities that are made available to them. They remain ignorant as they were some hundred years ago. The system should be held responsible for their ignorance. “We have not been able to bring them to the mainstream of the society. They are not coming to caste their ballot in the polls. If there is reservation for them for the post of president and vice president in Gram Panchayaths, they are reluctant to take up the responsibility. However, the cause may be that some vested interests do not allow them to be build up self confidence,” he rued.
He said the bureaucracy is only concentrating on providing Dalits shelter and land. However, no measures are taken to make them socially, economical and educationally empowered. Of the total population of around 11,700 in Udupi district, there are nearly 1.25 lakhs of SC/ST community people. There are nearly 25,000 to 30,000 household of these communities in the district. Nearly Rs 150 crores are spent on providing amenities to the people belonging to these two communities. However, the development quotient still remains nil and there is a big question as to what we have achieved till date by spending crores of rupees on these communities,” he said and added sarcastically that “we the people” in India have labeled Ambedkar for one particular class and caste. “We have not realized that he did not limit himself to any particular religion, class or caste. He was above all class,” he said.
DC Dr M T Reju and SP Dr Boralingaiah MB were present.
In Mangalore
The Dakshina Kannada district administration observed Ambedkar Jayanthi at a simple function held in front of Town Hall on Sunday.
Deputy Commissioner Harsha Gupta paid homage by garlanding the statue of Ambedkar. It was an official function without elected representatives as the model code of conduct is in force in view of the elections to the state assembly on May 5.
Zilla Panchayat CEO Dr K N Vijayapraksh, Police Commissioner Manish Kharbikar, SP Abhishek Goyal, Social Welfare Officer Arun Furtrado, Superintendent of Police Abhishek Goyal, MUDA Commissioner Ajith Kumar Hegde, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Law and Order) M Muthuraya, Mangalore City Corporation Commissioner K Harish Kumar and other officials were present.
