Caste and Technology..Next door Neighbours !!!

We’ve achieved technological excellence in successfully executing a moon mission, but we can’t seem to shed the curse of
untouchability. Nowhere is it more evident than in Byalalu, the command-and-control centre of Chandrayaan-1, about 35 km from Bangalore. Why, we can’t even offer prayers and drink tea together.

Just a few minutes behind Isro’s moon-tracking centre at Byalalu village off Mysore Road, the Gowda community, which laid claim to the Maramma temple in the village along with Dalits, has changed tack. They have given away the temple keys to the Dalits saying they are free to offer prayers as long as they didn’t invite the Gowdas to join them. Pray, but pray on your own, the Gowdas say.

But an offended Dalit community has pulled back, saying no other community offered prayers at temples where they worshipped, smelling social exclusion. They now pray at home, and no community now offers prayers at Maramma temple. The Gowda community has switched over to Anjaneya temple, where the Brahmins prayed.

The Brahmins and Gowdas, by doing puja together and not calling in Dalits, have indirectly excluded them from the second temple too.

Result: Dalits are excluded from both temples.

The Gowdas, who owned a teashop in the village for many years, would sell tea to Dalits in separate glasses. A few days after Byalalu went on stream, TOI found that tea was indeed not being served to Dalits in common glasses and they were not allowed into Maramma temple. The administration acted on TOI’s report and shut the hotel.

Interestingly, no hotel has come up after that — Gowdas and Brahmins don’t run a hotel fearing they’ve to treat Dalits equally, and Dalits don’t run a hotel fearing they would be boycotted.

Source : Times Of India

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