Volume 15 | Issue 10
Tuesday, October 6, 2015
Migrant family rescued from sweatshop brick kiln after 1200km SOS call Rishi Sabharwal A migrant family was rescued from a brick kiln factory amid claims they were being held against their will and without wages. The family , from Odisha, sent an SOS from the kiln plant, in rural Karnataka, to their family back home and a rescue was organised at state government level Baburao Sabar, 30, and his wife Bhagya Sabar, 25, were allegedly kept by force and compelled to work at the factory by its owner. The family hails from Kasinagar block, a very remote and under-developed corner in Gajapati district of Odisha. They have a fouryear-old infant son who was rescued with them. Bhagya Sabar, who has spent the last four months struggling to feed her fouryear-old son said, “The owner did not pay us our wage for past four months. We asked for his permission to go home but he did not allow us to go.” Her husband added, “A labour contractor came to our house more than two years ago and he told us that the pay will be good if we work for this factory in Karnataka.” Lokesh J, Labour Inspector of Malur, who was present at the raid, confirmed it. On being asked if any police case was filed against the factory owner, whose name is Pillapa, he said, “As of now, no police case is filed against the owner.” Even after repeated attempts, Pillapa could not be reached for his comment. But, according to Lokesh, the owner denies every allegation against him. “The owner did not pay us wage for a very long time. He did not allow us to go home either,” said Bhagya Sabar who was very happy upon being rescued and finally getting a chance to go back home. Along with the officials of the Labour department, Manoj Patra who is the Vice-President of Odisha Cultural association and Lakshmi Narayan, Project Director of Child and Women Welfare Department, Karnataka were also present during the raid. There was no police protection but they were kept on alert. On being asked to comment about today’s event, Manoj
Patra said, “Middle-men or the labour contractors are the cause of the problem. They employ destitute from various parts of Odisha like Malkangiri, Koraput and Gajapati and send them to places like this to work.” He further added, “Government must take quick action against such labour contractors to find a solution.” According to Manoj Patra, Pillapa, the owner of the factory owed the couple Rs.13000 which is a huge amount for people like Baburao who live in extreme poverty. He said that the owner has agreed upon to pay the entire deserved money to the couple. The couple and their son, who are now under the custody of Manoj Patra, will be sent back to Odisha tomorrow by train from Bangalore. The matter was brought to notice by Apparao Sabar, Baburao’s father, and was reported in an Odia newspaper on September 22. After this news came into limelight, the local MLA, K. Surya Rao had gone to meet the victim’s parents and had requested the Labour Commissioner of Odisha to take further action. More than a week ago, Odisha Government had written to Karnataka Labour Commission with a request to rescue the couple. Apparao Sabar, father of Baburao, who lives in Kasinagar alleged that his son and daughter-in-law only get a
handful of rice as incentive to work which only suffices their two meals. He further added that they are not allowed to make even a phone call. Apparao had also said that he himself had worked in the same factory for six months this year. “The factory owner
did not pay me my daily wages. So I wanted to leave and bring my son back with me.” He left the factory taking advantage of his employer’s absence but the rest of the family was not able to come back with him, he added.
BRIEFS Karnataka gets the country’s first sheep ambulance Government spends Rs 121.5 lakh to purchase 18 Boleros as ambulances for sheep. Page 2
City faces an increase in the number of internet addicts The NIMHANS de-addiction center for well being states an increase in the number of addicts Page 2
Boys drowned due to poor roadwork, says blind school Faulty road construction near a lake was why two students drowned recently, a blind school has alleged. Page 3
Baburao sabar with his family
City’s aged face harassment by families The number of complaints of harassment made by senior citizens against family members has gone up in a last two and a half years. Page 3
No salary, claim Ola cabs drivers Ola cab drivers in the city has claimed that they are deprived of payment for the past three months. Page 4 Local MLA, K. Surya Rao in a meeting with Apparao Sabar on September 24
2 THE OBSERVER
Tuesday, October 6, 2015
Karnataka gets the country’s first sheep ambulance Regina Gurung Government spends Rs 121.5 lakh to purchase eighteen boleros’ as ambulances for sheep. The multi-utility ambulatory clinics, as it is called, is serving 18 districts in the state for the welfare and benefit of rural people and shepherds. Chief Minister Siddaramaiah inaugurated the lauching of ambulances at Karnataka Sheep and Wool Development Corporation office in Hebbal on September 30. “Karnataka becomes the first state in the country to have this facility” said Dr. Mohan Kumar veterinary technical officer of Sheep Board (KSWDC). “Uttarkhand is said to have two sheep ambulances but it is not implemented by the government body,” said Dr Kumar. Another technical officer.Dr. Madhu Soodan added that it could be the only one in the world. Mahindra Bolero cars have been chosen as ambulances for sheep in order to battle tough village roads. The initiative has received a fund of Rs.180 lakh under the Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana, nation’s farmers’ progress scheme. The population of sheep in Karnataka stands at 95.7 lakh and goat population at 47.90 lakh. “Karnataka has the highest sheep population in the country and sheep rearing and herding is the life-blood of rural people,” said Dr. Kumar. “This
The launch of 18 ambulances in the office campus of Karnataka Sheep and Wool Development Corporation is why it becomes necessary to have treatment facilities for sheep and goats.” Dr. Kumar added that highly qualified doctors have been appointed for this program. The sheep will not be transported in the ambulances but doctors will use them to reach the spot with aid and provide immediate treatment. “The sheep herd along with migratory shepherds travel 300 km from Belgaum to Bellary and this migration is planned seasonally. In such instances, sheep and goats fall ill and many problems arise. In such
cases, the shepherd can call the ambulance, and the aid will reach,” said Dr. Zafrula Khan, managing director of KSWDC. “The Multi-Utility Ambulatory Clinic, as it is called, will be used to help shepherds in as many ways as possible, providing help coverage and organizing training programs. Shearing of wool is also provided so electric wool service and waxing facilities are given,” said Dr. Khan. “The unique program exclusively for sheep and goats will help in prevention of diseases and provide quick and efficient
vaccination for preventive measures,” said Dr. Seetaram, technical officer at KSWDC. Mallapa, a shepherd from Devanagere said that he is not aware of this facility. “My sheep are really ill and its feet are sore. No paper in the district has mentioned about this scheme.” He said that a programme like this would benefit his ailing sheep and help him in many ways. “As of now Bangalore will not be given this facility because the urban city accounts for only one percent of the total sheep population of Karnataka. The
long term plan is to establish this facility in 25 districts, out of which 18 are covered as first phase program 2014-2015. This was achieved within six months of undertaking the proposal. There will be a second phase and its expansion is evident,” said Dr. Seetaram. The eighteen districts using this facility are: Vijayapura, Belagavi, Kalaburagi, Bidar, Mysore, Mandya, Tumakuru, Kolar, Gadag, Davanagere, Bagalkot, Raichur, Kaveri, H a s s a n , C h i k k a b a l l a p u r, Kodagu, Bellary and Chitradurga.
City faces an increase in the number of internet addicts Payal Gangishetty The NIMHANS de-addiction Centre for Well-Being states an increase in the number of internet addicts. The centre, Service for Healthy Use of Technology (SHUT), was set up last year to help addicts overcome excessive use of technology. “Boys from upper middleclass families are more addicted to various online activities. Internet gaming is one of the biggest addictions that we have seen, followed by social networking and internet browsing which includes YouTube videos, watching pornography and internet gambling, in terms of numbers,” said, Dr. Manoj Kumar Sharma, Professor, Department of Clinical Psychology and counsellor at SHUT. He added that addiction is common among the age group of 18 to 24. “When we started the centre last year, we did not have patients for the first few months, but gradually the number in-
NIMHANS Centre for Well-Being (NCWB) creased and today we see around seven addicts a week,” said Dr. Sharma. While November and December 2014 had approximately 10 and 13 addicts respectively, the clinic had 26 of them in September 2015. SHUT works under NIMHANS Centre for WellBeing. According to Prasad Reddy, a research student at NIMHANS, “Nomophobia, the fear of being out of mobile phones, is on the rise among teenagers today. Apart from
this, peer pressure is also one of the main issues that the teenagers are falling prey to technology.” Kiran (name changed) who was addicted to gaming said, “Initially l was addicted to excessive gaming due to which I lost interest in studies and gradually my grades went down. I never socialised but after attending the series of counselling sessions at SHUT clinic, I developed confidence and I see an improvement in myself.”
“Addiction is defined considering the 4-Cs as markers, which is a screening method to check the level of addiction. Craving (a desire to access online gaming), control (not being able to reduce it), compulsion (the desire to have what is desired), consequence (the end result),” said Dr. Sharma. The addicts once tested positive are sent for the 3A test that motivates socialising, as a further help to the patients. Sharing the experience about one of the cases Dr. Sharma said, “Not all cases that come to us are easy, it is a challenge to us. Pavan (name changed), 20, who was addicted to gaming was brought by his parents to the centre for the treatment. He was reluctant to open up and accept his addiction, so we first focused on his lifestyle changes. It took almost 10 months and then there was a gradual improvement in him. But after few days he again started showing the sings of relapse. In such cases, we admit the patient where special care and atten-
tion is given.” Keeping in view the increase in the number of cases among teenagers,“Psychology education in schools and colleges should be made compulsory where regular workshops and lectures on harmful effects of technology should be discussed.” said, Dr. Sharma. SHUT clinic operates on Saturdays and Sundays, the cost of each session is Rs.100.
Dr. Manoj Sharma, Counsellor at SHUT
Tuesday, October 6, 2015 3
THE OBSERVER
Boys drowned due to poor roadwork, says blind school Tanay Sukumar Faulty road construction near a lake was why two students drowned recently, a blind school has alleged. Chandan, 14, and Dinesh, 15, had lost their lives in the Maragondanahalli lake in Devanahalli during the Ganesha idol immersion on September 19. Sri Rakum School for the Blind, the non-profit school where the boys studied, faces lack of funds after the incident. The two boys were sighted. “Every year our school has the festival, but recently they created a new road near the lake,” said Sri Rakum Guruji, the founder of the school. “To build the road, you must remove the mud from the centre of the lake, not from the sides. But the contractor dug the mud from the sides of the lake.” This resulted in the drowning, he alleged. “As you move into the lake, for about the first eight to nine feet, the depth is only about two to three feet. But as you move forward beyond the ninth foot, the depth suddenly becomes 25 to 30 ft. due to the removed mud,” said Sri Nataraj, the headmaster of the school. After the contractor made the road, he should have put up a signboard saying so, said Rakum. With the help of the Viswanathapuram police station , the school has now put up a sign near the lake, reading: “Danger Zone: Please do not immerse Ganesha idols here.” “We are unsure about the depth of the lake right now, but the allegation by the school might be right. The investigation is in progress,” said sources in the Viswanathapuram police station, under
A sign has been put up near the lake by the school with the help of local police station, reading: “Danger Zone: Please do not immerse Ganesha idols here.” whose jurisdiction the school lies. “At the time of the immersion, the students slipped. Some children were rescued but two died. The complaint was filed by the headmaster of Rakum School. A case of accidental drowning was registered under Section 174 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC).” “For the last 13 years, the school had been immersing the idol in this lake. The lake is 1 km from the school. The teachers had asked the children not to move forward, but they were standing on mud and they might have slipped. The lake was deep,” said Rajanna V., a former long-time member of the local Panchayat, Jalige. The mishap has also resulted in a lack of funds for the school. “When suddenly this tragedy happened, we crashed,” said Rakum. “Rs.8
lakh went to parents as compensation. We spent Rs.2 lakh for funeral expenses, police investigations and post-mortem report. And the hostel was shifted, as none of the boys wanted to stay in the hostel. This cost us another Rs.5 lakh.” “The school is for blind students, but there are sighted students as well,” said Sri Nataraj. Now, there is hardly any money left to pay salaries for the month, said Rakum. The school has 110 employees in three campuses, including teachers and gaushala workers. However, the founder is positive about the future. “I believe, anyway we have lived 18 years on a day-to-day basis of funding. People shouldn’t shy off from donating because of this tragedy. We have given maximum security to our stu-
dents.” He said that if they get a liquid cash of Rs.20 lakh a month and a buffer amount of Rs.10 lakh, the school can survive. Chandan’s father said that he did not want to file a complaint against the school as the school has given all their sup-
“
port and it was not the school’s fault. Despite repeated attempts to obtain a statement from the road builder, the local panchayat office, the area’s MLA and the police all said they did not know his name.
As you move into the lake, for about
first eight to nine feet,
the depth is only 2 to 3 ft. But as you move forward beyond the ninth foot, the depth suddenly becomes 25 to 30 ft. due
”
to the removed mud.
Sri Nataraj, Headmaster of Sri Rakum School, Devanahalli
City’s aged face harassment by families Prabhpreet Singh Sood The number of complaints of harassment made by senior citizens against family members has gone up 90% in the last two and a half years. The data is based on complaints received by Bengaluru City Police Helpline for elders. According to Nightingale Medical Trust, which runs the elders’ helpline in coordination with the city police, 40% of elders living with their families are affected. Cases of verbal, physical, psychological and financial harassment cases are usually
filed by senior citizens against their children or other family members. According to the helpline, the number of such written complaints increased from 82 in the year 2013-14 to 168 and 151 in the following two years. In the first six months of the current year, 82 complaints have already been registered. There has also been an increase in the total number of complaints received of all cases, such as harassment by private and public agencies. Mary Joseph, an 86-year-old widow, said, "I had to fight with my own son for five years to get my property from him. I did
Mary Joseph not know this would happen to
me for a piece of land.” Joesph now lives with her daughter. In a research report on Elder Abuse in India released by the NGO HelpAge India, the rate of elder abuse in the city is 75 per cent, which is the second highest in the country. The report surveyed a sample size of 1,200 elders in 12 cities across eight states. HelpAge India works for the disadvantaged elderly citizens, “The increase is because of lack of communication and the change in lifestyle due to urbanization,” said Sandhya, incharge of the Elder Abuse helpline. “Inability of parents to fulfil
their children’s increased demands also leads to abuse,” she added. “When elders come in with signs of physical abuse, we immediately contact the police and send the victims for a medical examination,” said Sandhya. Jithi Nichani, an advocate working with the helpline, said that in some cases, the children choose sides and favour one parent over the other which ultimately leads to their abuse. “It is not the physical pain that stays but the mental pain that cannot be erased.” said Mary Joseph.
4 THE OBSERVER
Tuesday, October 6, 2015
No salary, claim ola cabs drivers Raina Paul Ola cab drivers in the city have claimed that they are deprived of payment for the past three months. Due to this, some cab drivers refuse to accept the ride if the mode of payment chosen by the customer is online. The issue has come up after the introduction of Ola Money. “The cash paid online by the customer through Ola Money is shown on the device, but it is not credited to us,” said Varun (name changed), an Ola cab driver. “I have not received my salary for the last three months. They keep saying the money has been transferred to our accounts whenever we complain,” he added. Payments for Ola cab rides are made either in cash or through Ola money, an online payment service. The ones made in cash are directly made by the customers to the drivers after the ride, whereas payment though Ola money transfers the amount to the company’s account. In this mode of payment the driver’s bank account is credited by the
Tweets of the day
company. Earlier the money paid online by the customer was credited to the driver’s bank account. This is no longer the situation where the online cash transferred by the customer never reaches the driver. “It has been three months since we have been deprived of our salaries. We continuously send mails to the company, but to our dismay, there
has been no change so far. We fear if they will continue to not pay us money,” said Govind (name changed), a cab driver, who has been working with the company for the past one year. According to the company, there has not been any irregularity in the payment made by the company. “We pay the drivers without any delay. There are no such problems regarding their payment,” said Sem-
barathi, an executive from the Ola Cab’s branch office in Bangalore. The issue of online payment disparities started with the drivers affiliated to the multi-national taxi aggregator, Uber. The drivers are yet to receive their payments. The executives from both Ola and Uber refused to comment further when asked about the issue.
Just ten percent of children saved from street are girls:NGO Sanskriti Talwar Nine out of ten children rescued from child labour by an NGO this year are boys. Bangalore Oniyavara Seva Coota (BOSCO), an NGO operating since 1980, has rescued 5,883 children in 2015. This month alone, 85 boys and six girls were rescued. Pradeep, a 15-year-old school drop-out from Hosur, Tamil Nadu, left his home and found a shelter in the NGO along his friend. "He wants to go to Mangalore and work there along with his friend’s mother," told Edwin George, home placement coordinator, BOSCO. “I'm taking him back to his hometown. Our duty is to advise the parents, to make them understand the importance of education.” he added “The reasons these children flee their home and work at a tender age differ from family to family.” told,Father John, director of Bosco. “There are many situations depending on family. Here they undergo counselling and we try to find the real problem with the child, The organisation continues a follow-up on the rescued children for at least a
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A group of boys attending training after being rescued from the streets year to ensure their well-being, he added. “Children are sent to some training centres to learn skill labour work like computer software training, repairing. This helps them to settle in their life,” said Anthon, a volunteer at BOSCO. The child labour law states that a child above age of 14 years is not allowed to work
and the Juvenile Justice Act recommends the rehabilitation of the children that are below 18 years. According to Section 2(d) of the Act, a working child is also under the need of care and protection said Anupama Hegde, member of Child Welfare Committee. She also added that this is the most neglected sector in India.
Children rescued are produced in front of the committee within 24 hours as per the law for the enquiry. After the enquiry, a conclusion is made whether the child should be restored to their parents or not. Children are not treated as children and children are not treated as adults also. We mould them accordingly, she added.
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THE OBSERVER Editor: Payal Gangishetty | News Editor: Tanay Sukumar | Chief Sub-Editor: Regina Gurung Picture Editor: Sanskriti Talwar | Sub-Editors: Reema Mukherjee, Prabhpreet Singh Sood, Rishi Sabharwal Reporters: Sana Husain, Sutanu Guha | Design and Layout/Social Media Manager: Raina Paul