EDUCATION: THE ONLY KEY TO DALIT PROGRESS

DR. BHALCHANDRA MUNGEKAR

VICE-CHANCELLOR

UNIVERSITY OF MUMBAI,

FORT, MUMBAI 400 032

“The backward classes have come to realize that after all education is the greatest material benefit for which they can fight. We may forego material benefits, we may forego material benefits of civilization, but we cannot forego our right and opportunities to reap the benefit of the highest education to the fullest extent. That the importance of this question from the point of view of the backward classes who have just realized that without education their existence is not safe.”[1]

- Dr. B.R. Ambedkar

INTRODUCTION

At the outset I express my deep sense of gratitude to VOD International for organsising this international conference on Dalit Human Rights. I also thank and pay compliments to the Communities of Ravidassias, Valmikies and Ambedkarites of UK, and the Dalit Solidarity, UK who are closely involved in cooperating in the organization of this conference. I am also thankful to the organisers for inviting me and giving an opportunity to express my views on some of the issues involved in Dalit Human Rights which, like you all, are close to my heart. Since the objective of this Conference is to draw attention of the international community towards the horrendous effects of the caste system and atrocities committed against the Dalits in India, I consider it my moral responsibility to come over here and participate in the deliberations of this Conference.

This is indeed a historical event, insofar as the objective of this conference is to spell out the agenda for future work to redress and find remedies for doing away with indignities and insult inflicted upon the Dalits.

In this context, I propose to concentrate on some of the issues relating to Dalit Education, because I am convinced that education is the surest and the soundest key to Dalit Progress. But before so doing, it would not be out of place if I say few things, by way of introduction.

Many a time untouchability in India and slavery in Europe are being compared with the understanding that untouchability is tolerable or less harmful than slavery. It is true that neither the slavery nor untouchability is a free social order, but as Dr. Ambedkar maintained, “If a distinction is to be made and there is no doubt that there is the distinction between the two, the test whether the education, virtue, happiness, culture, and wealth is possible within slavery or within untouchability.”[2] Dr. Ambedkar further argued “judged by this test it is beyond controversy that slavery is hundred times better than untouchability. In slavery there is room for education, virtue, happiness, culture or wealth. In untouchability there is none. Untouchability has none of the advantages of an unfree social order such as slavery. It has all disadvantage of a free social order.”[3]

But the following views of Dr. Ambedkar distinguish slavery from untouchability in a more profound manner. Dr. Ambedkar maintain as follows:

Slavery was never obligatory. But untouchability is obligatory. A person is permitted to hold another as his slave. There is compulsion on him if he does not want to. But untouchable has no option. Once he is born untouchable he is subject to all the disability of an untouchable. The law of slavery permitted emancipation. Once a slave always a slave was not the fate of the slave. In untoubality there is no escape. Once an untouchable always an untouchable. The other difference is that untouchability is an indirect and therefore worst form of slavery. A deprivation of a man’s freedom by an open and direct way is a preferable form of enslavement. It makes the slave conscious of his enslavement and to become conscious of slavery is the first and most important step in the battle for freedom. But if a man is deprived of his liberty indirectly he has no consciousness of his enslavement. Untouchability is an indirect form of slavery. To tell an untouchable ‘you are free, you are a citizen, you have all the rights of a citizen’, and to tighten the rope in such a way as to leave him no opportunity to realize the ideal is a cruel deception. It is enslavement without making the untouchable conscious of their enslavement. It is slavery though it is untouchability. It is real though it is indirect. It is injury because it is unconscious. Of the two order, untouchability is beyond doubt, the worst”. [4]

Is it possible for any sensible person, much less an intellectual to refute Dr. Ambedkar’s judgment on this distinction between untouchability and slavery and his considering untouchability worse between the two?

The other issue I want to touch upon relates to the economic impact of the caste system on Dalits.

The caste system would have not perpetuated for centuries only through subjective prejudices and the idea of pollution. One of the most formidable factors

that provided the enduring strength to the caste system was its solid economic foundation. Again, what needs to be emphasised, economic aspects of the caste system were sanctified by the Hindu religious scriptures and, like ever other form of social discrimination, they were also deeply internalized.[5]

Thus, caste played an ascriptive role inasmuch as it allocated economic activities to different individuals. It is true that division of labour has been a characteristic feature of every human society even in its very crude, let alone in its complex form. However, the unique feature of caste system was that it assigned an occupation not to an individual, but to a group of individuals. A particular individual was ordained to undertake a particular occupation just because he belonged to a particular group by birth. In reality, this spelt disaster for the low-caste people in general and untouchables in particular.

This laid Dr. Ambedkar to argue that caste system did not result merely in division of labour, but it resulted into the division of labourers.[6] The former is the result of preference, choice, liking and aptitude of an individual, while the later is independent of the individual being. The former is voluntary, the later is not only obligatory but coercive. Thus, like in ever other social sphere, in economic sphere too the caste system amounted to the travesty of individual freedom.

What was worst, the effect of birth – based occupational distribution on different castes was exactly opposite in nature. This arrangement proved to be a divine privilege for the upper castes enjoying the exclusive rights to education, agriculture, industry, trade, commerce and so on. On the other hand, it spelt disaster for the lower castes. This is because the later were assigned the tasks involved only menial labour. The Dalits were thus prevented from earning let alone accumulating wealth, which restricted their needs to bare existence. What was further deplorable, the jobs involving menial labour which were assigned to them were stigmatized and treated as polluted ones. Thus, absence of freedom of occupation, low earning (mainly in kind), implicit restrictions on needs and stigma on menial labour destroyed the economy of the lower castes. As a result, they came to be fully dependent on the upper castes for their economic existence.[7]

Conditions of the untouchables were not only deplorable but were disastrously worst. Caste system made them socially outcaste, economically dependable, and politically powerless. This, according to me, can be attributed to several factors; but to my mind, the single most important factor to which their appalling miseries can be attributed is the denial to the untouchables (i.e., Dalits) the right to education. It is in this background that I now propose to deal with the theme viz., Education: The Only Key to Dalit Progress.

SOCIO-ECONOMIC PROFILE OF DALITS

Now in order to underscore the importance of education to the Dalits, let me begin with by presenting their broad socio-economic profile. Here we have used terms Scheduled Castes (SCs)/Scheduled Tribes (STs) and the Dalits as interchangeable.

Table-1

Socio-Economic Profile of SCs, STs and Total Population (All India)

Sr. No.	Indicator	SCs	STs	Total Population
1	Population (Crore) (Percent)	13.82 (16.48)	06.76 (08.08)	83.86 (100.00)
2	Literacy (%) Total Male Female	37.41 49.91 39.29	29.60 40.65 23.76	52.21 64.13 39.29
3	Urbanisation (%)	18.72	07.39	25.73
4	Agricultural Labourers	48.00
5	Cultivators	28.17
6	Average Status of Cultivators	Marginal
7	Percentage of People below Poverty Line	50.00
8	Bonded Labourers	66.00
9	Employment (%) Primary Sector Secondary Sector Tertiary Sector	77.11 09.83 13.06	90.03 03.85 06.12	67.53 11.97 20.50

Note: Information at Sr. Nos. 1,2,3 and 9 pertain to the year 1991 and from 4 to 8

pertain to 1987-88.

Source: (i) Sarvekshana, vol. XII, No.4, April-June 1999.

(ii) Population Census, 1991

As Table 1 shows, in 1991, population of SCs and that of STs was 13.82 and 6.76 crores, respectively, constituting 16.48 and 8.08 percent, respectively. So far other indicators are concerned, it is observed that total literacy among the SC and ST male population was 37.41 and 29.60 percent respectively; while the average literacy for the country as a whole was 62.21 percent. Again the literacy rates, among SC and ST male population were 49.91 and 40.65 percent, respectively compared to 64.13 percent for the population as a whole. In terms of female literacy rate, the comparative figures were 39.29, 23.76, and 39.29 percent, respectively. This shows that in the area of literacy SC and ST population lags much behind the national average.

Urbanisation is one of the most significant indicators of geographical and economic mobility and therefore over-all economic progress. It is disappointing to observe that in 1991 the rate of urbanization was only 18.72 percent for SCs and as low as 7.39 percent for STs compared to 25.73 percent for the national average.

It is further observed that 48 percent of SC population comprised agricultural laborers, while cultivators were barely 28 percent. It is needless to say that generally SC cultivators are ‘marginal’. What is worse, 66 percent of the bonded labours in the country belong to SCs.

If we glance at the employment profiles of the SCs and STs vis-à-vis the population as a whole, it could be observed that 77 percent of the SCs and 90 percent of the STs have been employed in the primary sector as against 67.53 percent for the country as a whole. Further, only 9.83 percent of SCs and 3.85 percent of the STs worked in the secondary sector compared to 11.97 percent for the national average. Lastly, 13.06 and 6.12 percent of the SCs and STs worked in the tertiary sector compared to 20.50 percent for the populations as a whole.

As a result of all these multiple but inter-related factors 50 percent of the total SC population was below poverty line.

In view of this, it would be interesting to see the extent of land ownership by Dalit households. This is because in rural areas ownership of / access to land is the single crucial factor that enables one to share the benefits of agricultural development and also serves as a symbol of social prestige. Thus, Table 2 shows that households owning less than one hectare of land were 68.50 percent among the SCs compared to 57.5 percent among the others. Further, as we increase the size of land owned by an household, the percentage of households belonging to SC households goes on declining compared to those belonging to the category ‘others’. For example, only 1.5 percent of the SC households owned land more than four hectares while the same percentage for others was 6.40. This unequal ownership of land among the SC households vis-à-vis the others ultimately results in unequal distribution of gains of agricultural prosperity. (In the case of STs the position of land ownership is better than SCs and sometimes also ‘others’. This may be attributed to the nature and features of the tribal economy and should not mislead one to conclude that agriculture as an economic activity is more favourable with the STs compared to the SCs, let alone the non-SC/ST population).

Table-2

Ownership of Agricultural Land by Sign Class of Holdings (1993-94)

No.	Sign Class in Hectares	S. T.	S. C.	Others	All
1	Landless	13.30	18.10	11.20	12.90
2	Less than 1	51.30	68.50	57.40	59.10
3	1 to 2	18.70	08.00	15.10	14.00
4	2 to 4	11.90	03.90	09.90	08.00
5	4 above	04.80	01.50	06.40	06.00
6	Total	100.00	100.00	100.00	100.00

Source: Sarvekshana, vol. XII, No.4, April-June 1999.

In Table 3, we present the composition of households by household type i.e., by nature of occupation. The novelty of this table is that we have separate information for SCs, STs, and ‘others’ i.e., ‘non-SCs and STs’. Thus, Table 3 shows that only 38 percent of ST and 20.10 percent of SC households are self-employed in agriculture and 5.90 percent and 10.70 percent of them are self-employed in non-agriculture. Thus, all self-employed (both in agriculture and non-agriculture) ST and SC households comprise 44 percent and 30.80 percent respectively. Compared to this, 43.30, 14.50 and 57.70 percent households belonging to ‘others’ were self-employed in agriculture, self-employed in non-agriculture and all self-employed.

Table-3

Per Cent Distribution of Households by Household Type (1993-94)

Household Type	S. T.	S.C.	Others
SEA	38.00	20.10	43.30
SENA	06.00	10.70	14.40
All SE	44.00	30.80	57.70
AL	37.80	49.30	23.20
OL	10.10	10.20	06.90
All Lab.	47.90	59.50	30.20
Others	08.20	09.70	12.10
All	100.00	100.00	100.00

Source: As Table 2

SEA = Self-employed in agriculture, SENA = Self-employed in non-agriculture

AIISE= All Self-employed, AL= Agricultural labour households OL= Other

labour AII Lab= All labour, ST= Scheduled Tribe, SC= Scheduled Caste

Further, 37.80 and 49.30 percent of the ST and SC households were agricultural labour households, while the proportion for ‘other’ was 23.20 percent. Similarly, ‘other’ labour households constituted 10.10 and 10.20 percent respectively for the ST and SC households with only 6.90 percent among the ‘others’.

This shows that the majority of the SC households depend upon their own labour as the main source of livelihood to be followed by the ST households. In this respect the households belonging to category ‘others’ are far better compared to the STs and SCs.

EDUCATIONAL SCENARIO AMONG DALITS

We have provided above overall broad socio-economic profile of the SCs and STs with respect to nature of employment and jobs available to them only with a view to highlighting an overwhelming importance of education in securing to them means of livelihood. In an highly unequal and in egalitarian society stratified and differentiated by class and most importantly by caste education appears to be the only surest key and the soundest way to the Dalit Progress. It helps in accelerating geographical mobility from rural to urban areas and also for occupational upgradations. In a caste-based society like India, the revolutionary role of education in the lives of the Dalits can hardly be exaggelarated.

It is in view of this that we now provide the information regarding various aspects of education among the Dalits, the impact of economic reforms on the Dalit education and, in the end, also propose to suggest some measures that would help ensuring better education to the Dalits.

Thus, in Table 4 we provide statistics relating to school attendance rates among the children in the age group 4-14 years belonging to the above categories, as also separately for male and female and even for rural and urban areas. Again, the information relates to three points of time i.e. 1983, 1987-88, and 1993-94.

It is heartening to observe that over a period of time school attendance rates among the SC and ST children are increasing. But compared to the children belonging to category ‘other’, they are lagging far behind. Further, the gap is much wider in the case of female attendance rates of two Dalit categories vis-à-vis ‘other’. Lastly, the school attendance rates among SC / ST children in the rural areas are more unsatisfactory compared to those in the urban areas. In other words, the school attendance rates among the SC / ST children in general and those among rural female in particular are quite unsatisfactory compared to those among the non-SC / ST children in particular. What is further distressing, the drop–out rates among the SC / ST children are also much higher.

Table-4

School Attendance Rates Among the Children in the Age-group 5-14 yrs.

(i.e. number of children attending the school per 100 children in the age-group)

for different social groups: India

(Figures in per cent)

Social group	School attendance rates among children (5-14yrs.)
	Male			Female
	1983@	1987-88	1993-94	1983@	1987-88	1993-94
Rural
ST	39.50	44.50	57.90	20.40	26.20	40.90
SC	48.90	49.80*	64.30	25.50	31.10*	46.20
Other	59.20	63.40	74.90	39.20	45.80	61.00
All	55.30	58.90	71.00	34.80	41.10	55.90
Urban
ST	67.00	67.20	79.70	52.70	62.30	69.70
SC	66.70	68.20*	77.50	52.30	53.80*	68.60
Other	76.50	78.00	86.80	69.10	72.60	83.00
All	74.80	76.40	85.30	66.40	69.90	80.70

@ Figures correspond to current enrolment rates.

* Neo-Buddhists of Maharashtra are not considered under SC for obtaining the

estimates.

Source: As Table 2

This being the case the levels of education among the SC/ST population compared to the non SC/ST population are bound to be different. How they are different is shown in Table 5.

Thus, Table 5 shows that the levels of middle, secondary and higher secondary education among the male as well as female population in both rural and urban areas among the SC/ST population are much lower compared to non-SC/ST population.

Table-5

Percent Distribution of Persons of Age 15 years and above by General education for Different Social Groups: India

(Figures in per cent)

Social group	Percent distribution of persons (15+) by level of general education
	Not Literate	Literate and up to primary	Middle	Secondary	Higher secondary	Graduate & above	Not recorded	All
	Rural Males
ST	58.80	24.50	9.60	4.30	2.10	7.00	-	100.00
SC	54.20	25.00	11.60	5.50	2.60	1.10	1.00	100.00
Other	34.90	28.90	17.30	10.50	5.00	3.40	-	100.00
All	41.10	27.60	15.40	8.90	4.20	2.60	-	100.00
	Rural Females
ST	84.30	10.10	3.50	1.40	4.00	2.00	-	100.00
SC	82.40	11.60	3.90	1.60	4.00	1.00	-	100.00
Other	65.50	19.00	8.70	4.40	1.50	7.00	-	100.00
All	70.80	16.60	7.30	3.60	1.20	5.00	-	100.00
	Urban Males
ST	25.00	27.60	17.10	14.30	7.60	8.00	2.00	100.00
SC	31.90	29.00	17.80	10.40	6.00	4.80	1.00	100.00
Other	13.70	22.40	18.60	18.60	11.80	14.80	1.00	100.00
All	16.20	23.30	18.40	17.50	11.00	13.40	1.00	100.00
	Urban Females
ST	50.50	19.10	13.30	7.90	5.30	3.50	3.00	100.00
SC	62.00	17.80	10.10	5.50	3.20	1.20	-	100.00
Other	32.20	22.20	14.90	13.90	7.80	8.90	1.00	100.00
All	36.30	21.60	14.30	12.70	7.20	7.80	1.00	100.00

Source: As Table 2

Thus, relatively low school attendance rates accompanied by high drop-out rates among the SC/ST children create an unequal opportunity structure and sow the seeds of low ability of the Dalit Children to benefit from the available opportunities in the various spheres of the society which ultimately result in socio-economic discrimination.

We have already seen above that an overwhelmingly large proportion of SC/ST population living in rural areas work as agricultural labourers. Even the cultivators among them are generally marginal farmers lacking access to productive resources. In view of this, level of education alone could help them cross the boundaries of caste-based occupations/jobs and secure socio-economic enlistment in their lives otherwise suffering from all sorts of deprivations. But the low level of education compels a large section of the Dalits to undertake such occupations/ jobs that earn relatively low income. This has an inevitable consequences for poverty among the Dalits.

Table-6

1993-94 All India: Percent Persons below Poverty Line

Sr. No.	Household Types	ST	SC	Other	All
1.	Sell Employment in Agricultural Household	47.12	37.71	25.57	29.04
2.	Self-Employment in non Agriculture Household	44.70	33.14	29.49	31.95
3.	Agriculture Labour Household	63.86	60.00	52.64	56.78
4.	Other Labour Household	51.69	41.44	35.59	39.59
5.	Other Household	31.39	29.65	20.19	22.47
6.	All Household	52.17	48.14	31.29	37.09

Other - Non-Scheduled Tribe/Scheduled Caste, ST=Scheduled Tribes

Source: National Sample Survey on Consumption expenditure.

For instance, as Table 6 shows the percentage of people below poverty line is lower among all the six categories of people belonging to category ‘other’ (non-SC/ST) compared to the SC/ST population. Again, the levels of poverty are comparatively lower for the people belonging to self-employed groups either in agriculture or in non-agriculture compared to agricultural labour households. Since proportion of households belonging to self-employed in agriculture or in non-agriculture belonging to SC/ST categories is relatively small and those belonging to agricultural labour households and other labour households is much higher compared to the non-SC/ST population, the incidence of poverty is invariably higher among them.

ADVERSE IMPACT OF ECONOMIC REFORMS ON DALIT EDUCATION

Since mid-1991 the Government of India has initiated wide-ranging economic reforms. The main thrust of these reforms is on reducing the role of the ‘State’ in the economic management and giving more free play to the forces of market. Among other things, this has adverse implications for the welfare role of the state. For instance, in order to reduce the fiscal deficit, the Government is trying to reduce expenditure even on vital social services such as health and education. The policy of the Central Government is blindly followed by the state governments. This is shown in Table 7.

Table - 7

Government Revenue Expenditure on Education Centre+States: 1989-90 to 1999-2000

(Rs. Million)

				(%share in total exp.)				(%share in GDP)
Year	Centre	States	Centre+States	Centre	State	GDP current	Centre	States	Centre+States
1989-90	11491.10	138353.10	149844.20	7.67	92.33	4086620	0.28	3.39	3.67
1990-91	12808.50	158112.40	170920.90	7.49	92.51	4778140	0.27	3.31	3.58
1991-92	13768.70	173548.90	187317.60	7.35	92.65	5527680	0.25	3.14	3.39
1992-93	15032.10	195631.70	210663.80	7.14	92.86	6307720	0.24	3.10	3.34
1993-94	18436.90	219079.80	237516.70	7.76	92.24	7328740	0.25	2.99	3.24
1994-95	24552	253742.60	278294.60	8.82	91.18	8680190	0.28	2.92	3.21
1995-96	29832.70	293861.20	323693.90	9.22	90.78	10062860	0.30	2.92	3.22
1996-97	33280.90	335779.30	369060.20	9.02	90.98	11492150	0.29	2.92	3.21
1997-98	44391.40	376558.60	420950.00	10.55	89.45	12756290	0.35	2.95	3.30
1998-99 (RE)	60501.90	483668.10	544170	11.12	88.88	13521670	0.45	3.58	4.02
1999-2000 (BE)	61424.70	594955.30	656380.00	9.36	90.64	14332970	0.43	4.15	4.58

Notes: RE indicates revised estimates

BE indicates budget estimates

Source: Reserve Bank of India: Currency and Finance, various issues

Reserve Bank of India: Reserve Bank of India Bulletin, various issues

It is observed from Table 7 that the expenditure on education by both the Centre and the State together was 3.67 percent of the total GDP of the country. This declined to 3.58 percent in 1991 and further to 3.39 percent in 1991-92. What is disappointing that between 1991-92 and 1997-98 the expenditure remained always lower than what it was even in 1991-92. Such reduction in the expenditure on education must certainly have affected adversely the educational progress of all the deprived sections of the society in general and the Dalits in particular.

It is with this intention that we provide in Table 8 the Central Government Expenditure on SC/ST welfare at constant (1980-81) prices.

Table-8

Central Government’s Expenditure on SC/ST Welfare at Constant (1980-81) Prices

	1990-91	1991-92	1992-93	1993-94	1994-95	1995-96	1996-97	1997-98
Total Expenditure (Rs. Crore)	286.50	300.77	303.17	346.26	355.04	370.70	345.98	405.16
Per capita Expenditure (Rs.)	3.41	3.51	3.48	3.90	3.93	4.03	3.70	4.26
Percentage of GDP	0.12	0.12	0.12	0.13	0.12	0.12	0.10	0.12

Source: Government of India, Various Issues of Budget Document.

Table 8 shows that the total expenditure on SC/ST welfare at constant prices varied between the range of Rs.286.65 crores in 1991 and Rs. 405.16 crores in 1997-98. What is intriguing, per capita expenditure on the SC/ST welfare was around Rs.3.50 to Rs. 4. In terms of GDP, such expenditure remained only 0.12 percent. In other words, the three types of information presented in Table 8 indirectly show the share of expenditure on the Dalits in the total national income of the country. In view of all sorts of deprivation that are inflicted upon the SC/ST population on the one hand, and their urge to go for education in general and higher education in particular with a view to crossing the shackles and indignities imposed on them by the caste system the expenditure on them is disastrously insignificant.

WHAT IS TO BE DONE? OR THE TASK BEFORE DALIT ORGANISATIONS:

Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar correctly understood the importance of education as the most powerful instrument to free the Dalits from the century-old miseries, sufferings, insult and stigma inflicted on them by the caste system. It is in view of this that in his life symbolised by innumerable upheavals, and relentless activities he established in 1945 the People’s Education Society. The Society had played a pioneering role in spreading the higher education among all the deprived sections of the society including obviously the Dalits. The entire post-Independence Dalit generation in Maharashtra is the creation of the People’s Education Society.

But now the things are changing fast. The whole world as also India have set in the motion the forces of globalisation, liberalization and privatization. Market is fast replacing the ‘Welfare State’. Competition has become the order of the day. The Reservation Policy of the State that did help the Dalits to secure socio-economic mobility and upliftment is fast eroding. Under such circumstances, what will be the future of Dalits in general and those in rural areas without access to land, capital, other types of skills etc. in particular? The task is indeed formidable. I therefore would take liberty to suggest a few things as a matter of agenda relating to the Dalit Education. This is because I am fully convinced that in the midst of all sorts of inequalities and changing scenario, it is only the higher education that would act as the surest and soundest key to the Dalit progress.

The suggestions are as follows:

i Educated Dalits must undertake a mass movement to encourage literacy among the Dalit communities.

ii All school and college going - Dalit boys and girls must devote some of their time to help their illiterate fraternity to become literate.

iii All Dalit voluntary organizations must make serious efforts to enhance the school attending rates and prevent high drop-out rates

iv Even after 50 years of independence the country could not achieve more than 52 percent literacy rate. All deprived sections and particularly Dalit men and women are the main victims of illiteracy. This makes imperative that all Dalits struggle and pressurize the Government for making free primary education to all.

v Dalits must come forward and establish secondary schools and colleges on co-operative basis.

vi They should undertake establishing other educational institutions which could conduct professional courses in finance, marketing, management, information technology, journalism, mass media and so on. These vocational courses would enable Dalit boys and girls to acquire access to skills which are very much essential in the contemporary economy demanding skilled personnel.

vii The Dalit organizations, institutions and academicians must concentrate on establishing and running residential hostels in every taluka in the country. They must bring pressure on the Government to adopt such poor-friendly educational policy and spend more and meaningfully on the education of the poor and particularly the Dalits.

viii Such comprehensive, long-drawn and sustained educational campaign and programme will certainly usher new dawn in the midst of the present stalement created by all sorts of unfavourable factors. Education is thus not only a means of livelihood but also an effective instrument for social transformation. It is only the access to better education that would enable the Dalits to exercise their human rights in more effective and meaningful manner.

ix This calls for co-operation of all international Dalit organizations. I would suggest the formation of the International Dalit Organisation, on par with ILO, to monitor and guide such national/international campaign. It should act as a catalyst agent for spreading of the revolutionary message which is an integral part of the comprehensive strategy of social transformation including the establishment and exercise of Dalit human rights.

EDUCATION: THE ONLY KEY TO DALIT PROGRESS

ADVERSE IMPACT OF ECONOMIC REFORMS ON DALIT EDUCATION

Table - 7

Government Revenue Expenditure on Education Centre+States: 1989-90 to 1999-2000

Year

Centre

Centre+States

State

Centre

States

Centre+States