Booklet on SC/ST rights, benefits soon

Police and social welfare dept will work on the handbook

Addressing the SC/ST Meet held in Madikeri District Superintendent of Police Manjunath Annigeri said that there is lack of awareness with regard to the facilities being extended to the SC/STs under various schemes and the protection that the SC/STs are entitled to get. This lack of awareness is affecting the SC/ST families dwelling in rural areas specifically.

“Discussion will be held with the District Social Welfare Officer and steps will be taken to distribute the hand book through 98 GPs in the district,” he said adding that such an attempt has already been made in Dakshina Kannada district.
He said that strict action will be initiated against those police officials who back out from filing complaints from SC/STs.

“Legal awareness camps are being held at various places in the district and in the taluk. These camps must be held in rural areas,” he said informing that the District Sessions Court will be urged to do the needful in this regard.

Virajpet Taluk Dalit leaders Subbaiah and Kushalnagar Dalit leader Damodar said that since there is no proper cremation ground the Dalits in the district are facing lot of inconvenience. They said that steps should be taken to allot land for the said purpose.
Bahujana Karmika Sangha President Hodduru Monappa said that dalit workers are being assaulted in the district frequently. “Communalism still has strong hold in the rural areas.

This must be rooted out,” he said.

Suntikoppa Gram Panchayat Member Sandeep said that people are being proselytised in the district unabated, which needs to be stopped.

Responding to the same, the SP said that choosing which faith to follow is an individual’s choice.

There can be no action taken against a person for changing his faith however, if there has been coercive conversion or if the person has been lured to change his faith then legal action can be taken against the party which makes advances for the conversion.