Read Online Where Angels Prey by Ramesh S Arunachalam - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Ramesh S Arunachalam
Tags: Reference
Ads: Link
after India achieved its independence, the practice of bonded labour as a form of modern slavery continues to exist. The economically
backward Ranga Reddy district has always found itself in the eye of this controversy. When news of Veena Mehra assuming office as DM broke, those who knew of her tough stance against all forms of exploitation found reason to celebrate. On her part, immediately upon taking over, she promised to act on an ILO-sponsored report containing 30 bonded labour case studies in the district.
Rajayya’s father had been a bonded labourer too; it was a family tradition. With no fixed or movable assets, the only thing of value he had to pledge at the time of a financial crisis, was the family’s physical labour. Rajayya was first pledged to the landlord at the age of seven for a sum of Rs 25,000 and was given the responsibility of grazing the landlord’s cattle. He was paid a nominal salary of Rs 50 per year. While it took ten years to repay the original loan, the family had taken more loans to pay for weddings, funerals, illnesses and the like, in the interim. As a result, Rajayya was never a free man. Not until the government, in the form of Veena Mehra, intervened, that is!
Watching Rajayya leave her office with his family after repeatedly expressing his gratitude, Veena feels a quite a sense of satisfaction. This feeling is one of the perks of her job, to be revisited every time circumstances or forces beyond her control challenge or frustrate her. The challenges and frustrations definitely outnumber the scattered moments of contentment. Yet, it is the latter that make her efforts seem worthwhile. Despite belonging to what can be described as a privileged, high-caste background, she has always been a firm believer in the universal right to human dignity. After a degree in electronics engineering from the prestigious Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Bombay, she chose to enter the Indian Administrative Service (IAS), when most of her colleagues were jetting off to foreign shores in pursuit of higher education or other opportunities.
While securing a man’s freedom is a worthy task in itself, it does not completely resolve the problem at hand. The government can exert its authority in releasing those who are in bondage and even punish those who have been oppressing them, but the larger issue of lack of access to resources and the resultant indebtedness remains. With no other resource but their own physical labour from which to eke out a living, the poor are forced to turn to their employers at the time of financial need. The employers, be they landlords, brick kiln or factory owners, make good use of the opportunity to extract cheap labour and keep them bound to them for years at length.
While the government and other agencies have tried to tackle this very need for livelihood opportunities, a steady income source and access to finance in emergencies through a variety of schemes, each of them has had its own share of attendant problems.
Veena’s mind goes back to the call that she had received from the Principal Secretary (Rural Development, GoAP), MR, just a couple of days ago.
“Your favourite bête noire is causing havoc yet again!”
While Veena had an inkling of what he was referring to,
she had wanted to make sure just in case.
“Sir, there are so many of them that I have lost count. Which one are you referring to?”
“You are among the few sincere and straightforward officers we have, Veena. So yes, the bête noires are many. But this one is surely special. This one had you winning a Presidential medal when your opponents were hoping you would be suspended in disgrace!”
Veena could not resist a dry smile, though she knew MR would have no way of seeing her expression.
MR had been referring to the Krishna Crisis 5 , of course. It was one of her earliest battles, coming within a year of her first posting as District Magistrate of Krishna District. Although her family
backward Ranga Reddy district has always found itself in the eye of this controversy. When news of Veena Mehra assuming office as DM broke, those who knew of her tough stance against all forms of exploitation found reason to celebrate. On her part, immediately upon taking over, she promised to act on an ILO-sponsored report containing 30 bonded labour case studies in the district.
Rajayya’s father had been a bonded labourer too; it was a family tradition. With no fixed or movable assets, the only thing of value he had to pledge at the time of a financial crisis, was the family’s physical labour. Rajayya was first pledged to the landlord at the age of seven for a sum of Rs 25,000 and was given the responsibility of grazing the landlord’s cattle. He was paid a nominal salary of Rs 50 per year. While it took ten years to repay the original loan, the family had taken more loans to pay for weddings, funerals, illnesses and the like, in the interim. As a result, Rajayya was never a free man. Not until the government, in the form of Veena Mehra, intervened, that is!
Watching Rajayya leave her office with his family after repeatedly expressing his gratitude, Veena feels a quite a sense of satisfaction. This feeling is one of the perks of her job, to be revisited every time circumstances or forces beyond her control challenge or frustrate her. The challenges and frustrations definitely outnumber the scattered moments of contentment. Yet, it is the latter that make her efforts seem worthwhile. Despite belonging to what can be described as a privileged, high-caste background, she has always been a firm believer in the universal right to human dignity. After a degree in electronics engineering from the prestigious Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Bombay, she chose to enter the Indian Administrative Service (IAS), when most of her colleagues were jetting off to foreign shores in pursuit of higher education or other opportunities.
While securing a man’s freedom is a worthy task in itself, it does not completely resolve the problem at hand. The government can exert its authority in releasing those who are in bondage and even punish those who have been oppressing them, but the larger issue of lack of access to resources and the resultant indebtedness remains. With no other resource but their own physical labour from which to eke out a living, the poor are forced to turn to their employers at the time of financial need. The employers, be they landlords, brick kiln or factory owners, make good use of the opportunity to extract cheap labour and keep them bound to them for years at length.
While the government and other agencies have tried to tackle this very need for livelihood opportunities, a steady income source and access to finance in emergencies through a variety of schemes, each of them has had its own share of attendant problems.
Veena’s mind goes back to the call that she had received from the Principal Secretary (Rural Development, GoAP), MR, just a couple of days ago.
“Your favourite bête noire is causing havoc yet again!”
While Veena had an inkling of what he was referring to,
she had wanted to make sure just in case.
“Sir, there are so many of them that I have lost count. Which one are you referring to?”
“You are among the few sincere and straightforward officers we have, Veena. So yes, the bête noires are many. But this one is surely special. This one had you winning a Presidential medal when your opponents were hoping you would be suspended in disgrace!”
Veena could not resist a dry smile, though she knew MR would have no way of seeing her expression.
MR had been referring to the Krishna Crisis 5 , of course. It was one of her earliest battles, coming within a year of her first posting as District Magistrate of Krishna District. Although her family
Similar Books
![Fire of the Wolf [The Gray Pack] (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour)](https://fs.dianahicksbooks.com/498033/thumbs/152x264/fire-of-the-wolf-the-gray-pack-siren-publishing-menage-amour.png)
