A Clarion Call for the rights of the very deprived and poor Weavers of our Country. pl read and spread..only 3 days

[The Mentalist]

A Clarion Call for the rights of the very deprived and poor Weavers of
our Country
An appeal to fellow citizens to rise and fight for them by spreading
this article and creating awareness of their conditions amongst
Indians.
Handloom weavers and their family members may die from tuberculosis in
Uttar Pradesh due to poor living conditions
"Tuberculosis and malnutrition is common,"
The skilled hands of weavers are being engaged in other jobs such as
driving rickshaw, selling vegetables, laying roads and even begging.
Thousands of weavers have committed suicide and yet, do not figure in
public consciousness or government agendas, or merit media coverage.
There are over two lakh weavers in and around Varanasi. But less than
55,000 get a job in a year leaving the remaining 1.5 lakh weavers
jobless.
50 percent of children in weaver families are malnutritioned,
concluded pilot survey conducted NGOs in some of the weaver
communities. "In blatant violation of Supreme Court orders, a number
of children can be seen tosurvive on a mere bowl or two of plain rice
and some bread. Some times they get nothing at all.

Access to Credit Issues
Presently, large majority of the weavers do not have the bank accounts
and accessing credit from formal institutions remains a distant dream.
Barely ten per cent of weavers, mainly those associated with Handloom
Cooperatives, receive bank credit and other monetary support from
government those outside the cooperative umbrella, get nothing. The
Planning Commission acknowledges that 80 per cent of handloom weavers
depend on private money lenders who charge exorbitant interest rates.
Due to the lack of credit from banking institutions, weavers are
forced into exploitative relationships with money-lenders, who give
them credit on exorbitant terms and traders, who advance production
credit, and use the leverage gained to suppress wages.

Open Letter from Shri Muralidhar Rao ON EVE OF HIS 3 DAY FAST IN
HYDERABAD IN SUPPORT OF THE DEPRIVED WEAVER SOCIETY-to fellow Indians
for support to this deprived segment of Indian Society (Excerpts)

http://muralidharrao.in/profile

The condition of the common weavers in the country continue to remain
desperate and distraught.

The Planning Commission acknowledges that 80 per cent of handloom
weavers depend on private money lenders who charge exorbitant interest
rates.

The condition of weavers, during the rule of Congress led UPA, has
deteriorated sharply all across the country, but nowhere more so than
in the state of Andhra Pradesh. Suicides by weavers have reached
epidemic proportions.

According to state government figures, 700 weavers committed suicide
in Andhra Pradesh in recent times (the actual figure is around 2,000).

Wages have not increased in the last 15 years. Some sections of
handloom weavers are living in hand-to-mouth conditions, with no house
or assets.

Read and spread the FULL APPEAL ON
http://bjpcitizenreporter.blogspot.com/2011/12/clarion-call-for-rights-of-very.html

LETS SHOW OUR BROTHERS AND SISTERS THAT WE CARE...

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Thanks & Regards

Addy

M: 9886230107

Bijapur-586101

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