"breaking margins" a photo exhibition on manual scavenging at British Council, 17, Kasturba Gandhi Marg > 10th-22nd December 2012

Time : 
10th December : 4:00 pm onwards - Inauguration by Shri Jairam Ramesh, Minister for Rural Development and British High Commissioner 
11th December to 22nd December : 9:30 am - 6:00 pm (Sundays closed) - Exhibition on View

Entry : Free

Place : British Council, 17, Kasturba Gandhi Marg, New Delhi-110001
Venue Info : Events | About | Map | Nearest Metro Station - 'Barakhamba(Blue Line)' 

Event Description : 'breaking margins' a photo exhibition on manual scavenging.
An inspiring story of socially excluded communities challenging the caste driven practice of manual scavenging by breaking the margins of untouchability and discrimination told through images by Sanjit Das, Firoz Ahmad Firoz and NoLogo to mark the UN Human Rights Day’s theme of social inclusion and participation in public life.

Why :
Even after six decade of political independence, every day, 2 million people in India (of which 97% are Dalit women and children) are forced to clean human excrement with their bare hands in a practice known as manual scavenging.
Despite the law against physically removing human excreta or night soil, mostly by Dalit women, the Employment of Manual Scavengers and Construction of Dry Latrines (Prohibition) Act, 1993 has failed to have a decisive impact.
 It is shocking that not even a single successful prosecution has happened under the Act till today.

The need :
Even as we speak a new bill prohibiting non-flushing toilets with a one-year jail term and/or a fine of up to 50,000 rupees (900 dollars) for anyone who employs a manual scavenger awaits approval by the parliament.
On June 17, 2011, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh of India, in a moment of historical precedent, called manual scavenging “one of the darkest blots on [India’s] development process” and asked all State Ministers in the country to pledge to eliminate this “abominable practice” from every corner of India.
There is a need to raise a hue and cry to break the silence around this caste based social exclusion that keeps slipping down the national agenda because it finds few takers at the national level.
Besides advocacy, we hope to bring the struggles and successes of women and men from the community who have come together as a community and have fought against the worst kind of stigma that holds back thousands of families in a socially ostracized and slavery like condition.

How :
The photo exhibition brings stories and visual narratives punctuated by community perspectives through 18 images and text plates. These will be displayed along with a panel discussion around 10th of December 2012 to mark UN Human Rights Day.
This exhibition will also be created digitally on a website that will feed the social media channels. 

About Us : The Poorest Areas Civil Society (PACS) Programme is an initiative of the UK Government’s Department for International Development (DFID) aimed at reducing the gap in wellbeing status between socially excluded groups in India and the rest of the population.
Website : www.pacsindia.org

Related Events : PhotoExhibits | Exhibitions