3/25/13

The unexpected rise of dalit millionaires: Swaminathan S Anklesaria Aiyar - Economic Times
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Swaminathan S Anklesaria Aiyar, TNN Jul 31, 2011, 10.36am IST

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job reservations

HPC L

Devesh Kapur

Das

dalit millionaires

Bhagwan Gawai

For centuries, dalits have been at the bottom of the income and social ladders, despised and exploited.
Independent India aimed to improve their lot through job reservations, but with very limited results.
Nevertheless, empowerment through democracy and economic opportunities created by 20 years of
economic reform have created an astonishing new phenomenonthe rise of dalit millionaires.
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They have now established a Dalit Chambers of Commerce and Industry in Mumbai. It is no more than a
start. But at long last, some dalits have ceased to be objects of pity, and become objects of envy.
The Economic Times has been running a series of features since July 18 on dalit entrepreneurs. Many came
from lower middle class families, got a decent education, and then made good. But others came from
labourer families, and their rise is especially heartening.
Bhagwan Gawai worked as a construction labourer as a boy in Mumbai. But he completed school and
college, and then joined HPCL. He always got good appraisals but these were tampered with by casteconscious colleagues, so he was denied the promotions he deserved. He sued HPCL on grounds of
discrimination, and won.
Later HPCL posted him in Dubai. There he acquired Arab friends who became his partners in a new trading
business. This business now has a turnover of a whopping $20 million. He has also brought 30 dalit
entrepreneurs together under a holding company, Maitreya Developers.
Sushil Patil's father was a labourer in an ordnance factory, who educated his son. He had to plead with the
college dean to waive the last year's fees, which he could not afford. The investment paid off. Sushil was
employed in various firms, but then decided to start his own business, with the help of small loans. He failed
in a series of ventures. But he persevered, and ultimately set up a firm, IEPC, providing engineering
procurement and construction services. This now has revenues of Rs 280 crore per year.
Ashok Khade's father was a cobbler, working under a tree in Mumbai. Ashok went to college and then joined
Mazagon Docks. He acquired skills in offshore maintenance and construction. Today, his company DAS
Offshore is a major offshore services company and he now plans a jetty fabrication yard that will employ
2,500 workers. He does not believe in caste reservationonly 1% of his workers are dalits.
Another dalit, Balu, manufactures soldering equipment with revenues of Rs 2.5 crore. He says 32 girls in a
row rejected him as a marriage partner because of his poor prospects! His weak business was regarded as
insecure. He says many dalit businessmen hide their caste identity to avoid social sigma and loss of
business. That mentality sorely needs to change.
In all these cases, education was a key input. Alas, rural government schools are so terrible that many dalits
remain functionally illiterate and handicapped. Even so, they have made astonishing strides in the last 20

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The unexpected rise of dalit millionaires: Swaminathan S Anklesaria Aiyar - Economic Times
years, as revealed by a seminal study by Devesh Kapur and others.
This study looked at dalits in blocks in western and eastern Uttar Pradesh. The proportion of dalits owning
their own business was up from 6% to 36.7% in western UP, and from 4.2% to 11% in eastern UP. The
proportion in non-traditional occupations (like tailors, masons etc) was up from 14% to 37% in the east, and
from 9.3% to 42% in western UP.
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Many dalits in eastern UP were once locked into the halwaha (bonded labour) system. This has virtually
disappeared: the halwaha proportion is down from 32.1% to 1.1%. The proportion of dalit households doing any
farm labour has plummeted from 76% to 45.6% in the east, and from 46.1% to just 20.5% in the west.
Encouragingly, the proportion depending on their own land is up from 16.6% to 28.4% in the east, and from
50.5% to 67.6% in the west.
Political parties shout themselves hoarse over job reservations. Yet, the dalit family proportion in government
jobs has actually fallen from 7.2% to 6.8% in the east, and risen marginally from 5% to 7.3% in the west.
Clearly, job reservation has not been a key factor in UP's social revolution. The main drivers of improvement
have been the new opportunities arising from fast growth created by economic reforms, plus the empowerment
drive of dalit chief minister Mayawati.
Indian leftists keep chanting that economic reforms have created new inequalities. They may even criticize the
rise of dalit millionaires as a new sort of inequality. Phooey! This is a magnificent success. It shows that dalits
have become empowered enough to soar into the millionaire range. Long live such inequality!
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The unexpected rise of dalit millionaires: Swaminathan S Anklesaria Aiyar - Economic Times
Readers' opinions (6)
Sort by: Newest | Oldest
k.a. venkiteswaran (Kochi)
21 Aug, 2011 08:38 AM
This shows that the dalits and other backward sections are slowly but surely coming up the economic scale.
Rise of Ms. Mayavathi, Mr. Nitish Kumar and other leaders from the backward classes is also a pointer in this
direction. But these leaders who have come up the hard way and risen to the top should not forget the less
fortunate from their social background and take concerted efforts to lift them up.
Patriot (Bharat)
19 Aug, 2011 03:47 PM
Dalit means "Kuchlaa hua". In today's India "kuchlaa hua" is the group which is not able to get admission or job
because of the load of reservation, inspite of its being brilliant and hard working.
Subhash Mantri (USA)
19 Aug, 2011 07:14 AM
Now time comes that we should reconsider Reservation policy in proper prospective taking in consideration the
financial conditions also but keeping at par the talent.
ramesh (MUMBAI)
10 Aug, 2011 03:47 PM
can anybody tell the indians what is the basis of reservation.......hypocracy and not ignorance is root cause of
india's grass root problems.....we are afraid to call a spade a spade.....we have a habbit of calling a murder an
accident.......the fact still remains that dalits get reservation because they are dalits and not mearly because they
ary economically backward......
S K Iyer (Chennai)
01 Aug, 2011 01:52 PM
I guess it will take atleast a generation more to rid ourselves of this categoristic-mentality of labelling ourselves
as 'dalits' and whatnots. Why cant ET call this a " Rags to Riches" story instead of calling it a "Dalit Millionaire"
story?
Hari (Chennau) replies to S K Iyer
02 Aug, 2011 02:28 PM
Well said sir. Even the Apex court has restricted the use of the word 'Dalit'.
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