| Ministry among the Stone
Breakers - Introduction |
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Bangalore
is a fast growing e-commerce city. Buildings and
sky scrapers are shooting up in every nook and
cranny like mushrooms. Flyovers are being built
to accommodate the commuter traffic and in order
to raise these structures, the raw materials are
blasted, broken down by hand and brought from
the granite quarries situated on the outskirts
of Bangalore. Men, women and children work in
these quarries filling lorry loads of granite,
they are paid a pittance, and half is taken at
source to repay loans, many suffer dreadful injuries
from the blasting and have no money or facilities
for medical care. Quarry work is one of the most
flourishing businesses in Bangalore where the
owner reaps huge profits, while the laborers barely
survive. They live in very primitive hut constructions
with hardly any possessions. Their children are
left to fend for themselves, there is no education
for these children and when reaching the age of
10 yrs are forced to join with their parents’
stone breaking from dawn to dusk. At night the
blasting is carried out and many injuries are
sustained. It is estimated that there are 400
thousand quarry workers in Karnataka state.
The quarry
work is dominated by a people group called Gowndars.
They are one of the dominant agrarian communities
in the neighboring state of Tamil Nadu. They are
forced to take up the hard quarry work, due to
the scarcity of water in their native villages.
There is no irrigation water for their land so
they are unable to grow crops, even to fetch drinking
water from the open or bore wells; people have
to walk many miles. In-fact there is no access
to the basic needs of life; in desperation they
migrate into Karnataka and became quarry workers
called stone breakers, most take loans of money
from the quarry owners at exorbitant interest
rates, many to pay off previous loans or provide
a dowry, and pay for their daughters’ marriage.
They are now beholden to the Quarry owners as
very rarely can they earn enough from their labors
to pay the loan off.
People,
who take up this job, will have debts in
their native villages or unavoidable family
commitments. Initially a family can take
an advance of 50 to 70 thousand Rupees (1315
to 1845 Dollars). It is like a golden handshake
for them, but it turns out to be their misery.
They have to work in the quarry throughout
the year trying to repay the loan.
They
are at the mercy of the owners without any
hope of justice in getting their wages.
There is no accommodation or basic facilities
provided. Most live in almost stone age
conditions, sheltered by temporary thatched
roofed sheds around the quarry, when it
rains there is no shelter. They have very
basic cooking vessels and hardly any possessions.
No medical or social help is provided and
in all areas they are exploited.
Their
daily income depends upon the stamina of
each person. If a person is healthy and
all the members of his family work hard
they may be able to repay the original loan.
However, very quickly they are bonded to
the next loan to pay for their food and
survival.
Often they fall sick, due to hard work,
malnutrition, alcoholism, adultery, drug
addiction, etc. Many grow drugs and make
rough alcohol they then become addicted
to both drugs and alcohol to escape the
bodily pain of illness, or the daily grind
of hard physical work. Thus they become
entangled in the vicious loan circle taking
more loans for medical treatment or the
pressing needs of the family. To clear these
loans, the entire family is forced to work
in the quarry.
Idoltary
- They are exclusively Hindus.
Their religious practice includes: idol
worship, blood sacrifice, observing time
and omens, regular visits to the pilgrim
centers, and astrologers etc. These religious
practices are very expensive and create
a huge economic strain on the family.
Alcoholism
& Drug Addiction - Alcoholism
and drug abuse are very common in this community.
They drink and take drugs in order to reduce
the body pain caused by hard work in the
quarry. These habits lead to increased debts,
as well as many physical and psychological
problems.
Immorality - There is no
moral code in this community. Immorality
is a common practice and prostitution has
become lucrative and rampant amongst the
quarry workers. Many are infected by HIV
and AIDS, causing premature death and orphaned
children.
Infanticide - When a child
is born into a quarry worker's family, the
head of the family consults the Poojari
(Hindu Priest) to find out whether the child
has any evil influences. The Poojari performs
the Poojas (rituals) in order to find the
Dhosams (curses of Gods, Goddesses, or ancestors).
If the Poojari says that the child has Dhosams,
the father kills the innocent child immediately
by putting the juice of a poisonous herb
into his mouth. The belief behind this cruel
act is that if the child lives, the Dhosam
of the child will kill the father and ruin
the family. If there is already a girl child
in the family and the second child happens
to be a female, they kill the baby without
consulting the Poojari, because the girl
child will be a burden to the family.
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