by Nanak Singh Nishter

Keynote address at a University Grants Commission sponsored National Seminar on Entrepreneurship Development Among Minorities – Opportunities And Challenges.

Introduction

I wish to congratulate the Department of Commerce, Osmania University, Hyderabad, for organising a UGC Sponsored National Seminar on “Entrepreneurship Development Among Minorities – Opportunities And Challenges” on 20 and 21 December 2005. In India people with vested interest misrepresent the term Minority for Muslims alone. I am deeply touched by the spirit of the Convenor & Seminar Director, Janab Prof. Mohd. Akbar Ali Khan Sahib, for involving minorities other than Muslims by making them participate actively and project their grievances at a Truly Common Forum For All Minorities. Personally I, with the depth of my heart, express my gratitude for involving me as a Guest of Honour at the Valedictory Function.

Yesterday and in the morning session today, I focussed upon the challenges faced by minorities in general and suggested certain solutions. In this paper, I would like to focus the challenges the Sikh minority group is facing throughout the country.

You would agree that unless each and every minority community gets its share in development, the concept of development of the Nation does not fulfil itself. That is how several minority welfare schemes have been introduced, but failed to achieve their desired results. Unfortunately a vast majority of the minorities does not get its share in the welfare schemes; only the lucky few with pulls and pressures get the lion’s share, remaining do not get the fruits of these schemes. I know my limitations, I am not competent enough to speak about other minorities, and will confine my paper to project the grievances of the Sikh community.

You will be surprised to know that, in India, the status of the scattered Sikh minority outside the Punjab is miserable. There is a wrong notion that Sikhs belong to Punjab, whereas according the Government of India Census 2001, about one fourth of the Sikh population reside outside Punjab.

They are the most neglected lot of all religious groups and are severely discriminated due their separate identity and appearance. There are certain misconceptions behind it. Although this statement seems to be not related with the subject of the Seminar, we can never assess Sikh grievances unless this background is first understood.

Reservations

The Constitution says that, “No person professing a religion different from Hindu or Sikh religion can deemed to be a member of Scheduled Caste ”, but in none of the State in the country any community of the Sikh, like the Hindus, is considered as Scheduled Caste except in the erstwhile territories of Bi-lingual Punjab state. Sikhism does not believe in caste system, but some down trodden communities do exist under the influence of Indian culture, social behaviour and their professions.

Unfortunately beyond Punjab, not even a single Sikh community is recognised as Backward Class. Whereas, almost all other religious communities avail the benefits of reservations in education, scholarships and employment, by their classification as Scheduled Tribe, Scheduled Caste or Backward Class. Even the very well placed Anglo-Indian community with a population of hardly 4 lakhs has got reservations in professional courses, services, Legislative Assemblies and Parliament.

Poverty Line

There is a misconception that Sikhs are an affluent community, because no Sikh is found begging any where in the world. Poverty is our national phenomenon and Sikhs are no exemption to it. The reason for their not begging lies in their first of Sikhism’s three basic tenets: 1- Earn the livelihood with honest labour, 2- Always remember God, 3- Utilize your earning by distributing among people. In Sikhism, worship comes after labour, and no person can claim to be a Sikh unless he works for a living. This prevents the Sikh to spread his hand before anybody.

The 2001 Government of India Census shows the literacy rate among Hindus as 54.92 %, Muslims as 59.1 and the Sikhs as 60.55 %. For census purposes a person is considered literate if he is able to read and write with understanding in any one language, regular education is not necessary. This alarming rate of about 40% illiteracy among Sikhs is due to poverty. It shows that about half of the Sikh population is living at poverty or below poverty line. They are ranked third from the bottom, i.e., they are slightly better placed than the people who do not have shelter on their heads and do not get one square meal a day.

Fruits of Freedom

The Sikhs paid the heaviest price during the freedom struggle, partition of the country, and in defence of the nation. Though they consist upon 2% of the total population, in the year 1863 they initiated Swadeshi Movement popularly known as the Kuka movement and subsequently launched a non-violent Satyagraha for freedom of Gurdwaras and the country. They contributed cent percent i.e., 16 martyrs were blown off by being tied to the mouth of the canons in a public show. Their share was 80% in all other sufferings and sacrifices including the confiscation of properties.

In free India, the Sikhs are constrained to believe that discrimination against them is continued; for them only the rulers are changed from foreigners to indigenous. Out of Punjab, they do not have any representation in legislature, judiciary, bureaucracy and public bodies, so their grievances are not focussed. As such, there are quite a few negligible Sikh beneficiaries in almost all minority or other welfare schemes.

Status Of the Sikhs

Outside Punjab, the Sikhs are a neglected lot. They are economically downtrodden, educationally backward, socially isolated and the mostly misrepresented and ignored. I am not asking that they should be included in any of the reservation categories at par with other religious communities, but I am rightfully demanding to provide them, and all other minority groups’, equal opportunities of development, which they deserve. On 22nd October 2005 in a public hearing at Hyderabad, I also brought these facts to the knowledge of the Chairman, National Commission For Religious & Linguistic Minorities and submitted a memorandum demanding for 10% reservation for Sikhs in all welfare schemes.

Proposal for Justified share

I am concluding with a proposal for development of minorities in view of the subject of the seminar. My humble submission is that every minority community should compulsorily have certain allotted percentage of share in all welfare schemes. This will enable all minorities to avail the welfare schemes uniformly, without any voice of discrimination. My submission before this august body is to recommend to allot a reservation of 10% for Sikh Minority Group in all Minority Welfare Schemes so that they could also avail their due share in entrepreneurial development at par with other minorities of the nation.

Release of Margin Money

Presently the Minorities’ Financing agencies are releasing margin money to entrepreneurs through Scheduled Banks after they agree to advance the loan to the individual. It is a general complaint that the attitude of the bankers is not encouraging in most of the cases. They prefer to advance the loans only to resourceful and affluent borrowers. It is beyond the reach of a common man to satisfy their rigid norms, and through this forum, I will like to appeal to the Minorities’ Financing Agencies to extend the purview of releasing the margin money from Scheduled Banks to Co-Operative Banks and Co-Operative Credit Societies also, that can scrutinise and advance loans to the entrepreneurs. This will provide smooth access and interaction with the beneficiaries, and serve the very purpose of uplift of minorities in the long run.


Copyright©2006 Baldev Singh. About the author