2007 Award: Khabhar Laharia, UP
Photo: Vidya
Bhushan Rawat presenting Rs 10,000 award
to editors of Khabar Lahariya from left to right Kavita, Meera and
Shanti.
Report from Mr Vidya Bhushan Rawat, UP (on May 31, 2008)
Dear Brother
Benjamin,
Jai bheem !!
I am happy to inform you that we have finally organised a programme to
honor
the Khabar Lahariya team led by its editor Meera, Shanti and Kavita,
whose
lives are role model for many of us. I heard their stories and their
clarity of
thoughts on the issue of women's empowerment. The programme coincided
with
Khabar Lahariya's 7th birthday. It started on May 31st, 2002 and hence
it marks
an important ocassion in the history of journalism which is not only
corportised but also anti women. According to its editor Meera, who is
a post
graduate in Political science, the entire Khabar Lahariya team is led
by Dalit
women with several reporters belonging to backwards and Muslim
community women
also. Khabar Lahariya is fortnightly and has turned weekly in
Chitrakoot. it is
published from two publication centre of Banda and Chitrakoot. The
combined
circulation in a month is about 10,000 copies. The focus is the new
reporting
through women's angle.
The programme was organised at the office of Khabar Lahariya where the
entire
team was present including journalists from all major Hindi Newspapers
and
local TV channels. Apart from this, several social activists also
participated
in it.
I informed them about Ambedkar Scholarship Programme and how initiative
taken
by you have now become a movement where everyone is contributed. About
10 lakh
rupees were disbursed to various Dalit scholars including several girls
from
scavenging community in Uttar-Pradesh. Our aim is to encourage Dalit
students
who are unable to complete their education because of lack of
resources. I also
informed them about the philosophy of Dr Ambedkar and introduced you as
an
Ambedkarite Indian living in the United States who is concerned about
India and
its vast Dalit population.
The editor Meera, as well as Kavita and Shanti, thanked Ambedkar
Scholarship
for selecting them for this honor. It will help them build the
circulation of
the paper and help them strengthen their movement. Though Khabar
Lahariya at
the moment is being managed by Nirantar Trust but the process for an
independent Khabar Lahariya is on and soon it would be registered as
society.
Meera also said that she wants to see Khabar Lahariya to publish from
other
states also. They have used the paper to send the message to the
authorities
that incidents of corruption, violence against women particularly
Dalits and
Dalit women will get priority in their paper and they would nail all
the ugly
politics behind it. They agreed to our perception that there is a dire
need to
promote Dalit Bahujan's cultural identity and the idealism of our great
leaders
led by Baba Saheb Ambedkar.
I will be sending you a detailed article in a few days. Actually, I
have been
travelling a lot, find little time to write these days. The work load
has been
tremendous as being in the movement we have to rush to help people and
support
them.
Sorry I tried to send you photographs but it is UP, everything is
absolutely
the on the wrong side. I will try send them tomorrow..
--
Vidya Bhushan Rawat