The untouchables of Kerala's Kasargod
KASARGOD: For over four decades, Mankukutty T (60), a member of Moger Scheduled Caste community, had been working as a coconut and arecanut plucker for a 'pattar' - a term the workers use to describe the wealthy and landed Brahmins.
Every evening, Mankukutty would be at the landlord's courtyard to receive his daily wage. With cupped hands and stretched arms, he would be waiting.
"The 'pattar' used to stand at the wraparound of the house and drop the wage into my hands," said the Tulu-speaking Mankukutty.
The 'pattar' not only ensured he did not touch Mankukutty, but also made it a point to be seen not touching him. If the 'pattar' was not around, the woman of the house would place the money on the wraparound and step back. The coconut plucker would take the money and leave the courtyard.
This was not a practise of the bygone era. In Kasargod district's gram panchayats that border Karnataka, untouchability and caste discrimination is a part of everyday life.
"I still receive my wage like that," said Mankukutty, a resident of Thottathumoola colony in Bellur panchayat, just 40km from Kasargod town. But now there is a certain defiance in his voice and sounds unhappy about it. The other residents of the colony and neighbouring Posolige colony too have stopped working for the landlord.
"They realised the brutality of this discrimination when Manku's son Ravi was left to die when he was bitten by a snake while working for the pattar" said Jayan Kadakam, a local leader of the DYFI, the youth wing of the CPM.
Venom of untouchability
Last October, the landlord called Ravi to destroy a wasp nest in his property.
"It was getting dark and Ravi did not want to do that in the night. But the pattar insisted and offered Rs 1,000 for the job," said his friend Narayana Nayak (37), a rubber tapper.
When he was clearing the bushes under the tree, Ravi was bitten by the snake. The contractor, Damodaran, who was with Ravi immediately took him to the landlord's house and requested him to take Ravi to hospital.
"But the pattar refused to help. At that time, he had two vehicles in his courtyard," said Nayak. When Damodaran asked for water, he was directed to a tap outside the courtyard.
"No pattar in our area would have given their vehicle to transport my son to hospital. But at least they would have promptly arranged another car," said Sundari (42), Mankukutty's wife.
That the road cutting through the colony can be traversed only by SUV made diminished the chances of Ravi's survival. Residents carried him on the shoulders, and then shifted him to an autorickshaw and later to an SUV. He did not reach the hospital alive.
The entire colony turned against the landlord. But residents said that the practice of untouchability that took the life of Ravi runs deep across the border panchayats such as Enmakaje, Kumbadje, Bellur, Delampady, Karaduka, some parts of Badiadka, and Paivalige.
Saraswati T (59), who belongs to Maniyani community and is a native of Kumbadaje, said that they were not even allowed to touch the tulasi in their courtyard or draw water from the well.
Gruel in palm sheaths
For lunch, the workers said that they have to take dry sheaths of areca trees and go to their courtyard and keep it on the ground, upside down.
"The woman of the house will come and sprinkle some water and take the sheaths in. She will return with rice or gruel in it and place it outside the courtyard," said Mankukutty.
"If we choose to eat from there, we will have to purify the place where we sat with cow dung water before leaving," he said.
Nowadays, no one tells them to do this. "But they expect us to sprinkle the water. So we take the food to the fields and eat," he said.
A few landlords have built separate sheds, so that they can have food there.
Caste is the passport
During Navarati celebration, the labourers are invited by the upper-caste landlord as part of the ritual. "But we are served food separately," said Sundara Nayak (55), who rears the cattle of another Brahmin landlord.
Access depended on the castes or tribe of the people.
"Since I am from the Marathi community, I can go inside the house to bring out arecanuts and coconuts," said Nayak. "But even I cannot have access to the kitchen."
Apunjeri, who cuts grass for the cattle of a Brahmin landlord, said she could not even go to the courtyard. "After working till 6 pm, he would drop Rs 100 or Rs 200 into my hands depending on this whims," she said.
Rajeevi H (54), a resident of Posolige colony, said that she had access up to the verandah of the landlord. "But I can go only up to the courtyard," said her friend Bhavni T (44).
"They have to realise that they are big and rich people today because we work in their fields," says Rajeevi.