Hyderabad: Rohini Ghavari, the daughter of a sanitation worker from Indore, lauded India for uplifting the marginalised sections at the 52nd Session of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) Session in Geneva on Friday. Rohini Ghavari, doing her PhD in Switzerland on a government scholarship, said that the condition of Dalits in India is far better compared to neighbouring countries.
Speaking to ANI, Rohini says, "it was a golden chance for me to be at the United Nations. I am doing my PhD in Geneva for the last two years. I have always dreamt of representing India at the UN and spreading awareness about the Dalit community and their situation in India. As a Dalit girl and a daughter of a sanitation worker, I feel really proud to get a chance to represent my country at the United Nations."
"Being a girl, I had to face a lot of problems to reach here, but now that I have achieved my dream, I am really proud of myself. I want to spread awareness about the situation of the Dalit community in India. I feel the condition of Dalits in our country is much better than in most of our neighbouring countries like Pakistan. The reservation policy for Dalits in India has helped this marginalised community to do better. I am a real example of this as I have received a scholarship of Rs one crore from the Government of India," Rohini added.
Rohini said that Pakistan always attacks India on issues of minorities and the treatment of Dalits, tribals and other marginalized sections. But in a major change, India has a tribal President Draupadi Murmu, and OBC Prime Minister, Narendra Modi. There are not many counties where minorities are given a chance to reach the top position, she said and added that it happens only in India that a Dalit can dream of becoming a President or a Prime Minister. "This is all because of the strong constitution that we have in our nation," she said.
Rohini further said that she had seen countries portraying the wrong image of India at the United Nations. "But when you are representing your country at an international forum, you must not only focus on the negative aspect but also throw some light on the positive things. In India, we have cases of caste discrimination, similarly, in the United States of America, they are facing issues of racism. But India has seen some major changes and being a Dalit, I am a real example of it," Rohini added.
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Rohini concluded by saying, "In the UN I have mentioned how India is undergoing several major changes and how even some things still need to be improved. My mother is a sanitation worker in India, I know the challenges faced by them. Even as National Commission for Sanitation Workers has been established, a lot needs to be done about manual scavengers. I also request our Prime Minister Narendra Modi to look into this matter and work for the betterment of manual scavengers."
