Burdened by debt, bonded to life of toil
Dawn broke not with promise, but with a burden of arduous and long working conditions, accompanied by minimal safety protections, for four persons trapped by a ₹1-lakh debt at an illegal stone-cutting quarry on rough, hilly terrain in Anantapur district for over a year. Five years ago, Anji took a loan of ₹1 lakh from his employer, Vadde Narayana Swamy, to undergo a lung infection treatment. Not just Anji, the other members of the small settlement outside Chennampalle village had different reasons for taking loans from Narayana, but the fate of all of them turned out to be similar.
- ▪Dawn broke not with promise, but with a burden of arduous and long working conditions, accompanied by minimal safety protections, for four persons trapped by a ₹1-lakh debt at an illegal stone-cutting quarry on rough, hilly terrain in Anant
- ▪Five years ago, Anji took a loan of ₹1 lakh from his employer, Vadde Narayana Swamy, to undergo a lung infection treatment.
- ▪Not just Anji, the other members of the small settlement outside Chennampalle village had different reasons for taking loans from Narayana, but the fate of all of them turned out to be similar.
Opening excerpt (first ~120 words) tap to expand
Dawn broke not with promise, but with a burden of arduous and long working conditions, accompanied by minimal safety protections, for four persons trapped by a ₹1-lakh debt at an illegal stone-cutting quarry on rough, hilly terrain in Anantapur district for over a year. Through the day, braving extreme weather, Santhala Anji, his 18-year-old son and two others were put to cut 100 stones with just an iron hammer and a chisel.This was the plight of the bonded labourers who were rescued last month from an illegal stone-cutting unit near Chennampalle village.Community engages in stone-cutting worksHailing from the Vadde community, a BC community primarily engaged in stone-cutting works.
…
Excerpt limited to ~120 words for fair-use compliance. The full article is at The Hindu — Top.
Discussion
0 commentsMore from The Hindu — Top
