Beyond destiny: The new generation at Dayaganj sweeper colony look forward to a different future
Their children are going to school with Bangali kids while their new living quarters have created space and respectability in their lives. The Harijans no longer feel trapped in their 200-year-old inherited profession and destiny
Sapan Das, a sweeper in his 50s residing in the Dayaganj sweeper colony in Old Dhaka, could not pursue an education himself. He grew up with the notion that a sweeper should not get an education or even rise through the ranks in society. But times have changed now. His oldest daughters Jayanti Das and Radhika Das are attending college and university.
"My oldest daughter, Jayanti, is doing an MBA from Degree College and my second, Radhika, has just passed her HSC from T&T University College. I have three children, all of whom are studying, you see.
We have the Harijan title in our names but that is no longer an issue for us," remarked Sapan Das, the head of his family.
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Stigmatised and looked down upon, the 'sweeper' community in Bangladesh has been part of the underbelly of society for about 200 years. However, in recent years, owing to greater access to education and increasing support from the government, members of the community now feel less trapped in their inherited profession and destiny.
Brought into the Bengal region by the British government from Madras, Kanpur, Hyderabad and some southern areas of what is now India, this sweeper community consists of people who are known as Harijans. They were chosen for the job and brought here as cleaners because of their status as 'Dalits' or 'low class' Hindus. Although they left their place of origin, the stigma surrounding their identity did not leave them.
But that is seemingly changing off late.The current generation of youth are attending mainstream schools with Bangali kids. Children from the colony go to many mainstream government schools in the area like Wari Girls' Govt Highschool, Narinda Girls' Govt Primary school, and Srere Bangla Academy Govt Primary School.
"I want to work in an office when I grow up," said six-year-old Jeetu Lal, youngest son of Hiron Lal. Lal is president of the Wari Samaj Kalyan Juba Sangha, an organisation dedicated to the welfare of the colony.
"Some members from our colony who got a higher education are now working prestigious jobs in corporate offices like the Delta Life Insurance Company Ltd and banks," said Hiron Lal.
Lal believes his community no longer needs to justify its belongingness to mainstream society.
Better living quarters, better future
There are around five thousand Harijan people currently living in the Dayaganj colony. Most of the older generation are still working as cleaners. Although some of them still live in shabby and tiny rooms, the living conditions have improved for some thanks to a government initiative under which a 10-storey apartment building was constructed for the community.
155 families have already been rehabilitated to this building and residents say the permanent quarters have played an indirect role in changing the economic and social landscape of the community.
An old dingy building close to the 10-storey apartment is set to be demolished soon to make room for another new apartment building. The old buildings were built during the rule of the Ershad government. Another three-part building block is near completion and almost ready to be handed over.
Once ready, a group of Harijan people that have long been living in the makeshift housing on the second floor of the adjacent 'Mobil Market' will be rehabilitated here.
"We had to live inside those rooms that were not even meant for living, but to be used as shops. Sometimes two families or even three would have to live in one shop," said Suvas Chandra Das Opu, a senior member of the Wari Samaj Kalyan Juba Sangha.
"But these new buildings will solve some of these problems," he said.
The City Corporation, aided by the Local Government Engineering Department (LGED), is in charge of building the new accommodations. The buildings that have been finished and those that are under construction have modern amenities, an official with the Dhaka South City Corporation told The Business Standard.
"These communities work very hard to keep our city clean. The government is attempting to ensure they get full citizen-rights and not feel alienated," said the official.
Each family that moved into these buildings got a two-room apartment, equipped with an attached bathroom, a kitchen, a balcony and open space in front. Similar projects are going ahead in Dhalpur and Sutrapur "in full swing" to rehabilitate the Harijan communities in those areas.
What is perhaps most helpful for these families is that they don't have to pay rent for their new homes. They only need to pay utility and service charges.
Although many dream that their children will have different and more prestigious jobs, it also helps the Harijan that they enjoy an 80% quota for the sweeper's jobs from the government. Earlier this year, 150 colony members, roughly one person from each family, got jobs through this quota. The job pays Tk17,300 a month.
Very recently, however, they have been feeling the heat, just like anyone else in the country. With soaring commodity and utility costs, it is getting harder for them to provide basic needs.
"We are happy with the facilities we got, but we ask for our monthly pay to go up a little bit because the price of everything is increasing. We heard that our pay will be increased. If so, we would be grateful," said Hiron Lal.
