Station 4: Caste System
"Discarded chicken scraps bought from a restaurant barely make a meal for Untouchables in Bihar, one of India's
poorest states. These villagers belong to the Musahar, or rat-eaters, caste, its members known for hunting rodents.
Musahar women, many of whom work as field hands, have begun to agitate for better living conditions. This takes
courage, says a local activist. 'If an Untouchable woman demands or questions something and a landlord doesn't like
it, he will beat or sexually harass her.'"
From "India's Untouchables," June 2003, National Geographic magazine
"The garb worn by Nita Solanki, an Untouchable [a member of the lowest Hindu castes] bride in Gujarat, is perhaps
the finest she will ever put on."
—From "Untouchable," June 2003, National Geographic magazine
"Upper caste aversion to killing cattle, eating beef, and handling animal hides gives Untouchables [members of the
lowest Hindu castes] a monopoly in the tanning business. At a rural tannery (pictured) a member of the Chamar
leatherworking caste softens water buffalo skin."
—From "Untouchable," June 2003, National Geographic magazine
A veiled woman of the Untouchable caste pauses for a photo while sweeping outside her home in India. India's
constitution forbids caste discrimination and specifically abolishes Untouchability, but the hierarchies and social codes
of Hinduism perpetuate the system.
(Text adapted from and photo shot on assignment for, but not published in, "Untouchable," June 2003,
National Geographic magazine)