Siddamma - The Crusader for Justice

One of the advantages of being associated with Asha for Education is the chance to meet a wide range of extraordinary individuals, who are serving the Indian society in their own unique ways. One such person is Asha fellow and social activist Siddamma, whom we had the good fortune to meet in the September of 2007.

Siddamma was born in a poor rural family of Karnataka. Through a strange twist of fate, she was the only one of her eleven siblings who moved to Bangalore and received a proper education. While in school, she had many opportunities to observe the poverty and misery of people around her. Along with a deep sense of compassion, she possessed a spirit of activism which led to her selection in SEARCH, an institute where she was trained for social work and community leadership. During these formative years, she met her future husband, a fellow activist. After her training and marriage she settled in Chennai where she worked for about eight years for the poor living in the slums of the city.

However she was destined to leave her imprints in a bigger canvas. During her Chennai years, Siddamma heard about the Irulas of Tamil Nadu, an ancient tribe bypassed by modern society. They lived in forests and their traditional occupation was collecting herbs and catching snakes for their skins. In recent years, a large number of them had been hired by landlords and made to work in rice mills or sent to the coastal areas for fishing. Their villages were in very interior parts with no infrastructure or electricity. Malnutrition was rampant and illiteracy was 100%.

They were the truly socio and economically underprivileged ones. Siddamma spent nearly two years living with the Irulas and understanding their problems. What she learnt shocked her. The Irula’s were forced into bonded labor by the landlords who often denied them the very basic rights. She learnt how an Irula lady had died of infections inside a rice mill, as the landlord had forced her to work just after she had delivered her child. There were also multiple accounts of police atrocities.

Siddamma decided to fight for the Irula’s – not just give them justice in isolated cases but bring about lasting change. Through her painstaking effort, unwavering will and abundant enthusiasm over the next few years, she managed to mobilize the dissipated Irula’s into a single, cohesive social unit with a voice. She was instrumental in setting up Sarpam, a union formed by the Irulas and led by them. The Irulas gained confidence in themselves and learnt how to deal with the Govt and police without any fear. She also achieved phenomenal success in highlighting the plight of the Irulas in the mainstream media and focusing on the evils of the establishment. Gradually she started receiving support from other social groups and individuals. As a result of her monumental efforts, the Govt was finally forced to yield. A total of 50 rice mills were closed down and their owners brought to justice. The bonded Irulas were freed and the Govt gave them land to set up their own village. The will of a human being had triumphed against all odds.

Siddamma’s work was far from over. She focused on the rehabilitation and education of the freed Irulas. She was of the firm belief that the Irulas should take responsibility for their own initiatives. Thus a new school would only be started if the local Irula community agreed to take ownership in deciding the teachers, the school infrastructure etc. These schools have been huge successes in imparting education with their relevant curriculum, flexible schedule to incorporate the harvesting seasons and so on. These schools also integrate the students with mainstream education after 3 years.

Apart from education, Siddamma has been involved in other developmental work with the Irulas like organic farming, rainwater harvesting and low cost housing initiatives. Various Asha chapters like Austin, Seattle, NYCNJ, Toledo and CNJ have supported her in her projects. Asha is also proud to have supported Siddamma directly by offering her a fellowship to carry on her work.

Besides her supportive husband, Siddamma's family consists of her two wonderful children, all of whom are friends of the Irulas. Maybe that is the reason why, her first impression is one of maternal warmth, of caring and compassion. As one gets to know her better, one realizes that these blend harmoniously with her iron will and working capacity to give an absolutely unique individual.