Govt to play good Samaritan for 'underpaid' Manjhi

28 Mar, 2007
PATNA: The Bihar government stepped in to set things right but instead called wrong only half wrong.

A day after The Times of India reported two cases of bonded labour, Patna DM B Rajender, apparently on the orders from top, on Tuesday drafted a fact-finding team to visit Paipura Barki village in Paliganj block to get a first-hand feel of the problem.

However, the team led by the block development officer (BDO) did not find enough evidence of bonded labour.

Instead the team, in its report, said there was a gross violation of the minimum wages rule, a milder and far more common social problem than bonded labour.

TOI reported Jawahar Manjhi (45), a landless labourer, has been slogging for 27 years to repay a loan of 40 kg of rice.

Manjhi was being paid just a kg of rice against eight hours of labour every day even though the normal payment is three kg of rice a day. And even after so many years, his loan has not been repaid.

Another resident of the same village, Bal Keshwar Paswan (65) had a similar story to tell. But Rajender said, "The team spoke to Manjhi, who told them he had taken a loan many years ago and that he was working in the field of a particular landowner, Ram Ji Singh, for the past four years for one kg of rice a day.

" Even if that is true, there were no explanations about why Manjhi chose to work for a landlord, who paid him one-third of the prevailing rate, unless he was under the bonded labour status. Rajender said,

"We have run a campaign against bonded labour for years now. We need to punish the perpetuators severely so that it acts as a sure-shot deterrent." He also said CM Nitish Kumar has expressed his concern over the matter.

The DM said, "We will take strict action against the guilty landlord and provide full rehabilitation to the labourers, who are being grossly underpaid." Manjhi and Paswan will have the state government playing a good Samaritan for them, wrong being dubbed half wrong notwithstanding.