Caste system is alive and well in India...

As someone who is against not just caste-based discrimination, but the evil of caste system itself, I find it distressing to follow the rather heated arguments around the 'reservation' issue where quotas to the underprivileged sections of society are involved. The latest issue involves the suggestion from the National Commission for Scheduled Castes that Dalits converting from Hinduism to Christianity or Islam need not be given reservation privileges as they no longer experience caste-based discrimination in their new religion.

This is one issue where I really DO NOT plan to take a stand - for reasons of my own: just as I am against caste-based discrimination, I am equally against fraudulent conversions to other religions, especially when lots of foreign money is involved. Yes, 'fraudulent' is a strong word, and it's probably unfair to the genuine missionaries doing genuine humanitarian work, along with religious conversions. But what I am against is the brainwashing of human mind with the idea that 'there is only ONE way to salvation' which also includes an indirect fear factor that goes something like 'or else, face eternal damnation'. In fact, I am against any brainwashing and any dogma that cannot be objectively verified (I know that's redundant - but I want to be clear on this one), no matter what religion it comes from.

Now, here are the things I wonder why no one is talking about:

Why is that no one talks about abolishing the caste system altogether - not just externally, but from the psyche itself? Scientifically it would be impossible to prove that people from one caste are superior or better suited to some professions, etc. - since environment, especially during childhood and adolescent days forms a major factor in the development of an individual. Socially, caste system has outlived any utility it once might have had (I am not at all convinced that it served any useful purpose at any point in time - on the contrary, I am truly convinced that this was the SINGLE biggest factor in weakening Indians and in neutralizing the genuine advantages Indians enjoyed - such as early development of various sciences and technologies). So why not get rid of it altogether and focus on genuine 'merit' of the individual - starting with one's character, knowledge and skills? I can understand the reluctance of upper caste folks not wanting to give up their identity (though it is actually a manifestation of weakness to attempt to derive an identity and sense of superiority from an imagined past, in my opinion). But what about the Dalits? OK, it's one thing to attempt to right the past wrongs and reservations do help level the playing field a bit - but once one generation of a Dalit family achieves a reasonable success socially and economically, they should have the confidence to opt out of any further reservations. This applies even more to the castes higher up in the hierarchy - the backward castes. Do they have the courage to opt out of the reservation system, so that more of their underprivileged brethren can try to come up in life? It is astounding that many Indians have not grasped this point - that one of the reasons that other Asian countries have been able to leapfrog in terms of development is because of the near-absence of anything resembling a caste system in their society today. May be I am wrong...may be Indians are moving in that direction...where caste becomes totally irrelevant...

Why is that many Hindus do not seem to realize that caste system could actually be an embarrassment when dealing with foreigners?

Are those who oppose conversion from Hinduism to other religions genuinely open to the idea of equality of all human beings? Have they seriously looked inside themselves? I think 'equality' would be a difficult concept to practice for many Indians...Personally I have come across silly prejudices arising out of differences in religion, caste, region (yes - North Vs. South), language (Hindi Vs. non-Hindi, Kannada Vs. Tamil, etc.)... of course, I have also come across world-class professionalism where these factors do not matter at all...where these seem to matter are in pockets of mediocrity, I should say...

OK, what provoked me to go off on this subject (once again!) was the letters to the editor on 'The Hindu' - yes, I do read them to get an idea where everyone is coming from. It is always interesting for me to link the name of the person (and thereby, to a large extent, one's background) with their opinion...
http://www.hindu.com/2007/01/27/stories/2007012707001001.htm

http://www.hindu.com/2007/01/29/stories/2007012902041002.htm