RUTH MANORAMA. : BORN TO LEAD DALIT WOMEN

  " Sub-continent's most effective organiser of and advocate of Dalit women, and for the commitment 

    over decades in achieving equality for Dalit women ,building effective and committed women's 

    organisations for their rights at national and international levels "

         This is from the citation to Dr.Ruth Manorama when she was awarded the prestigious Right Livelihood Award in 2006. This award is known as the Altrenative Nobel Prize. In 2005, she was chosen among the 1000 Peace Women for Nobel Prize.

    Ruth Manorama was born in Madras in 1952 in a Dalit Christian family. She was fortunate to have very supportive parents who gave her good education. She joined the Department of Social Work at Stella Maris College for MA in social work in 1973. I met Ruth in 1973 along with my student R.S.Anbarasan and Karuna David ,Ruth's classmate. This formal interaction soon became a close friendship ,which continues even today.

    Ruth has been in the centre stage of Dalit acivism and empowerment of Dalit women for nearly four decades. In 1977 ,she shifted her base to Bangalore. She founded the non-governmental organisation

Service Society  in 1985 to organise slum families, women and unorganised labour. During the 1980s and 1990s she led many agitations against eviction of slum families in Bangalore. Her Campaign Operation Demolition was a success. Ruth has been active in many national and international organisations. But two organisations stand out.

Ruth is General Secretary of  Women's  Voice. In 1995, she founded the National Federation of Dalit Women, the first most significant body of Dalit Women post Dr.Ambedkar era.  Ruth's  work has strong  roots in more than 120 slums in Bangalore where women are well -organised ,trained and empowered to take up leadership .

Ruth has been active in various government bodies both national and international for the improvement of the situation of Dalit women. She has been an effective member in various UN,and other international forums.Awards have come in the way of Ruth. The significant awards are Dr.B.R.Ambedkar Award in 2002  and the highly covetable Rajyothsava Award in 2005 by the Karnaka government. In 2007, the Banglore University conferred on Ruth the  Doctor of Letters ( Honoris Causa) by the Bangalore University.

It is difficult to subsume the phenomenal contribution of Dr.Ruth Manorama in a few paragraphs. She is an incomparable person born to lead the oppressed ,Dalit women to liberation.