110TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. CON. RES. 139 
CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 
Whereas the Human Rights Watch and the Center for 
Human Rights and Global Justice at New York Univer-
sity School of Law released a report in February 2007 
that describes caste discrimination against India’s ‘‘Un-
touchables’’ based on in-depth investigations and the 
findings of Indian governmental and non-governmental 
organizations on caste-based abuses;
•HCON 139 EH 
Whereas the United States and the Republic of India have 
entered into an unprecedented partnership; 
Whereas the July 18, 2005, Joint Statement between Presi-
dent George W. Bush and Prime Minister Manmohan 
Singh stated that, ‘‘[a]s leaders of nations committed to 
the values of human freedom, democracy, and rule of law, 
the new relationship between India and the United States 
will promote stability, democracy, prosperity, and peace 
throughout the world [. . . and] it will enhance our ability 
to work together to provide global leadership in areas of 
mutual concern and interest’’; 
Whereas caste is the socioeconomic stratification of people in 
South Asia based on a combination of work and heredity; 
Whereas the ‘‘Untouchables’’, now known as the Dalits, and 
the people of the forest tribes of India, called Tribals, 
who together number approximately 200,000,000 people, 
are the primary victims of caste discrimination in India; 
Whereas discrimination against the Dalits and Tribals has 
existed for more than 2,000 years and has included edu-
cational discrimination, economic disenfranchisement, 
physical abuse, discrimination in medical care, religious 
discrimination, and violence targeting Dalit and Tribal 
women; 
Whereas Article 17 of the Constitution of India outlaws un-
touchability; 
Whereas despite numerous laws enacted for the protection 
and betterment of the Dalits and Tribals, they are still 
considered outcasts in Indian society and are treated as 
such; moreover, in practice, Dalits and Tribals are fre-
quently denied equal treatment under the law;
•HCON 139 EH 
Whereas Dalit women suffer both caste and gender discrimi-
nation as a result of the deficient administration of jus-
tice and are often raped and attacked with impunity; 
Whereas the National Commission on Scheduled Castes and 
Scheduled Tribes has declared that many of the reported 
cases of atrocities against Dalits and Tribals end in ac-
quittals; 
Whereas, despite the fact that many Dalits do not report 
crimes for fear of reprisals by the dominant castes, na-
tional police statistics averaged over the past five years 
by the National Commission on Scheduled Castes and 
Scheduled Tribes show that 13 Dalits are murdered every 
week, five Dalits’ homes or possessions are burnt every 
week, six Dalits are kidnapped or abducted every week, 
three Dalit women are raped every day, 11 Dalits are 
beaten every day and a crime is committed against a 
Dalit every 18 minutes; 
Whereas many Dalit girls are forced to become temple pros-
titutes who are then unable to marry and may be auc-
tioned to urban brothels, and many women trafficked in 
India are Dalit women; 
Whereas low-caste unborn females are targeted for abortions; 
Whereas according to Human Rights Watch and India’s offi-
cial National Family Health Survey, most Dalits and 
Tribals are among those poorest of the poor living on less 
than $1 per day; most of India’s bonded laborers are 
Dalits; and half of India’s Dalit children are undernour-
ished, 21 percent are ‘‘severely underweight’’, and 12 
percent die before their 5th birthday; 
Whereas Dalits and other low-caste individuals often suffer 
from discrimination and segregation in government pri-
•HCON 139 EH 
mary schools leading to low enrollment, high drop-out, 
and low literacy rates, perhaps linked to a perception 
that Dalits are not meant to be educated, are incapable 
of being educated, or if educated, would pose a threat to 
village hierarchies and power relations; 
Whereas the Dalits and Tribals maintain higher illiteracy 
rates than non-Dalit populations; and 
Whereas the HIV/AIDS epidemic is India is massive and 
Dalits and Tribals are significantly affected by HIV/ 
AIDS: Now, therefore, be it 
Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate 
concurring), That it is the sense of Congress that, as the 
leaders of the United States and the Republic of India 
have expressed commitment to the values of human free-
dom, democracy, and the rule of law, it is in the interests 
of the United States to address the problem of the treat-
ment of the Dalits and Tribals in India in order to better 
meet mutual social development and human rights goals 
by— 
(1) raising the issues of caste discrimina-
tion, violence against women, and untouch-
ability through diplomatic channels both di-
rectly with the Government of India and within 
the context of international bodies; 
(2) encouraging the United States Agency 
for International Development to ensure that 
the needs of Dalit organizations are incor-
•HCON 139 EH 
porated in the planning and implementation of 
development projects; 
(3) ensuring that projects that positively 
impact Dalit and Tribal communities, especially 
Dalit women, are developed and implemented; 
(4) ensuring that cooperative research pro-
grams targeting rural health care, the HIV/ 
AIDS epidemic, and rural technology contain 
proper focus on the Dalits and Tribals; 
(5) ensuring that anyone receiving funding 
in India from the United States Government— 
(A) is aware that it is United States 
Government policy that caste discrimina-
tion is unacceptable, and that the United 
States is committed to eliminating it; and 
(B) treat all people equally without 
engaging in caste discrimination; 
(6) ensuring that— 
(A) qualified Dalits are in no way dis-
couraged from working with organizations 
receiving funding in India from the United 
States Government, and that transparent 
and fair recruitment, selection, and career 
development processes are implemented, 
with clear objective criteria; and
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(B) procedures exist to detect and 
remedy any caste discrimination in employ-
ment conditions, wages, benefits or job se-
curity for anyone working with organiza-
tions receiving funding in India from the 
United States Government; 
(7) encouraging United States citizens 
working in India to avoid discrimination toward 
the Dalits in all business interactions; and 
(8) discussing the issue of caste during bi-
lateral and multilateral meetings, including con-
gressional delegations. 
Passed the House of Representatives July 23, 2007. 
Attest: 
Clerk.
110TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. CON. RES. 139 
CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 
Expressing the sense of the Congress that the 
United States should address the ongoing prob-
lem of untouchability in India.