https://www.scmp.com/rss/505856/feed Payal Mohta is a freelance journalist based in Mumbai, India. She covers global development, gender justice and public health issues and her work has been published in The Guardian, Al Jazeera, and the Washington Post. en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com In September, Japanese multinational tech company NTT Data said it was taking “appropriate action” against one of its Indian-born employees for sharing casteist slurs on Facebook. Rashmi Agochiya, who reportedly worked at one of the firm’s American offices, identified herself as “high caste” and repeatedly denigrated “bhangis” – members of a caste in India that have been historically employed as manual scavengers or toilet cleaners. “We are aware of recent unacceptable posts and are taking... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/lifestyle-culture/article/3103860/us-indian-it-workers-dalit-caste-still-face?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/lifestyle-culture/article/3103860/us-indian-it-workers-dalit-caste-still-face?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 04 Oct 2020 10:00:05 +0000 Since March this year, Anil Gautam, a phlebotomist and swab technician, has changed into about 10 personal protective equipment (PPE) suits each day as he tests for new coronavirus cases in India’s capital. The suits do not allow air to pass through, making them uncomfortably hot. But it’s the patients that make his working conditions even more unbearable. They often ask him to conduct testing procedures in their society gardens or corridors, where temperatures can rise well above 40 degrees... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3094603/untouchables-how-indias-coronavirus-testers-risk-both?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3094603/untouchables-how-indias-coronavirus-testers-risk-both?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 24 Jul 2020 10:15:17 +0000 Every morning, marketing professional Sagari starts her day at 9am by sweeping the floors of her two-bedroom flat in suburban Mumbai. The 35-year-old then makes breakfast for her husband, father and three-year-old son, before preparing lunch and parking herself in front of her laptop to work, in between responding to calls for tea from her husband and demands from her toddler. At 9pm, she cooks dinner then washes up and listens in on international client calls that can last until 2am. How... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3083465/indias-coronavirus-lockdown-forcing-women-do-all-work?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3083465/indias-coronavirus-lockdown-forcing-women-do-all-work?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 10 May 2020 06:30:11 +0000