Chapter 16: Who Will Do This Work?
कौन करेगा यह काम? (गांधीजी, साबरमती आश्रम एवं अस्पृश्यता उन्मूलन)
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- Dignity of Labor: Every job, including cleaning latrines and sweeping streets, deserves equal social respect; manual scavengers are forced into hereditary sanitation work by caste discrimination.
- Mahatma Gandhi's Sabarmati Ashram: At the Sabarmati Ashram in Gujarat, every person, including high-profile guests, was required to clean their own toilets.
- Narayan Desai ('Babla'): Son of Mahadev Desai (Mahatma Gandhi's close companion). As a child, he grew up in Gandhi's ashram and documented stories of Gandhi's struggle against caste-based untouchability.
- Dr. Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar: As a 7-year-old boy in Goregaon (Maharashtra), he witnessed a barber refusing to cut his hair, saying the scissors would become impure, while the same barber shaved buffaloes without hesitation. He went on to lead the drafting of the Constitution of India.
- Constitutional Abolition of Untouchability: Article 17 of the Constitution of India formally abolished untouchability in all its forms.
- Trap: CBSE asks who was called 'Babla' in Gandhiji's ashram. Correct: Narayan, son of Mahadev Desai.
- Trap: CBSE tests the Constitutional Article abolishing untouchability. Correct: Article 17 (not Article 14 or 21).
- Trap: CBSE asks what was Gandhi's rule about latrine cleaning. Correct: Everyone, including guests, had to clean their own latrines/pots.
NCERT Core Facts: Sanitation Workers, Sabarmati Rules & Babasaheb Ambedkar
Class 5 Chapter 16 explores caste-based sanitation labor, the dignity of work, and historic struggles led by Mahatma Gandhi and Dr. B.R. Ambedkar.
1. Mahatma Gandhi & Sabarmati Ashram Rules
- The Sabarmati Code: In Gandhi's ashram near Ahmedabad (Gujarat), there were no designated sweepers. Every resident and visiting dignitary had to carry their own nightsoil pan to the compost pit and clean it.
- Narayan Desai's Childhood Account:
- Narayan (affectionately called Babla), the son of Gandhi's secretary Mahadev Desai, recalled that when a new visitor hesitated to clean toilets, Gandhi personally taught him with patience.
- Gandhi believed that until we clean our own waste, we cannot understand true equality or self-reliance (Swachhata & Swaraj).
2. Dr. B.R. Ambedkar's Childhood Experience in Goregaon
- When Bhimrao was a seven-year-old child in Goregaon (Maharashtra), he went with his brother to get a haircut.
- The local village barber refused to cut his hair, stating: "If I cut your hair, my scissors and hands will be polluted."
- Young Bhimrao pondered the grave injustice: the barber routinely cut the thick hair of mud-caked buffaloes, yet touched a human child with contempt because of his Mahar caste.
- Babasaheb Ambedkar fought this social evil, became India's first Law Minister, and presided over the Drafting Committee of the Indian Constitution.
3. Constitutional Rights & Safeguards
| Constitutional Provision | Significance in NCERT Pedagogy |
|---|---|
| Article 17 | Abolition of Untouchability: Declares the practice of untouchability forbidden in any form. |
| Article 15 | Prohibits discrimination against any citizen on grounds of religion, race, caste, sex, or place of birth. |
| Article 21 | Right to life with human dignity for all sanitation workers. |
Test Your Mastery: Who Will Do This Work?
Authentic CBSE exam questions tested directly from this NCERT chapter.
In NCERT Class 5 Chapter 'Who Will Do This Work?', the child 'Babla', who recorded stories of Gandhiji's struggle against untouchability, refers to:
NCERT कक्षा 5 के पाठ 'कौन करेगा यह काम?' में गांधीजी के अस्पृश्यता उन्मूलन संघर्ष की कहानियों को दर्ज करने वाला बालक 'बाबला' कौन था?
Which Article of the Constitution of India formally abolishes untouchability and forbids its practice in any form?
भारत के संविधान का कौन सा अनुच्छेद औपचारिक रूप से अस्पृश्यता का उन्मूलन करता है और किसी भी रूप में इसके आचरण को प्रतिबंधित करता है?
What was the mandatory rule regarding toilet cleaning at Mahatma Gandhi's Sabarmati Ashram?
महात्मा गांधी के साबरमती आश्रम में शौचालय की सफाई को लेकर क्या अनिवार्य नियम था?
Who was 'Babla' mentioned in NCERT Class 5 EVS Chapter 16?
Narayan, the son of Mahadev Desai (Mahatma Gandhi's close companion and secretary), who spent his childhood in Sabarmati Ashram.
Which Article of the Indian Constitution abolished untouchability?
Article 17.
What rule did Mahatma Gandhi enforce regarding toilet cleaning in Sabarmati Ashram?
Every person, including guests, was required to clean their own toilets and carry their nightsoil basket.