Video Thousands of low-caste Indians convert to Buddhism in mass ceremony

1. Musician playing the traditional bugal to welcome the guests

2. Tilt down from the Buddha banner to tribal people dancing

3. Close up of a tribal person dancing

4. SOUNDBITE: (Hindi) Raghiv Shinde, Buddhist convert:

"We don't have ration cards, our names are not registered with the municipality, we don't have our names on the voter list, but when we go to government offices, they don't listen to us, don't do anything for us."

5. Leaders of the Republican party Ramdas Athawale and Laxman Mane waving to the crowd

6. SOUNDBITE: (Hindi) Ramdas Athwale, Republican party leader:

"They are embracing Buddhism, that will increase the strength of the Buddhists, and they will benefit from the vision of Mr. Baba Saheb Ambedkar, and will make good progress in their lives."

7. Buddhists sitting on podium

8. Mid of the priests and guests on dais

9. Mid of the Buddhists monks

10. Wide shot of the crowd gathered for the golden jubilee celebration

11. Close up of a child eating

12. Wide of the child and a father

13. Wide of tribal person showing human skull to camera

14. Close of tribal person showing human skull to camera

15. Wide of tribal people with skull

16. Tribal child playing with the drum

17. Old man raising his hand to signal approval of getting converted

18. Wide of people raising their hands signalling conversion

20. People taking pledge of conversion

21. Priest reciting the pledge

22. Tribal person with folded hands taking pledge

23. Wide of tribal people taking pledge

24. Wide shot of crowd

25. Mid shot of podium

STORYLINE:

About 2,000 low-caste Hindu Indians bowed before monks and recited prayers as they converted to Buddhism in a mass ceremony on Sunday that they said would bring them dignity in a society that considers them "untouchables."

"We don't have ration cards, our names are not registered with the municipality, we don't have our names on the voter list, but when we go to government offices, they don't listen to us, don't do anything for us," Raghiv Shinde said of his life as an untouchable.

Organisers said the ceremony was conducted in the spirit of B.R. Ambedkar, an untouchable, or dalit, who fought against British colonial rule and injustice in Indian society.

Ambedkar, the chief architect of the Indian Constitution that outlawed discrimination based on caste, renounced Hinduism for Buddhism in 1956 because he believed it treated people equally.

He died that same year.

Buddhists form a small minority in mostly Hindu India.

"They are embracing Buddhism, that will increase the strength of the Buddhists," said Ramdas Athwale, whose Republican party champions India's downtrodden classes.

"They will benefit from the vision of Mr Baba Saheb Ambedkar and will make good progress in their lives," he added.

Similar ceremonies are held across India several times a year, but organisers said this was one of the biggest.

Traditional Hindu society in India sets limits on economic and educational progress among those born into low-caste families.

Dalits say they are routinely barred from entering temples and schools despite the caste system being outlawed.




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