Untouchables pull a sand-filled boat up the Ganges river to a brick factory in Bihar. Fishermen by tradition, these 'mallahs' are now reduced to towing barges. In India the caste system, which has close links with Hindu tradition, has created a very hierarchical society. The system varies per region and affects every aspect of a person's life. On the lowest rung of the social ladder stand the untouchables. Although discrimination is now against the law, the hardest, dirtiest and lowest-paid jobs are reserved for them.

Untouchables at work in a brick kiln in Bihar, India. Labour at the kiln is supplied primarily by untouchables, including children. This work is so hard and so low-paying, only outcastes or those from the lowest castes are engaged in it. In India the caste system, which has close links with Hindu tradition, has created a very hierarchical society. The system varies per region and affects every aspect of a person's life. On the lowest rung of the social ladder stand the untouchables. Although discrimination is now against the law, the hardest, dirtiest and lowest-paid jobs are reserved for them.

Untouchables at work in a brick kiln in Bihar, India. Labour at the kiln is supplied primarily by untouchables, including children. This work is so hard and so low-paying, only outcastes or those from the lowest castes are engaged in it. In India the caste system, which has close links with Hindu tradition, has created a very hierarchical society. The system varies per region and affects every aspect of a person's life. On the lowest rung of the social ladder stand the untouchables. Although discrimination is now against the law, the hardest, dirtiest and lowest-paid jobs are reserved for them.

An untouchable scavenges in the ashes of a burnt-out pyre for valuables in Varanasi, India. As the ashes from a previous cremation are carried down to the Ganges, the next body awaits its turn. In India the caste system, which has close links with Hindu tradition, has created a very hierarchical society. The system varies per region and affects every aspect of a person's life. On the lowest rung of the social ladder stand the untouchables. Although discrimination is now against the law, the hardest, dirtiest and lowest-paid jobs are reserved for them.

Bodies waiting cremation on the shore of the Ganges in Varanasi, India. Preparing the dead for cremation and scavenging in the ashes of funeral pyres are tasks set aside for untouchables. In India the caste system, which has close links with Hindu tradition, has created a very hierarchical society. The system varies per region and affects every aspect of a person's life. On the lowest rung of the social ladder stand the untouchables. Although discrimination is now against the law, the hardest, dirtiest and lowest-paid jobs are reserved for them.

An untouchable carrying garbage on her head in India. In India the caste system, which has close links with Hindu tradition, has created a very hierarchical society. The system varies per region and affects every aspect of a person's life. On the lowest rung of the social ladder stand the untouchables. Although discrimination is now against the law, the hardest, dirtiest and lowest-paid jobs are reserved for them.

An untouchable at work in a stone quarry in Haryana. Because the low wages and the difficult working conditions are so extreme, only untouchables are employed in stone quarries. Many quarry workers become indentured to their masters, and because their debts can often never be fully repaid, they are virtually slaves. In India the caste system, which has close links with Hindu tradition, has created a very hierarchical society. The system varies per region and affects every aspect of a person's life. On the lowest rung of the social ladder stand the untouchables. Although discrimination is now against the law, the hardest, dirtiest and lowest-paid jobs are reserved for them.

A 'dhobi' (washerman) sweats over a steaming cauldron of dirty clothes. This is considered unclean work, unfit for anyone else except for untouchables. In India the caste system, which has close links with Hindu tradition, has created a very hierarchical society. The system varies per region and affects every aspect of a person's life. On the lowest rung of the social ladder stand the untouchables. Although discrimination is now against the law, the hardest, dirtiest and lowest-paid jobs are reserved for them.

Encampment on the ash heap of a power plant in New Delhi, primarily inhabited by untouchables looking for work. In India the caste system, which has close links with Hindu tradition, has created a very hierarchical society. The system varies per region and affects every aspect of a person's life. On the lowest rung of the social ladder stand the untouchables. Although discrimination is now against the law, the hardest, dirtiest and lowest-paid jobs are reserved for them.

This prostitute is a 'servant of God', sold to a Hindu priest by her family to pay for their sins. The priests pass the girls on to brothels. In India the caste system, which has close links with Hindu tradition, has created a very hierarchical society. The system varies per region and affects every aspect of a person's life. On the lowest rung of the social ladder stand the untouchables. Although discrimination is now against the law, the hardest, dirtiest and lowest-paid jobs are reserved for them.

In a brothel in Bombay, the child of an untouchable prostitute is kept tied up while her mother is with a client. Thousands of untouchable girls are sold into prostitution each year. In India the caste system, which has close links with Hindu tradition, has created a very hierarchical society. The system varies per region and affects every aspect of a person's life. On the lowest rung of the social ladder stand the untouchables. Although discrimination is now against the law, the hardest, dirtiest and lowest-paid jobs are reserved for them.

A tearful farewell from the family. An untouchable woman is married and, according to tradition, is going to live in the village of her husband's family. In India the caste system, which has close links with Hindu tradition, has created a very hierarchical society. The system varies per region and affects every aspect of a person's life. On the lowest rung of the social ladder stand the untouchables. Although discrimination is now against the law, the hardest, dirtiest and lowest-paid jobs are reserved for them.

General News - 2nd prize