Brief Context
Context A recent Social Audit (2022–23) by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment revealed that over 90% of sewer deaths occurred without safety gear or or personalised protective equipment (PPE) kits. Why Manual scavenging continues to exist in India? Lack of Alternatives: Limited access to education and job opportunities keeps people in manual scavenging.
Source Content
Syllabus: GS1/ Social Issues, GS2/ Governance
Context
- A recent Social Audit (2022–23) by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment revealed that over 90% of sewer deaths occurred without safety gear or or personalised protective equipment (PPE) kits.
What is Manual Scavenging?
- Manual scavenging refers to the practice of manually cleaning, carrying, and disposing of human excreta from dry latrines, open drains, sewers, and septic tanks.
- It is a hazardous and degrading occupation that primarily affects marginalized communities.
Why Manual Scavenging Continues to Exist in India?
- Lack of Alternatives: Limited access to education and job opportunities keeps people in manual scavenging.
- Caste System: Deep-seated caste-based discrimination traps many in this occupation.
- Weak Law Enforcement: Inadequate implementation of anti-manual scavenging laws.
- Inadequate Sanitary Infrastructure: Lack of modern sanitation systems necessitates manual cleaning.
- Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) often lack trained personnel, mechanized equipment, and funds to modernize sanitation infrastructure.
- Economic Factors: Cheap labour costs make manual scavenging financially attractive.
Constitutional and Legal Dimensions
- Constitutional Provisions:
- Article 21: Right to life with dignity includes the right to safe working conditions.
- Article 23: Prohibits forced labour, applicable in cases where workers are coerced into hazardous cleaning without alternatives.
- Article 42: Directs the state to ensure just and humane conditions of work.
- Legal Framework:
- The Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Act, 2013: Bans manual scavenging and mandates rehabilitation of affected persons.
- The Supreme Court (Safai Karamchari Andolan v. Union of India, 2014) ordered compensation of ₹10 lakh for each sewer/septic tank death and held the state liable.
Initiatives Taken Against Manual Scavenging
- The government has formulated the NAMASTE scheme or National Action Plan for Mechanised Sanitation Ecosystem in an effort to stop deaths due to hazardous cleaning of sewers and septic tanks.
- Swachh Bharat Abhiyan: Aims to promote sanitation and reduce manual scavenging.
- Rashtriya Garima Abhiyaan: National Campaign focused on eradicating the dehumanizing practice of manual scavenging and ensuring comprehensive rehabilitation for manual scavengers throughout India.
- The Bandicoot robot, is India’s first indigenous manhole-cleaning robot, introduced in Kerala in 2018. In 2023, Kerala became the first Indian state to fully robotize manhole cleaning.
- ILO Guidelines: Call for decent work conditions, safety, training, and social security for sanitation workers.
Way Ahead
- Complete Mechanization of Sanitation Work: Mandate use of modern machines for sewer and septic tank cleaning under the NAMASTE scheme, with dedicated funding and training.
- Strengthening Urban Local Bodies (ULBs): Equip ULBs with trained staff, adequate funds, and equipment to modernize sanitation systems and eliminate dependence on manual cleaning.
- Maintain real-time data on sanitation workers and sewer deaths with periodic audits and independent monitoring to ensure transparency and policy response.
Source: TH