Context
The government informed Parliament that it has been “able to achieve the target of abolition of manual scavenging” as per the prescribed definition under the law. However, the reality is different.
About
What is manual scavenging?
- Manual scavenging in India is officially defined as ‘lifting and removal of human excreta manually’, at private homes and toilets maintained by municipal authorities.
- As per the “Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Act, 2013 (MS Act, 2013)” manual scavenging means manually cleaning, carrying, disposing of, or handling in any manner, human excreta in an insanitary latrine.
- It is prohibited with effect from December 2013.
- Commonly associated people: Dalit men and women (of various sub-castes, most notably Valmiki).
Threats
- Risk of death from asphyxiation due to poisonous gases
- Disease exposure: cholera, hepatitis, meningitis, jaundice, skin disorders and even cardiovascular diseases.
- They often lack access to proper safety gear and equipment.
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Government measures to end the practice
- Prevention of Atrocities Act: In 1989, the Prevention of Atrocities Actbecame an integrated security guard for sanitation workers; more than 90% of the people employed as handicraftsmen belong to Organized Caste.
- Manual Scavengers and the Construction of Dry Latrines (Prohibition) Act: In 1993, the Government of India introduced the Manual Scavengers and the Construction of Dry Latrines (Prohibition) Actprohibiting the hiring of hand-operated scavengers to clean dry toilets and the construction of flush toilets.
- The Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Act, 2013prohibits the construction or maintenance of unhygienic toilets, and the hiring of any person by hand cleaning or hazardous cleaning of sewer pipes and swimming pools.
- Article 21: The Article guarantees the ‘Right to Life’ and also with dignity.
- Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan (Clean India initiative)
- Safaimitra Suraksha Challenge
- Swachhta Abhiyan App:It has been developed to identify and geo-tag the data of insanitary latrines and manual scavengers so that the insanitary latrines can be replaced with sanitary latrines and rehabilitate all the manual scavengers to provide dignity of life to them.
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Sewer-cleaning robots and machines such as the Bandicoot are slowly making their way to different municipalities and local authorities.
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