Manual Scavenging- Causes and Way Forwards

 Manual scavenging refers to the practice of manually cleaning, carrying, disposing or handling in any manner, human excreta from dry latrines and sewers. According to the Socio Economic and Caste Census, 2011, 167,487 households reported a member of the household as a manual scavenger. In 1993, India outlawed and prohibited the employment of people as manual scavengers. Further, this aim was reiterated in 2013 under the Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Act, 2013.

Still this menace continues to be rampant in India. Some of the identified reasons could be:

• Insanitary latrines: Wider existence of primitive insanitary latrines. According to Census 2011, there are 2.6 million dry latrines meaning those without water, where the excreta must be physically removed.
• Variation across states: Sanitation lies in State List in 7th schedule of the Constitution. As such the implementation of the prohibition on manual scavenging is not uniform throughout.
• Legal lacunae: The 2013 Act does not ban it strictly as it allows certain instances of manual scavenging (like manual cleaning of septic tanks if employer provides protective gear and manual cleaning of water flush latrine in a railway passenger coach with the use of protective gears).
• Low awareness: Manual scavenging is mostly done by the marginalized section of the society and they are generally not aware about their rights.
• Illiteracy & poor skill sets: Manual scavengers are mostly illiterate and have no exposure to any work, other than sanitation related work. They lack confidence for running self employment projects. Many of them are not willing even to avail any skill development training.
• Access to loans: Banks are hesitant about providing loan to manual scavengers. Even many state channelizing agencies, due to low rate of recovery of loan from safai karamcharis, are not willing to extend loan to manual scavengers.
• Caste system: Caste hierarchy still exists and it reinforces the caste’s relation with occupation. Almost all the manual scavengers belong to lower castes.

Though the Government has taken many measures like legislations to prohibit manual scavenging, schemes for skilling manual scavengers, converting dry latrines to pour flush latrines, promoting composite toilets and bio toilets, etc. but many more efforts are required to be taken-

• Swachh Bharat Abhiyan must promote composite and bio toilets.
• Regular surveys and social audits to monitor existing schemes and programmes related to manual scavengers.
• Identification and capacity building of manual scavengers for alternate source of livelihood.
• Creating awareness about legal protection of manual scavengers and eliminating ambiguity in such laws.
• Provision of bio-toilets/vacuum toilets in all railway passenger coaches.
• Technological innovations with the aim of eliminating human entry into septic tanks and drains for cleaning.
• Weakening the caste based societal division especially in rural areas through community contact programs, social awareness through mass media, civil society, PRIs , SHGs and NGOs, value education amongst children and breaking caste-occupation link by ensuring socio-economic mobility through rigorous implementation of relevant schemes and laws.

Eliminating all forms of manual scavenging will uphold the right to dignity as enshrined in the Constitution and will pave way for a more humane life in the long run.

By: ABHISHEK KUMAR GARG