Manual scavenging
Context: The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has recommended action against government officials responsible for incorrectly reporting the number of manual scavengers in the country.
- Many States make tall claims that they have zero manual scavengers and nil insanitary latrines, but these are far from truth.
- The Commission has recommended that accountability must be fixed in case of wrong reporting by the concerned authorities about the number of manual scavengers in any region of the country.
- NHRC would be sending the recommendations that emanated from the workshop to the States and the Centre, including the Union Ministries of Home Affairs, Finance and Social Justice and Empowerment.
The commission recommended
- Expanding the definition of manual scavenging in order to cover other hazardous cleaning, or enacting a new law for hazardous cleaning.
- There should be a penalty to prevent harassment of women manual scavengers and children of manual scavengers.
- Schemes for rehabilitation of manual scavengers should be linked to programmes that allow them to earn immediately, like the MGNREGA.
- The one-time cash assistance given to rehabilitate them should be increased from ₹40,000 to ₹1 lakh and it should be paid directly.
- With deaths during sewer or septic tank cleaning occurring every year, it said the National Crime Records Bureau should monitor such cases and include the data in its annual report.
- Finance Ministry should designate nationalised banks for States to extend loans to manual scavengers and their dependants up to ₹10 lakh for setting up businesses.
Law against Manual Scavenging
What is this law about?
- This law makes it an offence to:
- Employ people as manual scavengers to clean insanitary latrines.
- Employ people to clean sewers and septic tanks without protective gear.
- Construct insanitary latrines.
- Not demolish or convert insanitary latrines within a certain period of this Act coming into force.
Does this law provide for rehabilitation of manual scavengers?
- Yes, it lays down the rules and procedure for the rehabilitation of manual scavengers through training in alternate employment, financial help and help with purchasing property.
Who is responsible for identifying manual scavengers?
- Every local authority (municipality or panchayat), cantonment board or railway authority is responsible for surveying its area to identify manual scavengers.
Who is a 'manual scavenger'?
- Any person who has been employed to handle undecomposed human waste from an insanitary latrine, open drain or pit or railway track is a manual scavenger under this law.
- The person could have been employed by any one - say, someone from their village or by an agency or contractor.
- It does not matter if she was given regular employment or engaged on contract basis, she is covered under this law.
Exception - Any person who has been employed to clean human waste and does so with the help of the appropriate protective gear and equipment will not be considered a manual scavenger under this law.
Another group of people called 'safai karamcharis' are also sometimes considered as manual scavengers - however, they usually refer to people working as sweepers or cleaning workers in the municipalities, government or private organisations.
What are the main offences under this Act?
It is unlawful and an offence under this Act for any person, municipality, panchayat or agency to:
- Build an insanitary latrine, or
- Employ a manual scavenger.
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