Manual scavenging, the inhumane practice of manually removing/ handling/ cleaning human excreta and cleaning drainage without providing any safety measures to sweepers is a common practice across the country.To eradicate this inhumane practice, the Parliament has enacted the Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Act, 2013 and the Act came into force on 6th December, 2013 across in India.
Meanwhile, the honourable Supreme Court of India has given a landmark judgment on 27th March 2014 on this issue. The court has given all state governments a list of directives:
- Identify the families of all people who have died in sewerage work (manholes, septic tanks) since 1993 and award compensation worth Rs. 10 lakhs for each such death to the dependent family members.
- Sewerage deaths(entering sewer lines without safety gears) should be made a crime, even in emergency situations. For each death, a compensation sum of Rs. 10 lakhs should be given to the family of the deceased.
- All state governments and union territories are to fully implement the above directives and take appropriate action for non-implementation as well as violation of the provisions contained in the 2013 Act.
Despite the Act prohibiting the practice of manual scavenging and the judgment of the Supreme Court, the practice of manual scavenging is rampant in Gujarat, especially in major cities. There are around 200 spots where sweepers are forced to clean human excreta every day in Ahmedabad itself.
According to the data gathered by Manav Garima (a community organization of Valmikis which is based in Ahmedabad), 152 manhole workers died while cleaning drains without any safety devices in the state since 1993.
Manav Garima has submitted a list of 152 deceased manhole workers for compensation, as per the judgment of the Supreme Court, to various concerned departments of the Gujarat State: Director of Municipality (dt. 20/05/2014), Managing Director of Gujarat Safai Kamdar Vikas Nigam (dt. 20/05/2014), Principal Secretary of Social Justice and Empowerment Department (dt. 19/05, 2014), Chief Secretary of Gujarat (dt. 19/05/2014), Director of Scheduled Castes Welfare (dt. 19/05/2014). Manav Garima also wrote to the Chief Minister (dt. 04/2015) and the Chief Secretary of Gujarat (dt. 30/6/2015) for compensation.
Despite these efforts identification and compensation has not been provided in the deaths of manhole workers in Gujarat. Manav Garima has also sought information under the RTI Act (dt. 21/12/2015) from the Chief Secretary of Gujarat, about the actions taken for awarding compensation and for implementing the mechanisms to fulfill the provisions of the Act of 2013.
The responses under the RTI Act are very disturbing as there is no clear role and responsibility of any department of the Gujarat state. Departments like the Director of Municipality, Managing Director of Gujarat, Principal Secretary of Social Justice and Empowerment, Chief Secretary of Gujarat and the Director of Scheduled Castes Welfare are forwarding letters to each other, mentioning that the implementation of the Act and the subsequent compensation awarded after the deaths of manhole workers, does not come under their department but it comes under other departments.
It is crucial that activists, NGOs and Academics at various levels- taluka, district and state- should demand the following actions immediately:
- The Gujarat government identifies and awards a compensation sum of Rs 10 lakh to the family of the deceased, in all deaths of manhole workers since 1993 as per the judgment of the Supreme Court.
- A mechanism is set up at state, district and taluka levels for effective implementation of the 2013 Act.
- The provisions of the act must be effectively implemented by the Gujarat State.
The author is a senior activist at Janvikas