The conference was held by the Colin Gonsalves (Sr. Advocate), Roma Malik (General Secretary, AIUFWP), Indira Unninayar (Sr. Advocate) and Sanjeev Kumar (Secretary, DASAM).

The panel of activist and advocates said that in UP, despite the law prohibiting manual scavenging and hazardous cleaning under the Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Act, 2013 and Supreme Court’s guidelines, state authority failed to prevent the incident of manual scavenging and responsible for not providing protective gears to the workers.

Talking to reporters, members of DASAM alleged that on May 2, a 57-year-old man and his 30-year-old son died while they were preparing a sewer line in Lucknow’s Wazirgang area. No officials from Jal Nigam visited the site for two hours and by the time they were taken to hospital, they were declared dead, they alleged.

8 workers dies within 10 days in Uttar Pradesh:

Recently, Uttar Pradesh witnessed 8 deaths within a short period 10 days due to manual scavenging.

On May 2, Shroban Yadav, 57, and his son Sushil Yadav, 30, were died while testing a sewer line in Lucknow’s Wazirganj area without safety equipment gears.

On May 3, two daily wage workers, Kokan Mandal, 40, and Nooni Mandal, 36, were died while cleaning the septic tank of a private residence in Noida Sector 26.

On May 9, four people died from inhaling toxic gases while cleaning the septic tank of a house in Mughalsarai, Chandauli. Three of the victims, Vinod Rawat, 35 Kundan, 42 and Loha, 23, were informal sanitation workers while the fourth victim was the son of the house owner who died while trying to save the workers.

A senior advocate of the Supreme Court and founder of Human Rights Law Network Colin Gonsalves said, “It is horrifying that workers are forced to enter sewer line without any protocol, machines or oxygen gears to clean sewer line.

The Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Act, 2013:

Under the.” MS Act of 2013” Manual scavenging is a prohibited activity in India. The provisions of the Act provides that no person or agency can engage or employ any person for manual scavenging. Any person or agency who engages any person for manual scavenging in violation of the provisions of the MS Act, 2013 is punishable under Section 8 of the above Act, with imprisonment up to 2 years or fine up to Rs. 1 Lakh or both.

Radhika Bordia, an independent journalist, said two daily wage workers died on May 3 after inhaling toxic gases while cleaning a septic tank of a private residence in Noida Sector 26.

“Another incident was reported from Mughalsarai where four people were killed while cleaning septic tank of a private residence,” she said.

Bordia said that even after such incidents police do not take strict action. She further stressed that “Under the Manual Scavenging Act, there is a law to rehabilitate the family members of any victim, providing government job to one of the family members and proper compensation,” another activist Roma said, adding that the process was not being carried out.

The MS Act 2013 can be read here:

Compensations not provided to the victims:

Roma Malik, a senior activist from the All India Union of Forest Working People said that “in October 2023 the Supreme Court ordered a compensation of 30 lakhs to the families of victims of manual scavenging which has not reached any of the victims so far. Allegedly, the District Administration promised to provide only ₹4 lakh ex gratia to each deceased in the incident in Chandauli. In India the lives of workers are considered cheap and inexpensive and they can only safeguard their rights through unionization”.

Related:

Manual Scavenging continues unabated, Indian Govts turns a deaf ear to acknowledge this systemic, extreme violence

Manual Scavenging: Eradicate the practice, ensure effective rehabilitation, scholarship, compensation, uphold dignity and liberty says SC

Zero reported deaths due to manual scavenging: Ramdas Athawale

The post 8 sanitation workers die in UP in last 10 days due to hazardous cleaning, activists calls for FIR  appeared first on SabrangIndia.

On April 5, three sanitation workers died after inhaling poisonous gases while cleaning a sewer line in the Dahej taluka of Gujarat’s Bharuch district. According to Dahej police, the deceased have been identified as Gulsingh Muniya (30), Paresh Katara (25) and Anil Parmar (24)—all Dahod natives and Dahej residents. The three had entered the drain to clean it, while two workers had remained outside to help. However, when there was no movement from inside the line after a while, the two outside entered the drain to investigate.

They, too, had breathing problems as a result of the gases. They came out right away and informed the Dahej Gram Panchayat. According to R.B. Vasava, social welfare officer, these two workers were also hospitalised after inhaling toxic gases while attempting to pull their colleagues out of the sewer at Dahej village in the district.

Officials from the fire department and the police arrived on the scene and extracted the bodies from the drain.  Following the post-mortem, the bodies were returned to the victims’ families. The police have opened an investigation into an accidental death.

This is the second time in two weeks that workers have died as a result of asphyxiation in drainage. Previously, two people died in Rajkot in a similar manner. According to the police, on March 21, a sanitation worker and a civic body contractor in Rajkot died of asphyxiation while cleaning an underground drainage line. An official from Malaviya police station informed that Mehul Mehda (24), a sanitation worker, had entered the underground sewer in Samrat industrial area and fainted after inhaling poisonous gases. According to the Times of India, the contractor Afzal Kukur (42), who was present at the scene, immediately entered the sewer to save Mehda, but he too became unconscious. The two were rescued by the fire department and taken to the civil hospital, where doctors declared them dead, according to the official.

The Gujarat Assembly was later informed that the families of two people who died of asphyxiation while cleaning a sewer in Rajkot on March 21 were each paid Rs 10 lakh in compensation, and that departmental action had been initiated against two government officials involved in the supervision of drainage cleaning work in the ward in question. Bhanuben Babariya, Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment, informed the House that the mother and wife of Mehda and Pupar, respectively, had been paid Rs 10 lakh each as compensation in accordance with Supreme Court orders regarding the deaths that happen while cleaning sewer lines.

According to the Indian Express, the minister also stated that a criminal case has been filed in the incident under the provisions of the Indian Penal Code, the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, and the Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and Their Rehabilitation Act against the late Afzal Pupar and “whoever else is found during investigation.”

Data on deaths due to asphyxiation in Gujarat

On March 16, the State government had informed the Legislative Assembly that 11 sanitation workers died of asphyxiation while cleaning sewers in different parts of the State of Gujarat in the last two years. Gujarat Social and Justice and Empowerment Minister Bhanuben Babariya was responding to a question raised by Congress MLA Imran Khedawala, who sought to know the status of compensation to be paid to the kin of the deceased.

According to the data provided by her, seven persons died between January 2021 and January 2022; four lost their lives between January 2022 and January 2023. She had also informed that all urban local bodies as well as panchayats have been directed by the government to strictly follow the provisions of the ‘Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Act, 2013′, Gujarat Social and Justice and Empowerment Minister Bhanuben Babariya had said.

“Despite our best efforts to see that no worker is asked to go inside sewer lines and all guidelines are strictly followed, some private contractors hire workers from other states and ask them to enter into drains, which leads to tragedy. Even if a worker belongs to another state, we pay compensation to the kin (in case of death),” she had told the House.

Deafening silence continues on deaths due to manual scavenging

Last year, the words ‘Stop Killing us,’ made rounds on social media and India alike. ‘Stop Killing Us’ campaign called for protests across India where workers demanded due recognition and compensation for deaths in sewers, septic tanks. The slogan was in response to a call by anti-manual scavenging movement Safai Karamchari Andolan (SKA), a nationwide movement to eradicate the practice, for a 75-day campaign decrying the deaths of sanitation workers in sewers and septic tanks.

SKA Founder Bezwada Wilson, who had given this call, had accused all government of a “criminal silence” in this regard. Conversing with SabrangIndia, Wilson had said that “the government is looking at everything from the point of view of caste. Now you can tell that even today about 2000 people are dying inside sewers across the country, this is our figure, but there are many thousand such people who do not have any data after death. We told the government all the figures but still no arrangement has been made to stop it till date. They just make statements about stopping it but don’t make any arrangements. It is not going to stop without making arrangements.”

Although India began to outlaw the employment of manual scavengers and the construction of dry latrines (Prohibition) Act in 1993, and punishments for employing them were introduced in a 2013 amendment to the Act, the practice remains widespread. According to various activists, tens of thousands of people are involved in this demeaning work, which exposes them to prejudice and abuse.

Manual scavengers are almost always Dalits, who are at the bottom of the social hierarchy and are also known as untouchables in a caste-based society. To earn a living, they perform menial tasks such as cleaning, carrying, and disposing of human excreta, often with their bare hands. When entering sewers and septic tanks, they are rarely provided with the necessary personal protective equipment, such as breathing apparatus, and many lose their lives by inhaling harmful gases.

Despite strict laws, employers continue to illegally force employees to climb into clogged sewers and septic tanks to scoop out human waste. Workers are forced to work without protective gear or go inside a septic tank if their employers demand it, owing to a lack of bargaining power, illiteracy, social vulnerability, and poverty. This situation has persisted for decades, and the center has chosen to remain ignorant of it.

Related:

Dalit Sanitation Worker Dies by Suicide in Gram Panchayat Office in Telangana
Gujarat: 12 sanitation workers dead, but no compensation?
No death due to manual scavenging: Social Justice Minister Athawale
Protection of Manual Scavengers under the law: The real picture
Dalit man forced to enter and clean sewer in Gujarat
Dalits and Adivasis suffered violence and discrimination even in 2021
Varanasi: Sanitation worker dies after being trapped in sewer line for 18 hrs

The post Gujarat: 3 lose their lives and 2 hospitalised from toxic sewer gas exposure; investigation launched appeared first on SabrangIndia.

In a horrifying incident, a 20-year-old sanitation worker’s body was recovered from a sewer line on November 30, 2021 in Varanasi district, Uttar Pradesh, 18 hours after he was reported missing after descending into the manhole. Colleagues told Amar Ujala that the administration has shown persisting negligence towards labour safety and security.

West Bengal resident Nawab Arif was called to clean a 10 feet deep manhole at Lahurabir crossroads on November 29 afternoon, along with three other contract workers. The youth was originally called on November 26 to put in iron plates and stop the outflow of sewage during the Shahi Nala diversion work. He was called on Monday when the sewer started to overflow again. 

As per the statements of his fellow contract workers, on November 29, Arif was lowered into the sewer line with a rope. After he remained unresponsive for 30 minutes, they grew worried. When they pulled the rope, they realised Arif was caught in the rapid currents and reported the same to contractors. A National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) member told the Hindustan the worker’s leg was stuck and the high pressure in the sewer worsened the situation. Arif’s body was finally recovered at 6 AM on Tuesday.

Following a post-mortem, Arif’s family left for their hometown Malda for his final rites. The Jal Nigam department announced an ex-gratia amount of Rs. 10 lakh for the victim’s family. Meanwhile, Arif’s colleagues declared a strike alleging gross administrative negligence. 

In response to worker’s ire, Jal Nigam Ganga Pollution Control Unit General Manager Phanindra Rai announced an investigative team will look into the incident. Members will provide a report on whether the concerned organisation had the required safety and security resources for the worker. Another question to be considered is why Arif was lowered into the manhole at all, if the sewer was overflowing.

However, Arif’s colleagues and families accused the Jal Nigam of rushing the project under higher influence and overlooking workers’ security. Dismissing the investigation as a ruse, Jal Nigam Thekedaar Sangharsh Samiti members said that at least six labourers died in the last five years due to the negligence of the department.

In 2017, a man and his nephew died in Pilikothi. Similarly, Bihar resident Chandan and Shivpur’s local Rajesh died near the Pandeypur Kali temple on March 1, 2019. NDTV reported the incident happened days after Prime Minister Narendra Modi washed the feet of sanitation workers during his visit to Kumbh, Prayagraj.

In light of all this, it is shocking that the central government in July stated that no deaths pertaining to manual scavenging were reported in the last five years. In doing so, officials had contradicted previous claims from February 2, 2021 that the reported number of deaths stood at 340 across 19 States, with Uttar Pradesh topping the list at 52 deaths.

On Tuesday, the Union gathered at the office near Varuna bridge where they demanded that the district administration address the life-endangering threats faced by sewer cleaners.

Related:

941 deaths while cleaning sewers, septic tanks: Centre informs Rajya Sabha
Centre claims that nobody died due to manual scavenging reported in the last 5 years!
Manual Scavengers: 340 deaths, yet Centre has no intention to make stricter laws!

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A sanitation worker identified as Arun Valmiki died in police custody at Agra, reportedly during interrogation. He had been accused of stealing Rs 25 lakh from the Jagdishpura police station, stated news reports. According to Senior Superintendent of Police (Agra) Muniraj G, Arun Valmiki fell ill “suddenly” on Tuesday night and was taken to a hospital where doctors declared him dead.

Arun was accused of “stealing the money on Saturday night from a storage house at police station, where confiscated items are kept” worked as a cleaner there stated the news report adding that according to SP Muniraj Rs 15 lakh were recovered when police raided his house.

However, Arun’s family filed a complaint in connection with his death and members of the Valmiki community gathered at Arun’s house and demanded a fair probe into his death. According to the FIR cited by Indian Express, “Arun was being questioned by the police in connection with the Jagdishpura theft. The police were carrying out search and recovery when Arun fell ill and died when he was rushed to the hospital. He was questioned aggressively by the police which led to his death.” The FIR has been filed against unknown accused at Jagdishpura for alleged murder. According to reports, six police officials, including a station house officer, were suspended after Rs 25 lakh and pistols were stolen from the storage room of Jagdishpura Police Station on Sunday.

Priyanka Gandhi meets family, shares allegations of police turture

Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi was reportedly stopped by the police when she was on her way to Agra to meet Arun’s family. According to Indian Express, she was reportedly detained by Lucknow police “after the Agra police had requested” that she be stopped “until the final rites of the man were completed.” Congress leaders held a protest at the plaza she had been stopped at. And “when Priyanka refused to leave the area, she along with other leaders were taken to the Lucknow reserve police lines and kept there,” reported IE. Lucknow police reportedly “allowed Priyanka and other Congress leaders to proceed after their Agra counterparts informed them that the worker’s final rites had been completed.” 

Gandhi then spoke to the media sharing details after visiting the Valmiki family, demanding justice for the Valmiki family. She said the family told her the police were aggressive and attacked them too. “Around 17-18 people from the community were picked up on Sunday and taken to the police station and were beaten up. They have injuries. His wife said he was beaten, given electric shocks,” said Gandhi adding, “I cannot even imagine this can be done, I can’t even repeat all that they shared. They were kept at the police station for four days. His brother had even met him, and was later told he had died. The family was not present during the post mortem, they were not given the post mortem report. Their house has been ransacked, you can go and see”. 

अरुण वाल्मीकि के परिवार को न्याय दो। pic.twitter.com/z1J6sJJ3BK

— Priyanka Gandhi Vadra (@priyankagandhi) October 20, 2021

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Representation Image

PTI reports that at least seven workers of a private hatchery died of asphyxiation inside a drain in Chittoor district of Andhra Pradesh on Friday morning. An investigation into the incident is under way, the police said, adding, according to their initial assessment, there was “serious negligence” on part of the hatchery management in ensuring adequate safety measures at the site.

Chittoor superintendent of police (SP) G Srinivas said the incident took place in Venkateshwara Hatchery in Moram village. Four workers fell unconscious after they entered the drain in Palamaneru for cleaning purpose. Three others, who entered the drain to rescue the four workers, also fell unconscious.

Residents rushed to the spot to rescue the workers, however, all of them had died by the time their bodies were pulled out. The two workers, who raised the alarm, entered the drain for rescue work and fell unconscious. The duo are currently undergoing treatment in a hospital.

Following the incident, police said, the manager and the administration at the hatchery fled their offices. A manhaunt is on to nab the officials. Police said an investigation into the incident is underway and added that according to their initial assessment, there was “serious negligence” on part of the hatchery management in ensuring adequate safety measures at the site.

The post Again, Seven Sanitation Workers Die of Asphyxiation: AP appeared first on SabrangIndia.

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They were taken to AIIMS Trauma Centre where the doctors declared that they were “brought dead”.

Two of the victims were identified as Joginder (32) and Annu (28), while the identity of the third is yet to ascertained, police said.

In a similar incident just three weeks ago, four sanitation workers died of suffocation while cleaning a septic tank in south Delhi’s Ghitorni area. Five men had gone down to clean the tank in a household in the area but did not come out for long. They were later pulled out in an unconscious state by fire department personnel after an hour-long operation. They too had inhaled toxic gases inside the tank.

Sanitation workers across the country often work poor working conditions and without proper protection and tools. There is a lack of safety equipment and proper procedures are seldom followed, which puts the lives of thousands of sanitation workers at risk.

This is not the first time that such a tragedy has befallen the national capital. On July 15, ANI reported that four sanitation workers on Saturday fell into a septic tank in Ghitorni and that rescue operations are currently underway.
 
India Spend analysed data that suggested that Uttar Pradesh (UP), Bihar, Madhya Pradesh (MP), Assam and Chhattisgarh had India’s highest under-five mortality, higher stunting (low height-for-age) rates and higher prevalence of diarrhoea due to lack of “improved sanitation”–usually a house with its own latrine connected to a sewer or septic tank–according to the National Family Health Survey 2015-16 (NFHS-4).
 
Magsaysay Award winner, Bezwada Wilson had launched the Bhim Yatra between 2015-2016 with the message, “Stop Killing Us” addressed to the Central and State Governments. “These deaths are not accidents but political murder,” said Bezwada Wilson, National Convenor, Safai Karamchari Andolan, and organiser of the Yatra, which drew support from eminent citizens and jurists, such as V.N. Khare, Prabha Sridevan, A.P. Shah, Rajinder Sachar, Indira Jaising among others. Between March 2014 and March 2016, there were 1,268 reported instances of death in sewer cleaning.
 
Read
4 dead, one injured after falling in harvesting tank in Ghitorni: Delhi
 
Related Articles:
 

1. The Long March to Eliminate Manual Scavenging
2. 3 die while cleaning septic tank in Malwani

The post Again, Three Sanitation Workers Gasp to Their Death in Sewers: Lajpatnagar, Delhi appeared first on SabrangIndia.

four sanitation workers on Saturday fell into a septic tank in Ghitorni and that rescue operations are currently underway.

The Hindu had recently reported that, around 250 sanitation workers in the capital get inside storm water drains and sewer lines to clean them. The report further added that the men mostly worked without any safety gear. This is in the era of the Swacch Bharat Abhiyan for which all Indians are compolsarily paying a tax.
 

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