“ Shochalaya nahin toh dulhan nahin [No toilet, no bride]” This is the slogan raised by women from Alwar and Kota in Rajasthan, who joined the International Toilet Festival here on Tuesday.
Most of these women, who became manual scavengers after marriage, have come a long way after having spent a decade or more removing human excreta on tin plates carried on their heads. Disadvantaged by the deep-rooted caste system in the country, these women were considered lesser mortals because of the caste-based occupation of manual scavenging. They now weave, and do thread work and crafts.
Seema, a 30-year-old woman from Alwar, says she was forced to clean toilets after her marriage. She, like other former manual scavengers, used to vomit and remain unwell due to the work that was the source of her livelihood.
“My husband and his family asked me to clean human excreta. Though I used to fall ill, it was my source of income. I used to earn Rs.200 to Rs.300 every month. People used to treat me like an outcast,” said Seema.
“Then, in March 2008, [Sulabh founder] Bindheshwar Pathak came to my village. He saw me cleaning latrines and carrying waste on my head in a plate. He asked me if I would like to live a life of dignity and learn some skills. I invited him to my colony. Sir [Dr. Pathak] convinced us and invited us to his training centre,” she added.
Much like Seema, Sunita used to clean latrines and do manual scavenging for 10 years in Tonk in Rajasthan. She says she started manual scavenging after marriage.
“My mother-in-law sent me for the work. She said there was no other option. We had to earn and this was the only work. When I came back home after the first few days of work, I could not eat or drink water. I used to fall sick or vomit often. Then Dr. Pathak met us and inspired us to come to the training centre. We learnt arts and crafts, and many such things. Now life is good,” she said.
There were protests from her family and also from the family of their teacher Sonu Gupta, whose family thought she was mingling with lower caste women.
Ms. Gupta said: “I was always a social worker, but they protested when I joined Sulabh International and started training these women. They thought these women are dirty. But then I brought my parents to the training centre to show how nicely these women come to learn and that they have left manual scavenging. Today they are impressed with my work and I am proud of myself.”
