Karamchari andolan cries foul

Is the figure of 1.8 lakh for manual scavengers in India, as revealed by the Socio Economic and Caste Census, an accurate estimation?

Perhaps not, as the omission of urban manual scavengers in the survey design stage itself may have potentially brought down the overall numbers of manual scavengers.

After the 2013 law on rehabilitation of manual scavengers was passed, the new definition of manual scavengers, included the categories -- septic tank cleaners, sewerage cleaners and railway track cleaners.

Urban local bodies across the country can be seen employing men to enter sewer holes to remove blocks in them, especially after the rains, as these tasks have not been mechanised by most municipalities.

Further, sewerage infrastructure in urban areas is poorly maintained. Many persons entering sewer holes to clean them have been found to die from asphyxiation or contract serious illnesses such as leptospirosis.

“Leaving out urban and semi-urban areas from the ambit of the SECC while enumerating manual scavengers is a deliberate effort to erase them from official statistics,”says Bezwada Wilson, national convenor of the Safai Karamchari Andolan, who fought a Supreme Court case to eradicate the practice.