Skip to main content

Manual scavenging: Instead of trying to stop practice, Govt of India 'fudging' figures

By Bezwada Wilson* 
It is unfortunate that the Government of India (GoI) has once again lied on the deaths in sewer and septic tanks. How can the government claim that there is no manual scavenging when people continue to die in sewer and septic tanks?
The Safai Karmachari Andolan (SKA) has objected to the data tabled by the Union Minister of State for Social Justice and Empowerment Ramdas Athawale on the number of persons who died while cleaning sewer and septic tanks in 2023. The Minister has reported that 9 persons died in 2023. SKA has said that figures are grossly incorrect. This year from January 2023 till now, 58 Indian citizens have lost their lives while cleaning sewers and septic tanks, while the government has reported this figure to be just nine. SKA has placed the deaths of these 58 persons in public domain.
The Union Minister has also underreported on the data of deaths in sewer and septic tanks for the last five years to be 399. SKA says, these numbers are not factual. It reflects the apathy to such deaths of vulnerable citizens of this country.
The statement of the Minister that there is no manual scavenging in the country is false and misleading. SKA states the country cannot be declared free of manual scavenging when so many citizens are being killed in sewer and septic tanks. The casteist practice is prevalent across the country under the definitions of the Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation (PEMSR) Act, 2013. SKA is demanding fresh survey of manual scavengers to eliminate this atrocity.
Bezwada Wilson
The demand of SKA is that Union Government should present correct facts in front of the nation regarding deaths happening in sewers and septic tanks. It should also tell, what has been done so far to prevent such incidents.
The Supreme Court of India, in its order in 2014, has directed to give a compensation of Rs 10 Lakhs for such deaths. 1,315 deaths happened after the SC order and the families of only 266 persons who were killed in sewer and septic tanks have received this compensation. It means that, despite the Supreme Court Judgment, almost 80% victim families have not been given the mandatory compensation.
Since 11th May 2022, SKA has been running a nationwide campaign #Stop KillingUs against the killings in sewers and septic tanks. The campaign has completed 442 days of daily protests across the country. But ironically, instead of trying to stop such killings and making this country free from manual scavenging, the government is putting more efforts on fudging the facts. This is highly deplorable.
---
*National convenor, Safai Karmachari Andolan

Comments

Post a Comment

TRENDING

Bangkok IMF-World Bank meetings: New reports put India's debt, climate, accountability crisis in focus

Counterview News   As the World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF) concluded their Annual Meetings in Bangkok this week, civil society groups and policy experts outside the official proceedings released two critical documents challenging the institutions' legacy and prescriptions for Asia, calling for a fundamental overhaul of the global financial architecture.
Post a Comment
»

India’s power paradox: Why the AI boom and climate crisis demand a distributed energy revolution

By Shankar Sharma*  India has achieved historic milestones in power sector capacity addition over the past decade. Yet, beneath the surface of these record numbers, an unprecedented confluence of structural demand shifts and climate-induced supply volatility is testing the absolute limits of our national grid. 
Post a Comment
»

New UPF study strengthens case for statutory controls on junk food advertising

Counterview News   A randomized controlled trial published in the journal Nature Metabolism has found that ultra-processed foods (UPFs) trigger metabolic and neural responses distinct from minimally processed foods—even when the two meals are nutritionally identical. The study provides direct experimental evidence that food processing itself influences health through mechanisms beyond calories and macronutrients alone.
1 comment
»