No compensation to family, reluctance to file FIR: Manual scavengers' death

By Arun Khote, Sanjeev Kumar*
Recently, there have been four instances of horrifying deaths of sewer/septic tank workers in Uttar Pradesh. On 2 May, 2024, Shobran Yadav, 56, and his son Sushil Yadav, 28, died from suffocation while cleaning a sewer line in Lucknow’s Wazirganj area. In another incident on 3 May 2024, two workers Nooni Mandal, 36 and Kokan Mandal aka Tapan Mandal, 40 were killed while cleaning the septic tank in a house in Noida, Sector 26. The two workers were residents of Malda district of West Bengal and lived in the slum area of Noida Sector 9.

Kokan Mandal lived with his wife Anita Mandal and has three school-going children in Bengal while Nooni Mandal lived with his wife Lilika Mandal and his son Sujan on rent in a jhuggi. They worked as daily wage labourers and sanitation workers informally.

On 3 May, at 7 pm the two workers were called to clean the septic tank of a private residence in Noida Sector 26. Both the workers were killed by inhaling toxic gases while cleaning the septic tank. It is to be noted, as informed by the family of the victims, that there was no one to supervise the cleaning process at the site.

Even when both the workers got killed due to the toxic gas, for an extended period no one from the owner’s family inquired or became aware of the situation. They were rescued by the police at around 11 pm and taken to Kailash Hospital in Sector 27, Noida where they were declared dead on arrival.

The hospital issued A Medico-Legal Case (MLC) and sent the bodies of the deceased for post-mortem on the same day. The post-mortem was conducted on 4 May but the police have not done any proceedings thereafter.
Since then, the family of the victims have not received the post mortem report from the police and neither has an FIR been filed till now. The Police Commissionerate Sector 20, Noida showed reluctance to file an FIR and claimed that the death of the sanitation workers was ‘coincidental’.

There has been constant pressure on the victim's family for not filing an FIR and there is no evidence to show that the entitled compensation money has been received by the victim's family.
Manual scavenging is an illegal practice under the Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Act, 2013 (MS Act) which bans the use of an individual to manually clean, carry, or handle human excreta in any manner.

Kokan Mandal and Nooni Mandal were victims of manual scavenging and were made to manually clean the septic tank of a private household without any safety equipment and an FIR must be lodged under MS Act, 2013.

Furthermore, the families of the victims are entitled to the due compensation as per the orders of the Supreme Court of India. It is also the duty of the police to provide security and shelter to the widows of the sanitation workers and ensure that they get the due compensation.
Dalit Adivasi Shakti Adhikar Manch (DASAM) and Justice News have issued this joint statement condemning the inaction of police and government authorities to give due compensation to the family and ensure their proper rehabilitation.

It is tragic that even after 10 years of the Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Act, 2013 the practice of manual scavenging still exists and that there are no proper measures to ensure justice to the victims.

We stand in strong opposition to the increasing number of deaths in sewer/septic tanks in Uttar Pradesh and demand that immediate action must be taken to prevent such deaths in the future.
---

*With Justice News and Dalit Adivasi Shakti Adhikar Manch

Comments

Modi’s Israel visit strengthened Pakistan’s hand in US–Iran truce: Ex-Indian diplomat

By Jag Jivan M. K. Bhadrakumar , a career diplomat with three decades of service in postings across the former Soviet Union, Pakistan, Iran, Afghanistan, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Germany, and Turkey, has warned that the current truce in the US–Iran war is “fragile and ridden with contradictions.” Writing in his blog India Punchline , Bhadrakumar argues that while Pakistan has emerged as a surprising broker of dialogue, the durability of the ceasefire remains uncertain.

Incarceration of Prof Saibaba 'revives' the question: What is crime, who is criminal?

By Kunal Pant* In 2016, a Supreme Court Judge asked the state of Maharashtra, “Do you want to extract a pound of flesh?” The statement was directed against the state for contesting the bail plea of Delhi University Professor GN Saibaba. Saibaba was arrested in 2014, a justification for which was to prevent him from committing what the police called “anti-national activities.”

Why Indo-Pak relations have been on 'knife’s edge' , hostilities may remain for long

By Utkarsh Bajpai* The past few decades have seen strides being made in all aspects of life – from sticks and stones to weaponry. The extreme case of this phenomenon has been nuclear weapons. The menace caused by nuclear weapons in the past is unforgettable. Images of Hiroshima and Nagasaki from 1945 come to mind, after the United States dropped two atomic bombs on the cities.

Food security? Gujarat govt puts more than 5 lakh ration cards in the 'silent' category

By Pankti Jog* A new statistical report uploaded by the Gujarat government on the national food security portal shows that ensuring food security for the marginalized community is still not a priority of the state. The statistical report, uploaded on December 24, highlights many weaknesses in implementing the National Food Security Act (NFSA) in state.

Manufacturing, services: India's low-skill, middle-skill labour remains underemployed

By Francis Kuriakose* The Indian economy was in a state of deceleration well before Covid-19 made its impact in early 2020. This can be inferred from the declining trends of four important macroeconomic variables that indicate the health of the economy in the last quarter of 2019.

The soundtrack of resistance: How 'Sada Sada Ya Nabi' is fueling the Iran war

By Syed Ali Mujtaba* The Persian track “ Sada Sada Ya Nabi ye ” by Hossein Sotoodeh has taken the world by storm. This viral media has cut across linguistic barriers to achieve cult status, reaching over 10 million views. The electrifying music and passionate rendition by the Iranian singer have resonated across the globe, particularly as the high-intensity military conflict involving Iran entered its second month in March 2026.

Lata Mangeshkar, a Dalit from Devdasi family, 'refused to sing a song' about Ambedkar

By Pramod Ranjan* An artist is known and respected for her art. But she is equally, or even more so known and respected for her social concerns. An artist's social concerns or in other words, her worldview, give a direction and purpose to her art. History remembers only such artists whose social concerns are deep, reasoned and of durable importance. Lata Mangeshkar (28 September 1929 – 6 February 2022) was a celebrated playback singer of the Hindi film industry. She was the uncrowned queen of Indian music for over seven decades. Her popularity was unmatched. Her songs were heard and admired not only in India but also in Pakistan, Bangladesh and many other South Asian countries. In this article, we will focus on her social concerns. Lata lived for 92 long years. Music ran in her blood. Her father also belonged to the world of music. Her two sisters, Asha Bhonsle and Usha Mangeshkar, are well-known singers. Lata might have been born in Indore but the blood of a famous Devdasi family...

School closures across states raise concerns amid Govt of India claims of improved access

By A Representative A recent report has raised concerns over the closure and merger of government schools in several Indian states, particularly in Bihar, where a significant number of institutions have reportedly been shut down or earmarked for closure.

Health activist group raises concerns over HPV vaccination drive, seeks temporary halt

By A Representative Swasthya Adhikar Manch, a public health advocacy group, has urged the Union government to ensure greater accountability and transparency in the ongoing Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination campaign, and called for its temporary suspension pending a comprehensive review. In a letter addressed to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India, the group flagged what it described as unresolved concerns surrounding the nationwide rollout of the HPV vaccine, which began on February 28, 2026. The campaign targets 14-year-old girls and involves administering Gardasil, a quadrivalent vaccine intended to protect against certain strains of HPV linked to cervical cancer.

Search This Blog