Manual sewer cleaning deaths persist despite ban, says DASAM report

By A Representative 

The human rights organisation, Dalit Adivasi Shakti Adhikar Manch (DASAM), has expressed grave concern over the continuing deaths of sanitation workers engaged in the manual cleaning of sewers, septic tanks, sewage treatment plants, manholes and other confined sanitation spaces across India. In a statement, the organisation claimed that at least 55 sanitation workers died between February and June 2026, despite the legal prohibition of manual scavenging and repeated judicial directives mandating mechanisation of hazardous sanitation work.

According to DASAM, the documented deaths included one in February, 20 in March, 10 in April, six in May and 18 in June. The organisation alleged that the actual number of deaths may be higher because many cases are reportedly classified as industrial accidents, toxic gas exposure, drowning or workplace negligence instead of being recorded as manual scavenging-related fatalities.

The organisation said the first documented death during the period occurred on February 4, when 26-year-old contract worker Shamim Razak Gazi died while cleaning a 25-foot-deep drain in Goregaon, Mumbai. DASAM stated that he was working under the sewerage operations department of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation when he inhaled toxic fumes and was overwhelmed by a sudden gush of water. Another worker was rescued.

The organisation reported that March witnessed the highest number of fatalities, with 20 sanitation workers losing their lives in incidents across Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Uttar Pradesh and Delhi. According to the statement, four workers each died in separate septic tank cleaning incidents in Vaishali and Sitamarhi districts of Bihar. Additional fatalities were reported from Indore, Hooghly, Balotra, Raipur, Kanpur and Seemapuri in Delhi.

DASAM said another 10 workers died during April in incidents reported from Coimbatore, Nuh, Jaipur, Pune and Palwal, while six deaths were recorded in May in Faridabad, Lucknow and the Butibori MIDC area of Nagpur.

The organisation highlighted that June alone accounted for 18 documented deaths. These included four workers who died while cleaning a septic tank at a jewellery manufacturing unit in Surat on June 7, three workers who died in separate sewer and sewage treatment plant cleaning incidents in Faridabad, four fatalities during tank and sewage treatment cleaning operations in Bengaluru, three workers, including a father and son, who died while cleaning a factory sewage tank in Ludhiana, one worker who died while cleaning a manhole in Lucknow, and three workers who died while cleaning a septic tank at an industrial unit in Delhi's Mundka area on June 26.

According to DASAM, the recurring incidents demonstrate that workers continue to be sent into toxic confined spaces without essential safety equipment such as oxygen support systems, gas detectors, breathing apparatus, harnesses or emergency rescue arrangements. The organisation alleged that manual entry into sewers and septic tanks remains widespread despite being prohibited under the law.

The organisation expressed particular concern over Delhi, claiming that more than nine sanitation worker deaths linked to sewer and septic tank cleaning had occurred in the city during June alone.

DASAM stated that its fact-finding team visited the families of Arun, Sandeep and Chand, who died in the Mundka incident, at their rented homes in Sultanpuri on June 27. According to the organisation, family members alleged that the workers were instructed to enter the septic tank without mandatory safety equipment after water had been drained from it. DASAM claimed that Sandeep collapsed first after entering the tank, while Arun and Chand subsequently entered in attempts to rescue him and also died due to toxic gas exposure. The organisation said the deceased were the sole earning members of their families and alleged that the incident reflected serious violations of the Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Act, 2013, labour safety laws and Supreme Court directives.

The organisation also referred to another Delhi case involving sanitation worker Vinod Kumar, who died while cleaning a septic tank in New Ashok Nagar in May, while another worker, Dharmendra, was seriously injured. DASAM alleged irregularities in the police investigation, including the failure to invoke provisions of the Manual Scavenging Act and the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.

The statement further alleged that sanitation workers are frequently employed through contractors without formal employment contracts, insurance, healthcare, labour protections or social security. It claimed that contractor-based employment often results in weak accountability, with municipal authorities distancing themselves from responsibility and prosecutions remaining rare despite repeated fatalities.

DASAM also alleged that compensation remains inconsistent despite Supreme Court directions providing for ₹30 lakh compensation to the families of sanitation workers who die while cleaning sewers or septic tanks. According to the organisation, many affected families face delays, partial payments or receive no compensation at all, while long-term rehabilitation measures such as government employment, housing, pensions, education and livelihood support are often absent.

The organisation said sanitation work exposes workers to serious occupational hazards including respiratory illnesses, toxic gas exposure, lung damage, skin diseases, neurological disorders, chemical burns and chronic infections. It further stated that the overwhelming majority of workers engaged in such hazardous work belong to Dalit communities, particularly the Valmiki community, as well as other historically marginalised caste groups and migrant labourers.

Calling the continuing fatalities a manifestation of structural discrimination, DASAM argued that the deaths violate constitutional guarantees of equality, abolition of untouchability, protection against forced labour and the right to life and dignity.

The organisation urged authorities to register cases under the Manual Scavenging Act, the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, labour laws and the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act wherever applicable; conduct independent judicial inquiries into every sanitation worker death; prosecute contractors, employers and officials found responsible; ensure payment of ₹30 lakh compensation to affected families; provide government employment and comprehensive rehabilitation to dependants; fully mechanise sewer and septic tank cleaning; undertake a nationwide audit of sanitation practices; strengthen monitoring mechanisms; and impose strict penalties, including cancellation of contracts and licences, against entities engaging workers in hazardous manual sanitation work.

DASAM said it stands in solidarity with the families of the deceased and called for accountability from contractors, companies and public authorities responsible for the recurring deaths.