Manual scavenging is a blot on society

The appalling spectacle of human beings dying inside sewer lines was repeated on the outskirts of the national Capital after four people died in the Samaypur Badli area on Tuesday evening. The victims – private contractor Suraj Sahni, labourers Bachhu Singh and Pintu Raut, and e-rickshaw driver Satish Kumar, who jumped into the manhole to try and save the others – could only be pulled out after 10 hours because the manhole opening was narrow. The families of the deceased alleged the contractors didn’t follow safety regulations or provide gear, and that none of them was trained for this hazardous job.

In a modern country, such deaths should be rare, but they are disturbingly common in India, underlining gaps in urban planning, implementation of governmental regulation, and drafting of national policies such as Swachh Bharat Mission and Smart Cities Mission. Unfortunately, even as the reports of this kind pour in from all over the country, a debate rages on over whether these deaths can be classified under manual scavenging and prosecuted under the 2013 law banning such practices. In a raft of replies in Parliament, the government has repeatedly said zero deaths were reported for manual scavenging, but conceded that 321 people died while cleaning drains and sewers in the last five years. All deaths in sewers must be acknowledged as a failure of the 2013 law, and adequate action must be instituted against authorities and contractors who flout safety norms. The government must consider mechanising this system and lawmakers should take into account the caste-based nature of such occupations to ensure that gaps in policy are bridged, and such blots on India’s progress are removed expeditiously.