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Deaths of drains & septic tanks cleaners
Why is it in the news?
- According to the Social Justice and Empowerment (SJE) Ministry, cleaning of drains & septic tanks claims 110 lives in 2019.
More in the news
- The number of people who died while cleaning sewers and septic tanks in the country increased by almost 62% from 2018.
- Data:
(1) A total of 14,559 manual scavengers had been identified by Municipalities and Gram Panchayats in 13 States from 2013-2014 till January 31, 2020.
(2) A national survey was conducted in 194 districts in 18 States where 48,345 manual scavengers were identified till January 31, taking the total to 62,904.
(3) These cases were reported from 18 States and Union Territories, while 13 States and UTs submitted “nil reports”.
- Manual Scavenging:
(1) Manual scavenging refers to the practice of manually cleaning, carrying, disposing or handling in any manner, human excreta from dry latrines and sewers.
(2) It often involves using the most basic of tools such as buckets, brooms and baskets.
- Government Initiatives:
(1) In 1993, the Government of India enacted the ‘Employment of Manual Scavengers and Construction of Dry Latrines (Prohibition) Act’.
(2) The Act prohibited the employment of manual scavengers for manually cleaning dry latrines and also the construction of dry toilets.
(3) In 2013, this was followed by the ‘Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Act, 2013’.
(4) The new Act was wider in scope and importantly, acknowledged the urgency of rehabilitating manual scavengers.
Source
The Hindu.