V
V.Balasubramani
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Amid swachhataabhiyan, manual scavenging thrives
Manual scavengers from Sulabh International cleaning toilets at Saadatganj in Lucknow on Sunday. Photo: Rajeev Bhatt
Authorities are in denial, saysactivist who has documented workers who still clean homes with dry toilets
Over a year ago whenParliament passed a stringent anti-manual scavenging legislation, thehusband-wife duo of Krishna and Ratna had hoped that government help would comeand they would be able to shun the “horrific” job of cleaning night soil withtheir hands.
But at a time when theCentre and the State governments are engaged in carrying out their own versionsof swachhata abhiyan (cleanliness drive), every day at the strike of dawn thecouple, with their little girl child, go from one home to another with a basketand a broom cleaning dry toilets in the bylanes right in the heart of the statecapital.
Krishna and Ratna arenot the only ones engaged in manual scavenging. Dry toilets exist in around1,000 homes in at least a dozen localities in the older part of the city. Thisis despite the fact that forcing people to clean dry toilets can attractstringent punishment, including up to five years of imprisonment.
Though the districtauthorities officially “liberated” 57 manual scavengers last year, NGOs workingin this area claim that there are still over 125 people engaged in cleaning drytoilets in the city.
“Each person cleans atleast 25 – 30 homes...We have been doing this for the past 10 – 15 years. Lastyear, after the stricter anti-manual scavenging law was passed, a lot of buzzwas created by local authorities and surveys were done, but nothing changed forus,” says Mr. Krishna, a worker at Sadatganj area. Asked why he continued to dothe cleaning although he took up other odd jobs during the day, he explains:“It is about two hours of early morning work every day. I make Rs.3,000 permonth...I want to quit this job but house owners whom we have been serving fordecades and with whom we have developed close ties, plead with us not to quit.I took over this job from my parents, but I would not pass it on to my kids.”
Read more at: Amid swachhata abhiyan, manual scavenging thrives - The Hindu
Manual scavengers from Sulabh International cleaning toilets at Saadatganj in Lucknow on Sunday. Photo: Rajeev Bhatt
Authorities are in denial, saysactivist who has documented workers who still clean homes with dry toilets
Over a year ago whenParliament passed a stringent anti-manual scavenging legislation, thehusband-wife duo of Krishna and Ratna had hoped that government help would comeand they would be able to shun the “horrific” job of cleaning night soil withtheir hands.
But at a time when theCentre and the State governments are engaged in carrying out their own versionsof swachhata abhiyan (cleanliness drive), every day at the strike of dawn thecouple, with their little girl child, go from one home to another with a basketand a broom cleaning dry toilets in the bylanes right in the heart of the statecapital.
Krishna and Ratna arenot the only ones engaged in manual scavenging. Dry toilets exist in around1,000 homes in at least a dozen localities in the older part of the city. Thisis despite the fact that forcing people to clean dry toilets can attractstringent punishment, including up to five years of imprisonment.
Though the districtauthorities officially “liberated” 57 manual scavengers last year, NGOs workingin this area claim that there are still over 125 people engaged in cleaning drytoilets in the city.
“Each person cleans atleast 25 – 30 homes...We have been doing this for the past 10 – 15 years. Lastyear, after the stricter anti-manual scavenging law was passed, a lot of buzzwas created by local authorities and surveys were done, but nothing changed forus,” says Mr. Krishna, a worker at Sadatganj area. Asked why he continued to dothe cleaning although he took up other odd jobs during the day, he explains:“It is about two hours of early morning work every day. I make Rs.3,000 permonth...I want to quit this job but house owners whom we have been serving fordecades and with whom we have developed close ties, plead with us not to quit.I took over this job from my parents, but I would not pass it on to my kids.”
Read more at: Amid swachhata abhiyan, manual scavenging thrives - The Hindu
