No manual scavengers in rural areas: Madras High Court

Chennai: Pointing out that manual scavenging is prima facie a contravention of human rights and/or right to live with dignity, the Madras high court has directed the authorities to ensure that there is no engagement of manual scavengers in contravention of the Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Act, 2013.

A division bench comprising Chief Justice Indira Banerjee and Justice M.Sundar gave the directive on a Public Interest Litigation from Safai Karmachari Andolan, which sought to restrain the Union and State governments from engaging directly or indirectly manual scavengers’ including through contractors.

The PIL also sought to terminate the tenders and contracts awarded to contractors, who have engaged manual scavengers, to immediately lodge FIRs and initiate criminal proceedings against all persons suspected of engaging manual scavengers.

The same must be recovered from from the person who actually engaged the manual scavenger, the plea said. In its interim order, the bench said section 7 of the Act prohibits the persons from engagement or employment for hazardous cleaning of sewers and septic tanks. It was true that those engaging manual scavengers in contravention of section 5, 6 and 7 of the said Act render themselves liable to penalty under section 8 and 9 of the Act. However, it was imperative that the authorities immediately take steps to ensure that there was not contravention of section 5, 6 and 7 of the said Act, the bench added.
Directing the authorities to file their counters, the bench posted to August 21, further hearing of the case.

According to petitioner, a total of 30 persons lost their lives in manual scavenging. Despite the Act being passed four years ago, the survey conducted by the state government shows as on June 13, 2017 that there were 363 manual scavengers in urban areas and no manual scavengers in rural areas. Nearly 27,659 insanitary household latrines were scavenged manually and 1,49,455 night soils were disposed in the open drains by as few as 363 persons.

The state government was unwilling to invest time and effort in identifying the families involved, rehabilitating them into other avocations and educating their children, buying machines and equipment replacing human effort. Deaths can be stopped only if people stop entering into sewers and septic tanks, he added.