BENGALURU: “You cannot even stand near an open manhole for more than a few seconds. But we delve deep into it and work there for one to three hours. We do that just to eke out a living. It is a matter of our family’s survival,” said 42-year-old Narasaiah (name changed). He has been working as a manual scavenger for the last 12 years.
The inhuman and prohibited practice of manual scavenging continues unhindered in the IT capital. Many families are into this banned practice since generations. “People can never bear that smell. Forget entering the manhole, one cannot even peep into it. We do it for our families,” Narasaiah added.
Thirty six-year-old Shankrappa (name changed) from a village in Andhra Pradesh is into manual scavenging for the last 15 years. “Both my father and grandfather used to work as manual scavengers. My father, however, did not want me to spend my life entering sewage pits. I worked as a cleaner in a lodge in Majestic area for some time. But the salary was very less and I was left with no other option but to take to manual scavenging,” he said.
“I don’t want my two sons to become like me, hence I am providing for their education at a private English medium school. For just `500 to `2,000, we spend at least one hour to three hours inside the manhole,” he added. Another manual scavenger Babu (name changed) said most of them drink alcohol to be able to bear the pungent smell. “Alcohol affects your ability to recognise the smell of the gases and scavengers know it could prove fatal to them inside manholes. But without alcohol, it is simply impossible to bear that stench,” Babu said.
“A few years ago, when I got down into a manhole on St Mark’s Road, I started feeling giddy and suffocated and experienced breathlessness. Luckily, it was just six feet depth and I somehow managed to come out unscathed,” he added.
“I had lost my driver’s job and I had to take care of the family. Manual scavenging was the only choice I had back then,” said Swamy (name changed).