‘’Give us enough safety equipment,’’ is what Satheesh and Krishnankutty, manhole contract workers of the Sewerage Division of Kerala Water Authority (KWA), say. It is not a ‘white-collared’ or ‘officer’s job’ that they do, but clearing the drains with bare hands. The two are among the 41 workers who start this work at 9.30 am every day.
“I have to feed my family and send my two children to school. If I don’t do this work, my family will starve,” said Satheesh. There are several manhole workers like him, many of whom continuing on the job even after 20 years. ‘’Every day is a risk. Still, we have to work and will continue working here,” he added.
On Monday, Krishnankutty and Satheesh were busy removing waste from a manhole at Karamana following a complaint registered with the Department. “This time, the condition was bad here with the sewer completely blocked. With no other option, we had to get to the bottom of the manhole and remove the obstacles which, as usual, were stones and wastes blocking the water flow,” they said.
“We get Rs 350 for a day’s work, but some days with no work, we will have to go for other household clearing works,” said Krishnankutty.
“It is sad that we have to take money from our pockets to buy oil and soap for cleaning ourselves after completing the work. Out of the Rs 350 that we get, a good amount is spent on getting essentials for cleaning ourselves. It is from this amount that we have to undergo treatment in case we are down with any disease. And, finally, nothing is left for our family needs,” said Satheesh.
Both of them have two children each, for whom they wish to give a good education. As of now, they have to reach for their dream with the paltry amount that they get.
According to the workers, they don’t receive any allowances other than the amount that they get as their daily wages. “We are not given any safety equipment either - a safety belt, mask or oxygen. Whatever be the length of the drain, we have to get inside and clean it for getting our wages. As ours is a contractual work, we do not get any assistance from the Sewerage Department too,” they said. ‘’All that we can do is contact our contractors, but that too is of no use,’’ they added.
Presently, the Health Department is much vigilant on the spread of diseases and is taking several measures to bring the situation under control. The Department also conducts awareness classes throughout the State. But, no one remembers or gives importance to the health issues of these workers who spend maximum hours in the dirty water in drains, where chances of contracting diseases are maximum. These innocent souls who work the most to keep the city clean are totally ignored by the authorities. No one has ever conducted any awareness class or given preventive injections or any other medicine to guard them against the diseases awaiting them.
It seems no one has learnt any lessons from an incident in which a worker, Kannan, died while cleaning a 26-feet manhole at Mudavanmukal a few years ago.
