Covered in muck, his head emerged from a hole in the ground, gasping for breath. As he began to extricate his body, slowly, painfully from the filth of humanity, even the stray dogs scattered in fear. They began barking since he looked markedly changed from the man who went down the sewer. This worker survived the toxins and filth that many fail to do and succumb. The sanitation workers form the underbelly of ‘that section’ of society that lives on its margins, with no basic human rights. We often forget about them, the manual scavengers, since they are not even visible half the time, as they crawl through the dungeon of sewers to unplug chocked septic tanks and drainage.
Sometimes, we notice only when they die. Recently, on a Sunday morning this month, tragedy struck when 48-year-old Rishi Pal died, and his three co-workers fell unconscious while cleaning the Public Works Department sewer tank at the government-run hospital in Delhi. The reason cited is exposure to toxic gas. The story made headlines in the metro section given the Deputy Commissioner of Police’s (Central) stringent action against the contractor who had hired the four men at mere to perform this task sans protective gear. The amount offered to the four workers was a paltry `650—the price of life for our Swachh Bharat. Desperation to get jobs often pushes young and underaged children to take up manual scavenging, despite a ban on it.
The headline, Fought hard to stay conscious: survivor, says it all. This is all a cleaner of sewers can actually do. This is because in India, our sanitation workers are not even provided with the basic masks, oxygen tanks, gloves and other equipment that is needed when they go down the dark holes.
Pal was the 10th sanitation worker to die in Delhi in just over a month. In Ghitorni area of the NCR this July, four sanitation workers died of asphyxiation while cleaning a septic tank. The team, comprising mostly 20-year-olds and one 45-year-old, were exposed to toxic gas in an hour-long operation that proved fatal, despite them being rushed to hospital. Once again, we react to an emergency, rather than take the precautions needed.
In toxic areas, manual cleaning or scavenging, as it is cringe-inducingly called, should be totally done away with. The Telangana government, is perhaps a leader in this field since it has adopted technology to end the trials of manual scavenging. In June, the government deployed 70 mini sewer jetting machines aimed at eliminating manual scavenging. This is part of their Swachh Telangana drive. Delhi would do well to follow in their footsteps. The announcement that they intend to do so, does not come too early.
Hiring privatised firms and foreign companies could be one solution for bigger projects, such as cleaning Yamuna or Barapullah drain. This is advisable given that the drainage system, built in 1920s, was not designed to support the growing population. However, for the everyday solutions, from neighbourhood drains to overflowing septic tanks, the sanitation worker is called.
Given that they enter the septic tank with minimum clothing and just a rope tied around their waist, private contractors and government officials must make it mandatory for them to wear protective gear. When city drainage systems are automatised, sanitation workers must be rehabilitated and provided alternative professions. Private contractors must verify that sanitation workers are not juvenile or past retirement, as these groups are most vulnerable.
archanadalmia@gmail.com