Home | Safai Karmachari Andolan

"We are on a mission to reclaim our dignity, equality and personhood"
Police Protest at Bhim Yatra, Jantar Mantar, 2016

"We will fight till we regain our lost dignity."
Bhim Yatra 2016

"We will fight till we stop getting killed"
Basket Burning Drive.

What is Manual Scavenging?

Manual scavenging is the practice of cleaning, carrying and disposing of human excreta from dry latrines or sewers.

This dehumanising practise is prevalent across the country, and is done by people who fall lowest in the caste hierarchy. Not only is this practise humiliating but also a major cause of discrimination. Manual scavenging is, by law, a banned practice in India, with provisions for rehabilitation of workers. But due to government apathy in the implementation of the law, the practice continues..

Manual Scavenging is Illegal in India, but ...

Dry Laterines

2600000

Community Dry latrines (CDL) - big structure used collectively by the people and Individual Dry Latrines (IDL) - present at individual houses. In both these cases, humans are employed for cleaning excreta on a day to day basis, and are the monuments of untouchability in India.

Sewer Cleaning

770000

Workers are sent into sewers with complete nowledge and awareness of the dire consequences. According to the Honorable Supreme Court’s order, it is a crime to force a human being to enter a sewer line, unless it is an emergency, but not without the required safety gears. The reason for criminalising humans entering into sewer lines is the really high probability of death due to the inhalation of poisonous gases. Due to the negligence of the government, workers are forced to enter manholes and subsequently die of asphyxiation.

Railway Cleaners

36176

Manual Scavenging at Railway Stations: There are about 8,025 railway stations in the country which ferry about 2,30,00,000 passengers everyday. Whenever passengers use train toilets while trains are halted at stations, the excreta directly falls on the railway tracks beside the platforms. The tracks littered with human feces are cleaned by a human work-force. While our country prides itself in sending spacecrafts to Mars, we still haven't identified a dignified technology for cleaning human shit.

Deaths Reported

1760

When drains and manholes are clogged, humans are expected to enter into them and clear the clog. This work not only forces people to completely dip themselves in sewer water, but often those engaged in this work die upon inhaling poisonous gases.

SKA is on the mission to Eradicate Manual Scavenging

30 YEARS

6350 Volunteers

439 Districts

Liberation

Manual Scavengers Rehabilitation - A way of life

Satyamev Jayate

Bezwada Wilson (National Convener of Safai Karmachari Andolan) speaks with actor Aamir Khan on a TV show, Satyameva Jayate, where he narrates experiences from his childhood when he had to face caste discrimination. He reflects on the inhuman practice of manual scavenging and his resolute fight for its complete eradication. Despite a 1993 Act of Parliament to eradicate manual scavenging, Wilson talks about its continued widespread practice across the country and the abject failure of the state to implement its own laws. He calls out this outrage and appeals to all the citizens to join his fight for justice.

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