The outcast, untouched, unseen victims of Swachh Bharat
We all would like to think that India as a country - the largest democracy in the world, has progressed by leaps and bounds over the 70 years of Independence, we would like to believe that with every passing day India is fighting casteism, accountability and every social evil, however, it is very disheartening to say that India still has a long way to go.
India will truly be considered progressive when each and every citizen of the country will be able to practice their fundamental rights, even the manual scavengers.
Manual
scavenging
is
still
prevalent
in
the
country
under
the
garb
of
names
such
as
'motor
loaders' which
do
not
reveal
the
pain
and
torture
attached
to
the
nature
of
the
job,
which
is
not
only
casteist
but
also
prohibited
under
the
Indian
law.
The
Employment
of
Manual
Scavengers
and
Construction
of
Dry
Latrines
(Prohibition)
Act,
1993
and
The
Prohibition
of
Employment
as
Manual
Scavengers
and
their
Rehabilitation
Act
2013
or
M.S.
Act
2013
prohibits
the
dehumanizing
practice
where
workers
are
made
to
carry
waste
and
human
excreta
from
pit
latrines
or
dry
latrines
with
basket
and
brooms,
get
inside
sewer
holes
without
any
mask
and
safety
precautions.
Many
have
even
lost
their
lives
in
the
process.
Oneindia spoke to Sunil Yadav, a manual scavenger, who is pursuing Ph-D in State, labour processes and Caste Identity in India: A Case Study of Scavenging Workers in Mumbai, from the Tata Institute of Social Sciences. His ambition - to bring in development in the profession of cleaning, so that the workers employed are not deprived of their basic rights and dignity. Sunil was recently in the National Capital to attend a conference on improving laws and policies in the global labour laws, which was attended by representatives from 45 countries.
Hailing from the City of Dreams - Mumbai, the finance capital of India, Sunil Yadav started working as a manual scavenger or Safai Karmachari from the age of 25. Sunil recalled the horror that he went through on the first day of his work as a manual scavenger, he said, "I felt that it was worse than hell. I was knee-deep in garbage without any uniform. I did not know what I was supposed to do, I had to support my family anyhow. I thought about it the whole day, the smell of garbage was not going off."
Sunil's father suffered from 97% paralysis and his mom was earning a living for the family of six, that's when Sunil had to take up this dreaded job. Sunil said that his father was addicted to drugs and alcohol.
"I now realised why my father took to drugs and alcohol, what else would a man do after spending most of his day inside garbage?" Sunil said.
Sunil also spoke of the cruelty involved in the practice, wherein workers are not allowed to take breaks. He said, "Nobody cares about your life in this profession. Senior officers would make one person do the job of four people, and for all 30 days a month."
Moreover, according to data and reports, most of the people employed in the profession belong to a particular community - Dalits. Sunil said, "Only Dalits are working as manual scavengers and are intentionally chosen by others only for this job. Discrimination on the ground of caste is still very pervasive in the system."
He also pointed out at the problems women workers have to face regularly. He said, "India is a patriarchal country, we have huge gender-related problem in the profession. First they are women, and second they belong to the Dalit community, they are the minority in the minorities, they have to face sexual harassment almost on a regular basis."
He asked, "The way the profession functions at presents is absolutely against the labour laws. Are labour laws not applicable on safai karmacharis? Are we not citizens of the country ?"
Sunil expressed his frustration with the way the workers are treated and looked down upon by the senior officials in the profession, he said "In spite of having better qualifications that most in the senior level, I was denied the position of Labour Officer only because of my caste. A former municipal commissioner of Mumbai, IAS officer Sitaram Kunte once told him - If you people want to study, who will do the cleaning job?
Sunil also called out the cunning practices and strategies adopted to hide the dark business of employment of people in a profession that strips one off basic dignity of life. He said, ' We were included within the four pillars of labour categories only after the 1993 Act, even after that only the name of the profession was changed from that of manual scavengers to motor loaders, but nothing else. We still did the same job. We never had any increase in our salaries. The trainee labourers or the ones who were not permanent yet, do not even receive minimum wages."
"It is said that we voluntarily do this job, but who would want to drown in garbage voluntarily?" He asked.
Taking a dig at Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Swachh Bharat campaign, Sunil said, "Only cleaning dry leaves with big brooms will not keep India clean, please get into sewer holes with us and see how it feels."
When asked that in spite of being so highly qualified why does he continue to work as a manual scavenger, Sunil said, "I am at a point of life where I have struggled a lot, I have worked as a manual scavenger and I have also been able to continue my education along with it. Now I can't leave my community suddenly, my struggle is to be able to work for the dignity of those in the profession and ensure that they know about their rights and that they too have the right to dignity."
Sunil wants the implementation of technological advancements in this profession, he said, "Cleaning work is happening all over the world, but the workers there are not treated in this manner."
Along
with
implementation
of
technological
advancements,
he
also
wants
proper
training
and
rehabilitation
of
workers,
he
said,
"Along
with
bringing
in
new
technology,
workers
must
be
trained
and
rehabilitated.
Technology must not snatch away the livelihood of people. As soon as technology will be incorporated, people from higher castes will also join the profession, but that again should not affect the employment of the ones who had been doing the job so far."
"BMC has machines but they are not being able to use them in the narrow lanes of Mumbai, we need scientific intervention," Sunil added.
Sunil said that he has also written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to spread awareness on the issue.
Sunil's 10-year-old daughter studies in an international school, and he takes immense pride in the fact that his daughter, unlike him, speaks fluent English and also helps him with writing official letters. He also is educating is wife in Law. He said, "Awazein daabni nahi chahiye, uthni chaiye (Voices should not be suppressed, but raised)."
"I do not want to set an example, people expect a lot from me and I cannot leave the battle mid-way now," Sunil added saying that he gets calls from across the country hailing him as a source of inspiration.
Sunil
has
multiple
degrees
and
qualifications
and
yet
continues
to
fight
for
the
rights
of
others
who
go
through
the
daily
torture
because
of
lack
of
means,
and
more
importantly
lack
of
awareness.
Sunil
indeed
is
an
inspiration
to
the
many.
There
are
many
Sunils
in
the
country
today,
it's
about
time
that
we
hear
out
their
stories,
their
dream
for
a
change,
their
fight
for
a
New
India.
OneIndia News