Lok Sabha Question No. 256 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2019-11-19
Subject: Death of Manual Scavengers
Ministry: SOCIAL JUSTICE AND EMPOWERMENT
Asked by: T.N. Prathapan

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF SOCIAL JUSTICE AND EMPOWERMENT LOK SABHA

UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 256 TO BE ANSWERED ON 19.11.2019

## DEATH OF MANUAL SCA VENGERS

## 256. SHRI T.N. PRATHAPAN:

## Will the Minister of SOCIAL JUSTICE AND EMPOWERMENT be pleased to state:

- (a) whether the Government has taken note that manual scavenging is still continuing in the country;
- (b) if the details thereof; State-wise;
- C the details of States which has certified manhole cleaners in the country alongwith the number of manhole workers in each State;
- whether the Government has the data of manhole cleaners who died while cleaning the manholes and if the details thereof; SO.
- e the current status of the ban on manual scavenging in the country:
- the steps taken by the Government to ensure complete ban on manual scavenging; and
- g whether the Government has taken any initiative to alternative methods like machines for cleaning manholes and if so. the details thereof? bring

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF STATE FOR SOCIAL JUSTICE AND EMPOWERMENT (SHRI RAMDAS ATHAWALE)

(a). (b) & (e): Manual   scavenging is  prohibited under "Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Act; 2013 (MS Act 2013)' in all the States and Union Territories with effect from 06.12.2013. However; the persons who were engaged as manual scavengers have been identified as per the provisions of the Act and through National Survey of manual scavengers undertaken during 2018-19. State-wise details of manual scavengers identified 31.10.2019 are at Annexure-[. upto

(c): Sanitation a State subject  sanitation workers including manhole cleaners are engaged by the local bodies like Municipal Corporations, Municipalities and Gram Panchayats. No data regarding the sanitation workers including manhole cleaners is maintained by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment. being

(d): No separate data regarding the manhole cleaners who have died while cleaning manholes is maintained by the Ministry: However, details of the persons who have died while cleaning sewers and tanks as reported by the States to the National Commission for Safai Karamcharis are at Annexure-IL: septic

(f): The Government is ensuring that the provisions of the Act are implemented in totality. Under section 6 of the MS Act; 2013 any contract; agreement or other instrument entered into O executed before the date of commencement of this Act, engaging Or employing a person for the purpose of manual scavenging shall, on the date of commencement of this Act; be terminated and such contract, agreement or other   instrument shall be void. Under   Section 8 of the MS  Act;2013 whoever contravenes the provisions of section 5 Or section 6 shall for the first contravention be punishable extend to tWO years Or with fine which may extend to one lakh rupees, or with both:

The Act also provides for identification of Insanitary latrines and their conversion into sanitary latrines SO as Under the Swachh Bharat Mission implemented by the Ministries of Drinking Water and Sanitation and Housing and Urban Affairs the insanitary latrines in Rural and Urban areas have been identified and converted into sanitary latrines to eliminate manual scavenging:

(g): The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs have circulated the Standard Operating Procedure for cleaning of sewers and tanks to all States and Union Territories and also requested the States to appropriately staffed and equipped Emergency Response Sanitation Units (ERSUs) under of sewers   and tanks: Safai Karamcharis   Finance and  Development Corporation (NSKFDC) organizes workshops in municipalities for engineers, sanitary inspectors; sanitary workers and contractors on safe cleaning of sewers and tanks and also create awareness about  the   provisions of MS Act,  2013 and "Prohibition of Employment as   Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Rules, 2013 (MS Rules 2013)" regarding employer $ obligations to provide safety gearlequipment and ensure safety precautions. 453 such workshops have been organized from October; 2018 to 25.10.2019. septic setup septic septic 02nd

50 lakh is provided to the municipalities for purchase of equipment/vehicles for mechanized cleaning of sewers and septic tanks. The State Governments have been requested to issue instructions to the municipalities to enter into Memorandum of Understanding with NSKFDC in this regard.

## Annexure-[

Annexure-[ referred in reply to Parts (a), (b) and (e) of Lok Sabha unstarred Question No. 256 for answer on 19.11.2019 regarding Death of Manual Scavengers:

## Details of identified manual scavengers upto 31.10.2019

| S NO.   | Name of State/Union Territory   |   Identified manual scavengers |
|---------|---------------------------------|--------------------------------|
|         | Andhra Pradesh                  |                           2042 |
| 2       | Assam                           |                            696 |
| 3       | Bihar                           |                            131 |
| 4       | Chhattisgarh                    |                              3 |
| 5       | Gujarat                         |                            108 |
|         | Jharkhand                       |                            201 |
|         | Karnataka                       |                           2466 |
| 8       | Kerala                          |                            600 |
| 9       | Madhya Pradesh                  |                            598 |
| 10      | Maharashtra                     |                           7378 |
| 11      | Odisha                          |                            234 |
| 12      | Punjab                          |                            232 |
| 13      | Rajasthan                       |                           2923 |
| 14      | Tamilnadu                       |                            409 |
| 15      | Uttar Pradesh                   |                          31675 |
| 16      | Uttarakhand                     |                           6167 |
| 17      | West Bengal                     |                            732 |
| Total   | Total                           |                          56595 |

Annexure-II referred in reply to Part (d) of Lok Sabha unstarred Question No. 256 for answer on 19.11.2019 regarding Death of Manual Scavengers.

## Information received from States by the National Commission for Safai Karamcharis (NCSK) about number of sewer deaths and compensation paid since 1993 to 30.06.2019.

| SL No.   | Name of the State/UT   | Total number of sewer death   | Full compensation of Rs. 10 lakh paid   | Partial compensation paid   | No compensation paid   |
|----------|------------------------|-------------------------------|-----------------------------------------|-----------------------------|------------------------|
| 1        | Andhra Pradesh         | 18                            | 14                                      |                             | 0                      |
| 2        | Arunachal Pradesh      |                               | 0                                       |                             |                        |
| 3        | Assam                  | 0                             |                                         |                             |                        |
| 5        |                        | 3                             |                                         |                             |                        |
| 6_       | Goa                    | 6                             |                                         |                             |                        |
| 7_       | Gujarat                | 130                           | 50                                      |                             |                        |
| 8        | Haryana                | 66                            | 49                                      |                             |                        |
| 9_       | Himachal Pradesh       |                               |                                         |                             |                        |
| 10.      | Jammu & Kashmir        |                               |                                         |                             |                        |
| 11.      | Jharkhand              |                               |                                         |                             |                        |
|          | Manipur                |                               |                                         |                             |                        |
| 17.      | Meghalaya              |                               |                                         |                             |                        |
| 18.      | Mizoram                |                               |                                         |                             |                        |
| 19       | Nagaland               |                               |                                         |                             |                        |
| 20       | Odisha                 |                               |                                         |                             |                        |
| 21_      | Punjab                 | 35                            |                                         |                             |                        |
| 22       | Rajasthan              | 36                            |                                         |                             |                        |
| 23 .     | Sikkim                 | 0                             | 8                                       |                             |                        |
| 24.      | Tamil Nadu             | 213                           | 160                                     |                             | 29                     |
| 25 .     | Telangana              |                               |                                         |                             |                        |
| 26.      | Tripura                | 2                             | 0                                       |                             |                        |
|          | Uutarakhahsh           |                               |                                         |                             |                        |
|          |                        |                               | 13                                      |                             |                        |
|          |                        | 9                             |                                         |                             |                        |
| 31.      | Chandigarh             |                               |                                         |                             |                        |
| 32       | Dadra & Haveli Nagar   | 0                             |                                         |                             |                        |
| 33       | Daman & Diu            | 0                             |                                         |                             |                        |
| 34.      | Lakshadweep            |                               | 0                                       |                             | 0                      |
| 35.      | NCT Of Delhi           | 49                            | 24                                      |                             | 21                     |
| 36.      | Puducherry             | 0                             | 0                                       |                             | 0                      |
|          | Total                  | 776                           | 444                                     | 109                         | 175                    |