Lok Sabha Question No. 4674 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-08-21
Subject: Mechanisation of Sewer Cleaning Operations
Ministry: HOUSING AND URBAN AFFAIRS
Asked by: Dr. M P Abdussamad Samadani

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF HOUSING AND URBAN AFFAIRS LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 4674

## TO BE ANSWERED ON AUGUST 21, 2025

## MECHANISATION OF SEWER CLEANING OPERATIONS

NO. 4674  DR. M P ABDUSSAMAD SAMADANI:

Will the Minister of HOUSING AND URBAN AFFAIRS be pleased to state:

- (a) whether the Government has mandated mechanised sewer cleaning across all municipal  bodies and  if so, the details thereof along with the implementation status and other challenges faced, State/UT-wise;
- whether a recent audit has found that mechanised equipment was provided
- (b) in only two out of fifty-four fatal cases; and
- (c) if  so,  the  details  of  directions,  if  any,  issued  to  municipal  bodies  for mandatory  mechanisation  of  sewer  cleaning  and  the  steps  taken/being taken to eliminate manual sewer entry and expedite full mechanisation?

ANSWER

MINISTRY OF HOUSING AND URBAN AFFAIRS

## THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE (SHRI TOKHAN SAHU)

(a)  to  (c)  :  Sanitation  is  a  State  subject  under  7th  schedule  of  the Constitution and by the 74th amendment of the Constitution of India the devolution of power has been made to the Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) for water and sanitation services. It is the responsibility of State/ULBs to plan, design, execute and operate sanitation projects in the urban areas of the country.  Ministry  of  Housing  &  Urban  Affairs  (MoHUA)  supplements  the efforts of States/UTs by providing policy directions, financial and technical support by sharing Manuals/Standard of Procedures (SoPs) on Solid Waste Management (SWM) & Used Water Management (UWM) and issue various Advisories & Guidelines time to time for choosing appropriate technologies to manage solid and liquid waste.

To support Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) with treatment of used water, Swachh Bharat Mission - Urban (SBM-U) 2.0 launched on 1st, October, 2021 includes a new component i.e. Used Water management (UWM) with one of the  objectives  of  eradication  of  hazardous  entry  into  sewers  and  septic tanks, and sustaining elimination of manual scavenging, through mechanization  of  sewer  and  septic  tank  cleaning  operations  for  which Central share funds for Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) with population less than 1 lakh are released for  (i)  procuring  septic  tank  desludging  equipments; …2/-

(ii)  setting  up  of  Sewage Treatment Plants(STPs)/ STP-cum- Fecal Sludge Treatment plants FSTP; for used water treatment; (iii) laying Interception and Diversion (l&D) structures including provision of pumping stations and pumping main/gravity main upto STP, etc.

Government  of  India  has  allocated  ₹15926.55  crores  under  UWM component of SBM-U 2.0 as central share assistance for States/UTs, out of which  action  plan  worth  ₹13699.40  crores  of  central  share  have  been approved so far.

Further,  MoHUA  has  issued  an  advisory  on  Emergency  Response Sanitation Unit (ERSU) to institutionalize safety practices and put in place frameworks to mitigate the dangers of manual cleaning of sewer which may be accessed at https://sbmurban.org/storage/app/media/ Advisory\_on\_Emergency\_Response\_ Sanitation\_Unit.pdf

MoHUA  has  also  issued  SOP  containing  procedure  to  be  followed during mechanical and manual cleaning of sewer and empty of septic tanks along with training module for Sanitary workers on Cleaning of Sewers and Septic Tanks which is available at https://sbmurban.org/ storage/app/media/SOP\_for\_Cleaning\_of \_Sewers\_and\_Septic\_Tanks.pdf

Further, SBM-U, Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA), has issued Model Empanelment and Contract documents in June, 2025 to guide Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) in engaging Private Sanitation Service Operators (PSSOs).  This  framework  aims  to  establish  clear  legal  and  operational guidelines for delivering safe, mechanized services in compliance with the Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation (PEMSR) Act, 2013. It further sets the terms for penalties, termination and blacklisting of private operators that violate the safety protocols causing risks to the health and safety of sanitation workers and failing to perform mechanized cleaning services under this contract.

In order to professionalize desludging services, optimise utilisation of STP/FSTP capacities and ensure safe, efficient disposal of faecal sludge, MoHUA is promoting digitalisation of desludging services across all urban areas. Under MoHUA's National Urban Digital Mission, 'Urban Platform for Delivery of Online Governance  (UPYOG)'  platform  offers 'Desludging Service/Faecal Sludge Management' digital module. States/UTs can digitalize the entire desludging process through this module.

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