Question : Health and Safety of Safai Karamcharis

(a) whether the Government maintains data on the number of safai karamcharis who have died due to health and safety hazards related to cleaning sewers;

(b) if so, the details thereof;

(c) if not, the reasons therefor and the steps being taken to conduct a study in this regard;

(d) the measures in place to protect the health and safety of safai karamcharis cleaning sewers;

(e) the details of the States that implement safety procedures for safai karamcharis; and

(f) the directives issued by the Union Government to the States that do not implement safety procedures for safai karamcharis?

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

(a) to (c): Supreme Court of India in its judgment dated 27.03.2014 in CWP No. 583 of 2003 Safai Karamchari Andolan Vs Union of India and Others directed the States and Union Territories to identify all the cases of sewerage related deaths that have occurred since 1993 and pay compensation of Rs. 10 lakh each to the families of the persons who have died while cleaning sewer/septic tank. Details of cases reported by the States are given in the Annexure.
(d): Under Section 36 of the Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Act, 2013 (MS Act, 2013) Government have made Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Rules, 2013 (MS Rules, 2013) which were notified in the Gazette of India dated 12.12.2013. Under these Rules it is obligatory for the employer to provide the safety gear, devices and equipment and ensure safety precautions as prescribed under the above rules.
National Safai Karamcharis Finance and Development Corporation (NSKFDC) in collaboration with Skill Council for Green Jobs (SCGJ) is imparting 35 hours Recognition Prior Learning (RPL) for sanitation workers engaged by Municipal Corporation/Municipalities and other Government Agencies. 6,792 sanitation workers have been provided the above mentioned training from 02nd October, 2018 to 30.06.2019. Safety kits consisting of gloves, mask and jacket are distributed to the sanitation workers in these training camps.
NSKFDC organizes workshops in municipalities for engineers, sanitary inspectors, sanitary workers and contractors on safe cleaning of sewers and septic tanks and also create awareness about the provisions of MS Act, 2013 and MS Rules, 2013 regarding employer’s obligations to provide safety gear/equipment and ensure safety precautions. 345 such workshops have been organized from 02nd October, 2018 to 26.06.2019.
NSKFDC also organizes Health Camps for manual scavengers, safai karamcharis and their families in their basties in which medical check-up including specialist service and free medicines are provided. 64 such camps were organized during 2017-18 and 2018-19.
(e) & (f): All the States and Union Territories are required to comply with the provisions of the MS Rules, 2013 to ensure safety to the person engaged for cleaning of sewers and septic tanks.

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