NEW DELHI: Despite availability of cleaning technologies and laws banning manual scavenging, septic tank deaths continue to occur. Two more men died on Sunday, while cleaning a chemical storage tank in Azadpur.
The Safai Karamchari Andolan, an organisation working to eradicate manual scavenging, documented over 42 cases such deaths across India this year. Of them, five were in Delhi, not counting Sunday’s toll. Bezwada Wilson, who heads SKA, said, “Machines need to be mass produced and provided to people involved in this work. We are trying to declare India free of open defecation, but people are still dying in sewage tanks.”
Alleging the Centre, state government, Delhi Jal Board and civic bodies only indulged in a blame game, he suggested that the highest officer concerned should be jailed for violation of the laws under the Supreme Court’s orders.
The Employment of Manual Scavenging and Construction of Dry Latrines (Prohibition) Act was enacted in 1993, and boosted by the passing in 2013 of the Manual Scavengers Act. Manual scavenging has also been declared as an offence under SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. Yet, according to the Union social justice ministry in the Lok Sabha earlier this year, there were 110 deaths in cleaning sewers and septic tanks in 2019, the highest toll in the last five years. In 2018, there were 68 deaths, 93 in 2017, 48 in 2016 and 57 deaths the previous year.
While Delhi introduced 200 sewer-cleaning machines, Delhi government’s socio-economic survey showed that 36. 7% houses in the city still lacked proper sewerage, especially in informal colonies. DJB, which has disputed Sunday’s incident as being related to a septic tank, launched the Mukhyamantri Septic Tank Safai Yojana and deployed 80 trucks and trained staff for free cleaning of septic tanks, according to an official.
Another DJB official said that 200 sewer cleaning machines and powerful suction machines mounted on smaller vehicle capable of negotiating the narrow lanes of unauthorised colonies were required to manage septic tanks.
Wilson reiterated that the Supreme Court had, in March 2014, directed the prohibition of all forms of manual scavenging, but alleged the central government hadn’t taken any step in this direction. “Instead of reducing the issue to compensation payable, we should be fighting to prevent deaths,” he added.