National workshop on manual scavenging and sanitation
A day-long national workshop on manual scavenging and sanitation organized by the National Human Rights Commission, NHRC, held continuance of manual scavenging in the country as a national shame. The workshop which concluded on the 11th March, 2011 in New Delhi observed that the statistics, as projected by the public authorities, on abolition of manual scavenging and dry latrines in the country do not match the ground realities. It has to stop completely in the whole country.
Earlier, inaugurating the workshop, Mr. Justice K.G. Balakrishnan, Chairperson, NHRC said that it is a point of concern that the states are very slow in implementing the Employment of Manual Scavengers and Construction of Dry Latrines (Prohibition) Act, 1993. He said that as it is even the 1993 Act is a "half-hearted effort" on abolition of manual scavenging given that there is no definite time frame provisioned for its implementation. The result is that some of the states like Jammu & Kashmir Government notified it only in 2011 and Delhi in 2008. The rehabilitation of erstwhile manual scavengers is also not upto the mark.
Equating manual scavengers with bonded labourers, the NHRC Chairperson said that they too need to be rehabilitated in a similar manner. He described shortage of water as an excuse for replacing dry latrines with flush latrines. Justice Balakrishnan regretted that even the Railways have failed to put in place a foolproof system to stop this practice despite advancement in technology.
The workshop also noted that the nation owes an apology to manual scavengers who served to keep our environment clean, but in return got only the rejection of the society for long.
Apart from NHRC Chairperson, Members, Mr. Justice G.P. Mathur, Mr. Justice B.C. Patel and Mr. P.C. Sharma, the other prominent persons who participated in the workshop included, Ms. Kamlaben Gurjar, Chairperson, the National Commission for Safai Karamcharis, Mr. P.L. Punia, Chairperson, the National Commission for Scheduled Castes and Dr. Bindeshwar Pathak, founder of a non-governmental organization, NGO, Sulabh International.
Senior officers representing Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation, Ministry of Rural development, representatives of various state governments, leading NGOs, NHRC officers also participated in the discussions during the workshop.
Prior to this workshop, the Commission had held a national workshop on manual scavenging in the year 2008 and based on the deliberations gave several recommendations to the States and the Union Territories for banning this practice and adopting rehabilitative measures. But it appeared that not enough ground since then has been covered by a number of the State authorities in the matter.
Earlier, inaugurating the workshop, Mr. Justice K.G. Balakrishnan, Chairperson, NHRC said that it is a point of concern that the states are very slow in implementing the Employment of Manual Scavengers and Construction of Dry Latrines (Prohibition) Act, 1993. He said that as it is even the 1993 Act is a "half-hearted effort" on abolition of manual scavenging given that there is no definite time frame provisioned for its implementation. The result is that some of the states like Jammu & Kashmir Government notified it only in 2011 and Delhi in 2008. The rehabilitation of erstwhile manual scavengers is also not upto the mark.
Equating manual scavengers with bonded labourers, the NHRC Chairperson said that they too need to be rehabilitated in a similar manner. He described shortage of water as an excuse for replacing dry latrines with flush latrines. Justice Balakrishnan regretted that even the Railways have failed to put in place a foolproof system to stop this practice despite advancement in technology.
The workshop also noted that the nation owes an apology to manual scavengers who served to keep our environment clean, but in return got only the rejection of the society for long.
Apart from NHRC Chairperson, Members, Mr. Justice G.P. Mathur, Mr. Justice B.C. Patel and Mr. P.C. Sharma, the other prominent persons who participated in the workshop included, Ms. Kamlaben Gurjar, Chairperson, the National Commission for Safai Karamcharis, Mr. P.L. Punia, Chairperson, the National Commission for Scheduled Castes and Dr. Bindeshwar Pathak, founder of a non-governmental organization, NGO, Sulabh International.
Senior officers representing Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation, Ministry of Rural development, representatives of various state governments, leading NGOs, NHRC officers also participated in the discussions during the workshop.
Prior to this workshop, the Commission had held a national workshop on manual scavenging in the year 2008 and based on the deliberations gave several recommendations to the States and the Union Territories for banning this practice and adopting rehabilitative measures. But it appeared that not enough ground since then has been covered by a number of the State authorities in the matter.