Jun 13 2014 : Mirror (Pune)
TRAPPED IN THE DEEP
Vijay.Chavan @timesgroup.com TWEET @ThePuneMirror
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NCSC sounds an alarm on the use of manual scavengers, which is a clear violation of 2013 Act; asks PCMC to pull up erring health officers
Eight months have gone by since the Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Act, 2013 came into being, but civic bodies are unable to shed their primitive inhuman practise of manually cleaning night soil clogging drains and septic tanks. This continued callous atti tude has finally pushed the National Commission for Scheduled Castes (NCSC) to issue a notice to Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) seeking action against its health inspectors and a report on its latest deployment of manual scavengers, that provoked a formal complaint from Safai Karmachari Takrar Nivaran Samiti.This notice came after several complaints, including a censuring exactly a year ago, when a man was sent swimming through sewage to remove the blocks that had caused flooding of a road at Nehrunagar.
At the time PCMC had responded with an apology letter with an assurance that such acts would not be repeated. While the warning then had no legal binding, the new law enacted in September last has now put PCMC on the wrong side of law, when it sent another set of men into a brimming and clogged manhole at Dapodi earlier this week, without any protective gear. “As per Section 7 of the Act, we want punitive measures to be taken against the concerned health inspectors and the department head, on the lines of disciplinary actions as stipulated in the corporation’s rule book,” Anuradha Ghodkhane, assistant director of NCSC, stated in the notice. She also pointed out that the continued incidence of using manual labour to clean sewage lines and septic tanks is very disturbing.
“It is a case of gross negligence to not even provide the gear stipulated in the Act against manual scavenging. Punitive action is imperative given that PCMC is a habitual violator of the law,” noted Sagar Charan, advocate and member of Safai Karmachari Takrar Nivaran Samiti. He is the one who
registered the complaint with NCSC about the Dapodi incident on Tuesday. He pointed out that not only is the practice inhuman, it raises serious health concerns.Desperate to downplay their indiscretion, Assistant Commissioner heading PCMC’s health department, Dnyaneshwar Dhere, claimed, “It is true that manual labour has been used to remove ‘mud’ from manholes on some occasions, but they were deployed by contractors.” Interestingly, in the hope of shedding all onus, he rushed to add, “Manual scavenging work of the civic body is entirely contracted out. We will initiate action against such contractors if found guilty.
The Dapodi case will be probed.” Unfortunately, PCMC is not alone in these transgressions.
“Even Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) employees are asked to do such work manually,
to cut costs involved in deploying machinery,” said a member of Mehatar-Walmiki —a labour union attached to PMC’s health department. He added, “Besides its direct involvement in a few of the assignments, the civic body, given its depleting work-force, largely outsources the work and contractors are ruthless when it comes to cutting corners.” “We use manual scavenging only in shallow spaces. Many a time, the square-shaped manholes render machines unviable. PMC has 10 SPT (specialised plumbing technology) machines to drain out such blockages. Except for slum areas, we essentially use machines as made mandatory by law,” said Suresh Jagtap, assistant commissioner Solid Waste department of PMC.Sadly, the scavengers whose interests are sought to be protected by the Act, are the last people to
assert themselves, inured by their job profile and more petrified of losing their employment. “We have no option but to enter these manholes to clean the sewage lines that get blocked by plastics and other solid waste. The contractors believe better work is done when human hands are involved. If they turned to machines, we would have no jobs, so how can we protest?” explained Ram Walmiki (name changed), who works with the health and sanitation department of PCMC.“We are constantly petrified when machines will snatch away our jobs. Our people who work on contracts are willing to work at marginal rates to remain cost effective options for the contractors. We drink to escape the filth of our jobs and many of us have turned alcoholics,” said another employee of PMC, who did not wish to be identified.
At the time PCMC had responded with an apology letter with an assurance that such acts would not be repeated. While the warning then had no legal binding, the new law enacted in September last has now put PCMC on the wrong side of law, when it sent another set of men into a brimming and clogged manhole at Dapodi earlier this week, without any protective gear. “As per Section 7 of the Act, we want punitive measures to be taken against the concerned health inspectors and the department head, on the lines of disciplinary actions as stipulated in the corporation’s rule book,” Anuradha Ghodkhane, assistant director of NCSC, stated in the notice. She also pointed out that the continued incidence of using manual labour to clean sewage lines and septic tanks is very disturbing.
“It is a case of gross negligence to not even provide the gear stipulated in the Act against manual scavenging. Punitive action is imperative given that PCMC is a habitual violator of the law,” noted Sagar Charan, advocate and member of Safai Karmachari Takrar Nivaran Samiti. He is the one who
registered the complaint with NCSC about the Dapodi incident on Tuesday. He pointed out that not only is the practice inhuman, it raises serious health concerns.Desperate to downplay their indiscretion, Assistant Commissioner heading PCMC’s health department, Dnyaneshwar Dhere, claimed, “It is true that manual labour has been used to remove ‘mud’ from manholes on some occasions, but they were deployed by contractors.” Interestingly, in the hope of shedding all onus, he rushed to add, “Manual scavenging work of the civic body is entirely contracted out. We will initiate action against such contractors if found guilty.
The Dapodi case will be probed.” Unfortunately, PCMC is not alone in these transgressions.
“Even Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) employees are asked to do such work manually,
to cut costs involved in deploying machinery,” said a member of Mehatar-Walmiki —a labour union attached to PMC’s health department. He added, “Besides its direct involvement in a few of the assignments, the civic body, given its depleting work-force, largely outsources the work and contractors are ruthless when it comes to cutting corners.” “We use manual scavenging only in shallow spaces. Many a time, the square-shaped manholes render machines unviable. PMC has 10 SPT (specialised plumbing technology) machines to drain out such blockages. Except for slum areas, we essentially use machines as made mandatory by law,” said Suresh Jagtap, assistant commissioner Solid Waste department of PMC.Sadly, the scavengers whose interests are sought to be protected by the Act, are the last people to
assert themselves, inured by their job profile and more petrified of losing their employment. “We have no option but to enter these manholes to clean the sewage lines that get blocked by plastics and other solid waste. The contractors believe better work is done when human hands are involved. If they turned to machines, we would have no jobs, so how can we protest?” explained Ram Walmiki (name changed), who works with the health and sanitation department of PCMC.“We are constantly petrified when machines will snatch away our jobs. Our people who work on contracts are willing to work at marginal rates to remain cost effective options for the contractors. We drink to escape the filth of our jobs and many of us have turned alcoholics,” said another employee of PMC, who did not wish to be identified.
