Manual Scavenging as Social Exclusion: A Case Study

Author(s): Rajeev Kumar Singh

Source: Economic and Political Weekly, Vol. 44, No. 26/27 (Jun. 27 - Jul. 10, 2009), pp.
521-523
Published by: Economic and Political Weekly
Stable URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/40279798
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Manual ScavengingAs Social and shelter,propersanitationis one ofthe
basicrequirements ofmankind.Poorsani-

Exclusion:A Case Study taryconditionslead to water-borne

eases likediarrhoea,dysentery,
dis-
etc.While
the lack of sanitationfacilitiesaffectsall
individuals,childrenand womenare par-
RAJEEVKUMARSINGH, ZIYAUDDIN ticularlyvulnerable.As per the World
Health Report,1999, only 49% of the
Thisnotedealswiththeproblem The dayeveryoneinIndiagetsa toilettouse, urban population(in 1997), and merely
I shall know thatour countryhas reached 14% of the rural population2(in 2000)
ofmanualscavenging in Indiaas the pinnacle of progress (Jawaharlal
haveadequatefacility forexcretadisposal.
a formofcasteand occupation- Nehru).1
/';-=09 )(8*=-0/'] The problemis moreconspicuousindeve-
basedsocialexclusion.Ittriesto termsocial exclusionis of rela- lopingcountrieslike India, whereprac-
explore thecausesand reasons tivelyrecent origin; however,it ticeslike the use of drylatrines,manual
forthecontinuance ofthissocial encompassesa widerangeofsocial removalof humanexcreta,defecating in
and economicaspects.Different scholars theopenplace,etc,exist.
evilinIndiawitha case studyof this notionin various contexts.
decipher
Ghazipurdistrictin eastern Broadly,it indicatesthe relativedepriva- Scavengers' Story
UttarPradesh. tionofanypersonor groupofpersonson Manual scavengingis the removal of
various predetermined criterion.Caste- excreta (nightsoil) manuallyfrom"dry
based occupationalgroupsin India, like toilets",ie, the toiletswithoutmodern
thatofmanualscavengers, constituteone flushsystem.The systemofbuildingpub-
such socially,economically,psychologi- lictoiletsand employing peopletoremove
callyand politically marginalisedsection excretawas introduced duringBritish rule
of thesociety.Althoughmanualscaveng- in India,whenmunicipalities wereconsti-
ingwas bannedtwice(in 1952and 1993), tuted.That time,oftencontainerswere
thispracticestillcontinues invariouspock- used in such toilets,that needed to be
ets ofthecountry under different names. emptieddaily.Aftertheinvention offlush
The concept of social exclusion,gener- typetoilets,all othertypes oftoilets
disap-
ally in developmentliteraturehas been pearedfromthewesternworld.However,
dennedas an inability to chooseorlackof thisinhumanepracticecontinuesinmany
capabilityto fullyparticipate in thedeve- developingcouptriesincluding India.
lopmentofa society.In India,socialexclu- The socioculturaland economicreali-
sionrevolvesaroundsomesectionsofthe ties of modernIndia reveal a series of
population,particularly, dalits,adivasis, paradoxes.Whilelegallymanualscaveng-
women and minorities.They are the ingisbanned,casteapartheidandpoverty
victimsof social exclusionby caste, sex, perpetuatethispractice.In India,manual
ethnicity and by religion.In the society, scavengingis a caste-basedoccupation
they are isolated, discriminatedand carriedoutbydalits.The manualscaven-
deprivedofequal accessto socialand eco- gershavedifferent castenamesindifferent
nomic opportunities.Therefore,in the partsof the country:Bhangisin Gujarat
Indiancontext,the core featureof social and Uttar Pradesh, Phakis in Andhra
exclusionis thedenialofequal opportuni- Pradesh and Sikkaliarsin Tamil Nadu.
tiesbycertaingroupsofthesocietywhich These communities are invariablyplaced
imposethemselvesuponothersthatleads at the bottomof the caste hierarchyas
theinability ofan individualtoparticipate well as dalitsub-castehierarchy.Refusal
in thebasic political,economicand social to performsuch manual task leads to
functioning ofsociety.Manualscavengers physicalabuse and a social boycott.Man-
inIndia,whoarecaste-basedoccupational ual scavengersare exposed to the most
groups, constituteone such socially virulentformsofviraland bacterialinfec-
RajeevKumarSingh{rajeevpol@gmail.com) excludedclass. tions that affecttheirskin,eyes, limbs,
are
and Ziyauddin(ziya5ocio@gmai7.com) The evil of manual scavenging is respiratoryand gastro-intestinalsystems.
researchscholarsin theBanarasHindu directlyrelatedto the lack of availability Tuberculosisis rifein the community. A
Varanasi.
University, 2002 reportpreparedbytheInternational
ofsanitationfacilities. Likefood,clothing

Kco.nomic&Politicalwi:f.kly GEES june 27, 2009 vol. xuv nos 26 & 27 52l

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NOTES
Dalit Solidarity Network (including Act,1989. Giventhe highprevalenceof The houses of these scavengerssituated
Human Rights Watch (us), Navserjan the illegal practice,the governmentof outsidethemainresidential area andthey
(Ahmedabad,Gujarat))and the National India launched a national scheme in 1992 dwell in verypoor and unhygienic condi-
CampaignonDalitHumanRights(ncdhr) foridentifying, and
training rehabilitating tions.They are not allowed to dine and
estimatesthe numberof dalit manual safai karmchari and allotted substantial interactwith the of
people higher caste.
scavengers at one million3(see thetable). fundsforthispurpose. The prevalenceof alcoholismand drug
A randomsurveyconductedbyAction- The Rajiv GandhiMissionforSanita- addictionis veryhighamongtheMehtar
-
Aidin2002 insixstates MadhyaPradesh, tion and Water Supply Scheme intro- community. This resultsin mostof the
AndhraPradesh,Orissa, UttarPradesh, duced by the ministryof ruraldevelop- scavengersbeinginvolvedinthispractice
Rajasthan and Bihar - claimed that mentaims at converting drylatrinesinto as women,have also to playthe partof
manual scavengerswere foundworking wet water-bornesanitarylatrines and the bread-earner. However,in fourcases,
on at least30,000 drytoilets.The survey rehabilitating theliberatedscavengersin it was observed that thisoccupationwas
also pointedout that,these scavengers alternative occupations.5 carried forwardby the nextgeneration
face severe discriminationeven from However,ithas been noticedthat,even as their parents or forefathersdo not
otherdalits.4The NationalCommission thoughscavengers aretrainedand assisted wantto lose theirpatrons. The tendency
forSafaiKarmchari, a statutory body,has fortakingup alternative occupations, some of hiring manual scavengersis more
pointedout in its reportsthatthe use of ofthemagain comebackto manualscav- prevalentamong the middleclass Mus-
drylatrinesand continuingemployment enging.Scavengingdoes not requireany lims. This is because of the evil of pur-
skilland providessomeadditionalincome dah systemapart fromthe absence of
Table: Numberof Persons Engaged in Manual
withno competition, investment and risk. modernflushsystemtoilets.
Scavenging
Sr NameofState/UT NoofScavengers These featurescoupledwiththe need for Out of the total72 manualscavengers
1 Andhra Pradesh 30921 cleaningdrylatrinesand a lackofalterna- informally interviewed duringthe study,
2 Assam 40413 tives, force the scavengers,particularly it was found that only a few of them
3 Bihar 12226 women,to continuein thisoccupation.It belongedto theage groupof20-30,while
4 Gujarat 64195 has also been foundthatin certaincases, mostofthemwerein theage groupof30
5 Haryana 36362
scavengersalso facea difficulty in taking to 50. Fourteenof themhave no other
6 Himanchal Pradesh 4757
up otheroccupationslike runningshops sourceof income,while36 ofthemhave
7 Jammuand Kashmir 4150
due totheprevailing socialprejudices. extraone bread-earnerin theirfamilies.
8 Karnataka 14555
Butthisextrasourceofincomeis notper-
9 Kerala 1339
Field Study manent as theyworkon dailywagesand
10 Madhya Pradesh 80072
11 Maharashtra 64785
In this note we analyse the causes and theirper- day-income variesfromRs 20 to
12 Orissa 35049 consequencesof manual scavengingin Rs 50. Eightof the total72 respondents
13 Punjab 531 Ghazipurdistrict, UttarPradesh.Thestudy interviewed haveRs 1,250as theirmonthly
14 Rajasthan 57736 is based on thepilotsurveythatwas con- income,while42 reportnearlyRs 1,600.
15 Tamil Nadu 35561 ductedfromJulyto September2007 with Also a division emerges among these
16 UttarPradesh 149202 the help of a local non-governmentalMehtarsas a fewofthemgotjobs in local
17 West Bengal 23852
organisation (ngo) theCommunity Deve- bodieslikemunicipalities orhospitals, etc,
18 Delhi 17420
lopmentSociety. this
During study we con- and have a continuous source ofincome. A
19 Nagaland 1800
ductedinformal interviews ofthe72 scav- shockingtrendis thatmostofthewomen
20 Meghalaya 607
engersofdifferent blocksoftheGhazipur (nearly90%) are workingas scavengers
21 Pondicherry 476
Total 676009
district. Wealso interviewed andinteracted formorethan15years,and nearly50% of
Source:NSSO4/thReport;www.censusindia.net withthe people of prominent sectionsof the total respondentshad worked for
thedistrict. Ghazipur consists of 17blocks more than the 20 years. They have
of manualscavengersby variousdepart- and fivetehsils.As of2001 Census,Ghazi- inheritedthisjob fromtheirforefathers
mentsofthegovernment ofIndia,particu- purhas a populationof30.49 lakhs.There and now younger generationof the
larlyin thedepartments liketherailways, is a hugegap betweenmaleand femalelit- family(especially,daughter-in-laws, and
defenceand ministryof industry.The eracy.Whileliteracyrateamongmales is sons) is helpingtheminthistask.The day
Employment of Manual Scavengersand 72%, itis merely48% amongfemales.The ofthesewomenstartsat 5 am and mostof
Construction ofDryLatrines(Prohibition) sexratioofthedistrict is 974.6 them continueit up to 11 am without
Act, 1993 punishesthe employmentof the
During survey in different blocks of havinganymeal.
scavengers or construction of dry non- Ghazipurdistrict, we found that scaven- The averageage ofworkersis approxi-
flushedlatrineswithimprisonment forup gersystemwas closelyassociatedwiththe mately41.2 years.Thisshowsthatpeople
to one yearand or the fineof Rs 2,000. caste and religiousstructureof society. who are workingas scavengersmostly
Offenders are also liable to prosecution Nearlyall scavengers withwhomwe inter- belong to middle aged group. Also it
underthe ScheduledCastes and Sched- acted belongedto Mehtarcaste,whichis revealsthat66.6% respondents belongto
uled Tribes(Preventionof Aristocracies) on thelowestrungofthesocialhierarchy. 35-45yearsage group.
522 junk 27, 2009 vol xi. iv nos 26 & 2'/ QSE3 Economic& Politicalwkkklv

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 Themeanofworking experienceis 20.4 and themotivational structure on theone Anotherpossiblejob opportunity would
years. This shows that people who are hand, and the opportunity structureon be in thehousesofopen-minded families
workingpresentlyare indulgedin this the other(Atal 1998). No doubtthatthe as domestichelp or housekeeper.Most
area for a long time. Eitherthey are statehas talked,a lotaboutpalliativesfor urgentis the abolishment ofdrylatrines.
bondedto workin thismenialjob or they theimprovement ofthissegmentofsociety Bydoingthis,thebasis fortheinhumane
do not have any other opportunity. but because of the conditionedpsycho- and existingsystemofmanualscavenging
Further, an averagerespondent worksin logicalmake-upof the scavengersor the will be removed.Atthesame time,there
11 houses for her/hisearnings.It also equivocationexpressedby the state,the is a need to introducealternativetoilet
reveals that her/hisearning fromthis exploitationis continuing. The statehas systemslike water-seallatrinesor even
workis meagre. largelyreflected theexpressionofa hand- eco-friendlytoilets. Eco-friendly toilets
Itwas also foundthatsomescavengers ful of the dominantsections,wherenot arebuiltabovethegroundwithtwocham-
have triedto challengetheirsocial and onlycaste,butalso someofthefeudalistic bersbeneaththeparcollecting feacalmat-
economicstatusby changingtheirjobs. remnantsof the systemare responsible ter.The urineandwashwaterarediverted
/';-=09
But finally, theyhave to returnto )(8* (Beteille1969). It is also because of this and letoutintoa homegarden.Normally,
=-0/']
their
originalprofession because of a social element that the scavengersare con- thesetoiletsdo notsmell,because faeces
boycott and the lack of support from both strained to remain in this status. The are covered with dry ash, soil or lime
private and governmental agencies. The scavengershave become totallycondi- whichdehydrate it.
law and ordermachinery has also proved tionedto remainsatisfiedwiththeirlife- The lifeofscavengerscan be improved,
inefficient. For example,ChintaDevi of style(Singh1994). especially of women and childrenby
Meherpur locality, started her shop with a providingthem good qualityeducation
loan arrangedby a local ngo and leftthis Conclusions and Suggestions through well-trained, open-minded
menialjob. But later she resumed this The practice ofcaste-based exclusion and teachers. Such schools should not only
humiliating job as she faced a severe boy- discrimination thus necessarily involves implementmid-daymeal scheme, but
cotteven by her own community. How- failureofaccess and entitlements not only shouldalso providetheeveningfoodtothe
ever,this is not true in all cases. Some to economic rights, but also to civil,cul- children ofthesociallydowngraded people,
people have successfully leftscavenging tural and political rights. It involves so that their parentswillnotfaceanyaddi-
and have startednew venturesor have whathas been describedas "livingmode tionalburdenof nurturing theirchildren.
beenworking innewjobs. exclusion";exclusion from politicalpartici- For the adult members of the scavenger
The blocksof Mohammadabad,Bara- pation and exclusionand disadvantage community,education is essential to
chor, Sadarand Kashimabad are the fromsocial and economicopportunities.7trainthemforalternativewaysofliving,
worst-affected by the manual scaveng- The caste-untouchability-based exclusion forexample,womencan havetrainingin
ing.The narrowand dirtystreetsin this thusreflects inability the of individuals and sewing,packingortoworkas anganwadi
area showsthe old patternof the toilets groupslike that of scavengers to interact workers. Furthermore,other parts of
whichneed to be cleared manually.In freelyand productively with others and to societyhave to becomemoresensitiveto
fact,in Ghazipur,itis basicallya Muslim- takepartinfulleconomic, social and politi- theneeds oftheneglectedand oppressed
centredproblemas Hindu middle class cal lifeofthecommunity. dalit community. This can happen
peopleare better-off and theirlowermid- To improvethelivingand workingcon- throughawareness campaignsor train-
dle classwomengo outto defecate,while ditionofmanualscavengers all overIndia, ingcoursesin schools.
due to purdahsystemtheMuslimwomen thereis a need to set an agenda fortheir
have to remaininsidetheirhouses and overalltransformation. It can be through NOTES
theireconomicconditiondoes not allow provisionof alternative livelihoods,abol- i TheCollectedSpeech'sofJawaharlalNehru,Vol 2,
NewDelhi,1976.
themto upgradetheirtoilets.Also,scav- ishmentofdrytoiletsand imparting free AnnualReport,2000.
2 WorldHealthOrganisation,
engersand theirfamilymembersact as educationto children.There are several 3 NationalCampaignon DalitHumanRights;www.
NCDHR.com
praja or the dependentswhich,in turn, possible fieldsin which formermanual 4 ActionAidReport,NewDelhi,2003.
addstosocialprestige. scavengerscan workand earnan alterna- 5 India,PublicationDivision,Ministryof Informa-
The aforesaidanalysisofthedata gath- tive livelihood.It is possibleto provide tionand Broadcasting,NewDelhi,1999.
6 DistrictDevelopmentBooklet,Public Relation
ered fromeasternUttarPradeshshows jobs in agriculturalsector.Witha little and InformationDepartment,Governmentof
that there is no proper consonance trainingin mathstheycan also workas UttarPiadesh,200?..
S Some
Social Exclusionand Poverty:
betweentheoreticalformulation of the vegetableand fruitsellers.Theycan pro- 7 Vcnkatcsan,
KeyInterlinkagcs.
welfareprogrammes fortheupliftment of duce and sell diaryproducts,iftheyare
thescavengers inIndiaand reallifecondi- providedwithcattle.Alsoiftheywouldbe REFERENCES
tions.Thismaybe attributed to thedomi- providedwithloans and equipmentlike Atal, Yogesh (1998): The Changing Frontier
of Caste (New Delhi: National Publishing
nantnatureofthesocialstructure as well spice grinding machines and sewing House).
as India'semerging social formation, par- machines,itwouldbe possibleforthemto Beteille,Andre(1969): Social Inequality(New Delhi:
PenguinBooks).
ticularly sinceindependence. We observe set up a new businessin producingand
Singh, Yogendar (1994): Modernisationof Indian
a big hiatusbetweenthe communicative selling spices, clothes and handicrafts. Tradition(Jaipur:RawatPublication).

weekly BBQ June 27, 2009

&Political
Economic vol xliv nos 26 & 27 5-3

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