Audit Reveals 90% Sewer Worker
Deaths Occurred Without Safety Gear
A recent social audit conducted for the period 2022-23 has brought to light a grim reality: an alarming 90% of sewer and septic tank worker deaths occurred without the provision of essential safety gear.
The audit, presented in New Delhi in July 2025 via a Lok Sabha response and Ministry audit, exposes severe systemic failures and a critical lack of safety protocols, highlighting persistent challenges in ensuring dignified and safe working conditions for these marginalized workers.
Key Findings of the Social Audit (2022-23):
The audit meticulously analysed 54 deaths of sewer and septic tank workers across 17 States/Union Territories (UTs).
A stark finding was that no safety equipment was provided in 47 of the 54 cases of worker deaths.
Limited Equipment Provision:
- Only 5 cases involved workers being provided with gloves.
- A mere 1 case saw the worker having both gloves and gumboots.
In 27 cases, no consent was taken from the workers before engaging them in the hazardous task, raising significant ethical and legal concerns.
In a concerning 45 cases, the necessary equipment was “contracted personally” by the workers, rather than being provided by their employers, transferring the financial and safety burden onto the vulnerable individuals.
Only in 2 cases were mechanised cleaning and proper training provided to the workers, indicating a widespread reliance on manual methods despite existing directives.
The NAMASTE Scheme (2023), designed to mechanize sanitation work, has been launched, but the audit revealed that readiness and awareness are still lacking in many districts across the country.
Most of the affected workers were found to be informally or privately hired, even in situations where public agencies were involved, complicating accountability and welfare provision.
About Legal & Constitutional Framework:
Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Act, 2013:
- This Act expressly prohibits the manual cleaning of sewers and septic tanks without adequate protective gear or mechanical equipment.
- It also mandates the rehabilitation of manual scavengers and provision of alternative livelihoods.
Article 21 (Right to Life):
- Deaths of sewer workers due to the lack of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) directly violate their fundamental right to life guaranteed under Article 21 of the Indian Constitution, which includes the right to live with dignity and safety.
Supreme Court Judgment (2014, Safai Karamchari Andolan v. Union of India):
- The Supreme Court unequivocally declared manual scavenging a human rights violation.
- It issued directives for the payment of compensation for deaths related to sewer cleaning and mandated the mechanisation of sewer and septic tank cleaning operations.
Inclusion Gaps & Structural Barriers:
Caste-based Exclusion:A significant majority of manual sewer workers in India come
from Dalit communities, perpetuating a cycle of caste-based exclusion and discrimination in hazardous occupations.
Contractual Labour Model:The prevalent contractual labour model in sanitation work
often serves to circumvent state accountability and avoids the direct responsibility of employers for worker protection and welfare.
Lack of AAwareness There is a critical lack of awareness among workers about their rights, proper safety protocols, and available government schemes, coupled with poor implementation of existing laws by authorities.
Invisibility in Policy Data The actual figures for deaths and injuries among sanitation
workers are often underreported, leading to their “invisibility” in policy data and inadequate resource allocation.
Institutional Apathy: There is often institutional apathy from local bodies and
implementing agencies, resulting in mechanisation schemes not being uniformly enforced and a lack of proactive measures for worker safety.