Shock at latest death toll of Indian sanitation workers

on
11 April 2022
Delowar Hossain (44), a self-employed septic tank cleaner is working at a local community toilet. He is cleaning the septic tank manually without any safety gear. During Covid-19, he did not receive any support from any Government or non-governmental ...
Image: WaterAid/ DRIK/ Habibul Haque

At least 24 sanitation workers in India were reported to have died on the job in March alone, WaterAid was sad to learn, due to either asphyxiation or drowning inside sewers. The true number could be even higher.

This dreadful toll among a group of key workers who perform such a vital task from their position on the lowest rung of society only represent those which have been officially notified.

The latest fatalities occurred in Maharashtra, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan between March 11-30. In one case, the Delhi police are reported to be investigating a possible murder after a drain cover was closed, trapping two Bihari men named as Khurshid (31) and Sajjad (34) inside the drain they were cleaning where they died.

Other instances illustrate the very real dangers of this work with which sanitation workers across the country have to contend routinely, often without adequate protective equipment.

Amulya Miriyala, Policy Officer for Sanitation at WaterAid India said:

“Despite legislation clearly prohibiting ‘persons from engagement or employment for hazardous cleaning of sewers and septic tanks’ without adequate protective equipment, 161 persons have died due to accidents while cleaning sewers and septic tanks over the last three years. This is a clear example of how laws and policies are, at times, misinterpreted or neglected in practice.

“At WaterAid India, we have been working toward ensuring the safety, dignity, and well-being of informal sanitation workers. As part of this, informal workers who work in manual scavenging are provided with training to clean sewers and tanks and advised about occupational risks and hazards; they are provided with safety gear and personal protective equipment; they are made aware of possible alternative livelihood opportunities and they are provided with safe spaces to form self-help groups.

“Our efforts are currently focused on instilling behaviour change among workers, users, and officials about the dignity and occupation safety of the workers.”

ENDS


For more information, please contact:

In London: Jonathan Chapman, Senior Specialist, Global Media: [email protected]; or call our after-hours press line on +44 (0)7887 521 552, or email [email protected].

In New Delhi: Shreya Chatterjee [email protected]

Notes to Editors:

WaterAid is working to make clean water, decent toilets and good hygiene normal for everyone, everywhere within a generation. The international not-for-profit organisation works in 28 countries to change the lives of the poorest and most marginalised people. Since 1981, WaterAid has reached 28 million people with clean water and nearly 29 million people with decent toilets.

For more information, visit our website wateraid.org/uk, follow us on Twitter @WaterAidUK, @WaterAid or @WaterAidPress, or find us on Facebook, LinkedIn or Instagram.

  • 771 million people in the world – one in ten – do not have clean water close to home.[1]
  • 1.7 billion people in the world – more than one in five – do not have a decent toilet of their own.[2]
  • Around 290,000 children under five die every year from diarrhoeal diseases caused by poor water and sanitation. That's more than 800 children a day, or one child every two minutes.[3]
  • Every £1 invested in water and toilets returns an average of £4 in increased productivity.[4]
  • Just £15 can provide one person with clean water.[5]
  1. WHO/UNICEF (2021) Progress on household drinking water, sanitation and hygiene 2000-2020. Joint Monitoring Programme. Geneva: World Health Organisation.
  2. WHO/UNICEF (2021) Progress on household drinking water, sanitation and hygiene 2000-2020. Joint Monitoring Programme. Geneva: World Health Organisation.
  3. WaterAid calculations based on: Prüss-Ustün A, et al. (2019). Burden of Disease from Inadequate Water, Sanitation and Hygiene for Selected Adverse Health Outcomes: An Updated Analysis with a Focus on Low- and Middle-Income Countries. International Journal of Hygiene and Environmental Health. vol 222, no 5, pp 765-777. AND The Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (2020) Global Burden of Disease Study 2019. Seattle, WA: University of Washington.
  4. World Health organization (2012) Global costs and benefits of drinking-water supply and sanitation interventions to reach the MDG target and universal coverage
  5. www.wateraid.org

 

 

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