The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) was criticised as it stills continue to adopt manual scavenging despite Bombay High Court’s order in September this year, directing the state government to ensure that the “shameful” act is eradicated from the state.
This came to light after a complaint posted on Twitter by a netizen on Thursday morning, December 2, stating that sewage was overflowing at 90 Feet Road. However, the photo that was uploaded with the tweet showed a man cleaning/unclogging the drain with bare hands.
Soon, a photo of a man unclogging a sewage drain without any protective gear or gloves at 90 Feet Road in Sakinaka went viral. It has left Mumbaikars wondering if manual scavenging still continues in the city. It was even more shocking that the photo was shared by the official Twitter handle of the BMC’s L-Ward (Kurla, Sakinaka).
The BMC in February this year said that there are 3.5 lakh manholes across the city. Although manual scavenging is banned, human involvement is required in some places that are inaccessible to machines. In this way, many conservancy workers have lost their lives after inhaling toxic gases.
The high court had observed that despite “strict legislative intent” as per the Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Act, 2013, the “shameful practise continues” and the same should “shock the collective conscience of the society.”
Moreover, a Mumbai-based youth organisation, volunteers at Muse Foundation, in September 2021, worked to build awareness around manual scavenging among other pressing social issues.
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