We Intend To Stop Manual Scavenging & Manual Sewer Cleaning In All Top Metropolitan Cities Of The Country: Supreme Court
The Supreme Court directed Metropolitan cities to file precise affidavits as to how and when manual scavenging and manual sewer cleaning will stop in their city.
The Supreme Court, in its Order, has stated that it intends to stop manual scavenging and manual sewer cleaning in all top metropolitan cities of the Country.
In December 2024, the Court had directed the Union of India to coordinate with all the States and other stakeholders and get feedback from each of the States as to what extent they have stopped manual scavenging and manual sewer cleaning. The Court had directed the Union of India to file an affidavit giving the State-wise breakups.
A Bench of Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia and Justice Aravind Kumar held “We hereby intend to stop the manual scavenging and manual sewer cleaning in all the top Metropolitan cities of the country viz. a) Delhi b)Mumbai c) Kolkata d) Chennai e) Bangalore and f) Hyderabad.”
ASG Aishwarya Bhati and Senior Advocates Swarupama Chaturvedi, Ruchi Kohli, Jayna Kothari and Anindita Pujari appeared for the Parties.
Earlier in 2023, the Supreme Court in its Judgment enhanced the compensation to be paid to the victims and families of manual scavengers who died while cleaning sewers or septic tanks. The Petition was filed seeking issuance of directions to implement provisions of the Employment of Manual Scavengers and Construction of Dry Latrines (Prohibition) Act, 1993 and the Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and Their Rehabilitation Act, 2013.
However, in the present Order, the Court noted, “A detailed affidavit has been filed by the Union of India. Ms. Aishwarya Bhati, learned Additional Solicitor General, has apprised this Court that out of 775 Districts in the entire country, there is no manual scavenging and manual sewer cleaning being carried out in 456 Districts.”
“There is no clarity as to whether at least in some of the States or at least in the Metropolitan cities, the manual scavenging and manual sewer cleaning has been eradicated or given up” the Bench stated pointing out the very intention of the Court in its 2023 Judgment (supra).
Therefore, the Court stated it was “time” to issue directions:
“We have also been informed at the Bar that in all these Metropolitan cities, which we have indicated above, all modern scientific machineries and tools are available for scavenging and sewer cleaning, without active human participation therefore manual scavenging and manual sewer cleaning should not be required,” it remarked.
Consequently, the Court directed, “We, therefore, direct that the Chief Executive Officers (by whatever name he/she is called the State) of each of the abovementioned Metropolitan cities to file precise affidavit(s) before this Court apprising as to how and when manual scavenging and manual sewer cleaning was stopped in their Metropolitan city.”
Accordingly, the Supreme Court re-listed the matter on February 19th, 2025
Cause Title: Dr. Balram Singh v. Union of India & Ors. (Writ Petition(s)(Civil) No(s). 324/2020)
Appearance:
ASG Aishwarya Bhati; Senior Advocates Swarupama Chaturvedi, Ruchi Kohli, Jayna Kothari and Anindita Pujari; Advocates Shradha Deshmukh, Sweksha, Ishaan Sharma, Eliza Bar, Aparna Mehrotra, Raghav Gupta, Shaileshwar Yadav, Radhika Mohapatra, Bhumika Chouksey, Diksha Verma, Chandan Kumar Singh, K. Enatoli Sema, Amit Kumar Singh, Chubalemla Changa, Rebecca Mishra, Harish Pandey, Vatsal Joshi, Shashwat Parihar, Vinayak Sharma, et al; AOR Gurmeet Singh Makker, Abhimanyu Tewari, Piyush Dwivedi, Azmat Hayat Amanullah, Astha Sharma, Mukesh Kumar Maroria, Shreekant Neelappa Terdal, Amrish Kumar, N. Visakamurthy, Vanshaja Shukla and Sanjay Jain
