Rehabilitation, still a far cry for manual scavengers in state

Rehabilitation of manual scavengers in the state remains a myth even after four years of the amendment to the Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Act, 2013.

Rehabilitation of the 726 manual scavengers identified by the state government, of which as many as 303 were identified in 2013, while the remaining during 2016 and 2017, has not borne any fruit so far.

"Within six months of their identification, all of them are supposed to be rehabilitated. But this has not happened," said Obalesh, state convener, Safai Karmachari Kavalu Samithi Karnataka.

According to the Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Act, 2013, a person who is identified as a manual scavenger should receive a one-time cash assistance, training in a livelihood skill and a monthly stipend and subsidy for taking up an alternative occupation (self-employment projects).

According to the data released by the state government last year, out of the total manual scavengers identified in the state, as many as 436 manual scavengers were given one-time cash assistance of
Rs 40,000 each and self-employment projects were sanctioned for 224 of them. However, according to Obalesh who also works for the welfare of manual scavengers across the state, none of them have received an alternative job, so far.

Advocate Clifton D'Rozario, who also works for the welfare of manual scavengers, said that none of the manual scavengers have received a job, although the law provides for it. He said that the community of Dalits, which mainly constitute manual scavengers, is one of the most neglected one in the state.