The worst job in the world

There are some 1.3 million Indians still trapped in the manual scavenging of human excreta sixteen long years after the country had enacted an Act to make the human threatening job illegal.

Even in modern India, manual scavengers are still working today to clean as Mr, Wilson Bezwada of Safai Karmachari Andolan would say ‘ the shit from the pit’ of other people who turned round to discriminate and look down on the scavengers”. “The worst job in the world” is the title of the emotional video he showed at a side-event in Stockholm organised by WaterAid and IRC on 18 August 2009.

Safai Karmachari Andolan is a national campaign movement started by Mr Bezwada who also came from a scavenger family.

“ …like a priest who is predestined to preach”

The movement has since its inception in 1986 been engaged in protracted struggles which also included changing the mindsets of the scavengers, many of whom believed that “ like a priest who is predestined to preach, we are predestined to do this work”.

For Mr Bezwada, the struggle for the eradication of manual scavengers will not end until every single person is liberated from the scourge.
“This is not a fight for power, wealth nor fame but for human dignity and respect”, he said.

As far as Mr Bezwada is concerned, the India government has not demonstrated enough commitment towards the liberation of the millions of people who are involved in the illegal job.

Without any protective clothing such as boots, nose musk and hand gloves, these manual scavengers, 80 per cent women and mostly Dalits, clean toilets and unclog sewer lines.Theycollect the faecal matter into basket lined with leaves, an activity which leaves many sick and because they are paid a paltry 900 rupees (15 Euro) per month, they resort to cheap drugs to treat their illnesses.

For most of the scavengers the work is a hideous one devoid of any pride. “We have not yet told our children what we do, they wont understand, there is no pride in it”, a lady scavenger said in the video.

Icon of hope

Mr Bezwada has now become an icon of hope for the hopeless as he strives even harder to lift the manual scavengers from their plight with a 2010 action plan already drawn for the battle.

The situation is not all gloomy though as according to Mr Bezwada, a significant number of the manual scavengers have been liberated and equipped with an alternative livelihood.

Harriette Bentil, e-mail