Despite HC order, manual scavenging continues unabated in TN; 43 die in 4 yrs

Tamil Nadu leads the country in manual scavenging deaths, with 43 fatalities being reported since November 2021. The latest case was the death of Kuppan, a 37-year-old sanitation worker in Kolathur, Chief Minister MK Stalin’s constituency.

Surprisingly, the practice continues unabated despite the Madras High Court’s strict order to the state government to eradicate it over a year ago.

Kuppan entered a narrow sewer line in Balaji Nagar, Kolathur, to clear a blockage. What should have been a routine task of cleaning a blocked drain ended in tragedy: he went down to manually clean the sewage. Inhaling toxic fumes from accumulated methane and hydrogen sulphide, he collapsed within minutes. Another worker who tried to help him come out also collapsed after inhaling the toxic gas and is being treated at a hospital in Chennai.

Also read: SC to Centre and states: Ensure eradication of manual sewer cleaning in phases

Outlawed practice

Manual scavenging, the hazardous manual cleaning of human excreta from sewers, septic tanks, and drains without protective gear, has been outlawed in India since 1993 under the Employment of Manual Scavengers and Construction of Dry Latrines (Prohibition) Act. Kuppan's death has once again raised questions about the gap between judicial mandates and directives and their implementation. Sanitary workers need better infrastructure, safety gear, and equipment to overcome the challenges they meet daily while attending to the complaints of sewer blockages, leakage, and others.

In the case of Kuppan, he had to enter the drain because he could not cut the drainage pipe from the surface level.

Lack of safety gear, equipment add to peril

“We were three people, including the supervisor who was working at the drainage site. We tried to cut the pipe in order to fix the blockage, but it was about 2.5 meters deep, and we could not do it from the surface. Kuppan had entered the drain to cut the pipe in order to clear the blockage,” Hari, Kuppan’s co-worker, Hari, who is being treated in the hospital, told The Federal.

“There would be no problem if the pipe were empty, but as soon as we cut it, the toxic fumes were formed because of the presence of drainage water in it. It was very sudden. We usually do not enter the manholes, but it was difficult to cut the pipe from the surface with the equipment we had. The toxic fumes affected Kuppan immediately, and I also fainted when I tried to rescue him," he added.

Also read: No room for caste: Ending manual scavenging is an engineering challenge

High Court’s 2024 order

Last year, the Madras High Court issued a series of directives to eliminate manual scavenging and ensure that guidelines under the Employment of Manual Scavengers and Construction of Dry Latrines (Prohibition) Act are adhered to.

The high court’s directive came while hearing a petition filed by Safai Karmchari Andolan (SKA), a national advocacy group for sanitation workers. The court mandated a complete eradication by 2026, hiked compensation for victims' families from Rs 10 lakh to Rs 30 lakh, and ordered FIRs against municipal commissioners, panchayat presidents, and factory owners who permit the practice to thrive.

Despite the court’s order, at least six fatalities have been reportedly recorded in Tamil Nadu in 2025.

While Kuppan was a contract worker, the government seems to have failed at eradicating the practice, as it was only a month ago, on September 23, that two men died of asphyxiation in a sewer in Trichy.

HC rap, deaths ring no alarm bells

Not very long ago, on May 19 this year, three workers suffocated in a seven-foot-deep sewage tank at a private dyeing factory in Tiruppur. While the National Human Rights Commission had slammed the factory owners for flouting safety norms, these deaths have failed to ring any alarm bells for the state government or enterprises that encourage the practice.

Also read: Supreme Court tells Centre, states to eradicate manual scavenging

T Srinivasan, general secretary of Chennai Corporation Red Flag Union, said, "The Madras High Court gave a directive, but the practice of manual scavenging continues illegally. The contractors do not follow the standard practice of ensuring that no worker descends into a septic tank or sewer without safety gear. Despite the directive, there is very little progress made to completely ban the illegal practice," he said.

Since the directive, progress has been uneven. Social activists say that just 18 months after the Madras High Court issued sweeping directives in May 2024 to eradicate the practice of manual scavenging by 2026, Tamil Nadu continues to witness fatalities.

‘Lives of manual scavengers hold no value’

P Suganthi, state general secretary of the Tamil Nadu Untouchability Eradication Front, says that this is not the lone case, and the workers have to enter the manholes too. There are many advancements across various factors, but the technology to clean sewers and drainage is not in practice in India, she says.

“Why do we not have adequate infrastructure for replacing manual scavenging? It is because these lives are not valued, and no attention is paid to bringing in machinery to prevent such incidents. Everyone is responsible for these deaths, from supervisors, contractors, to civic body authorities. We have to fight for the rights of these workers and even the rehabilitation of these families," she added.

Also read: Issue of permanent jobs for TN sanitation workers splits DMK partners

Activists say that it is worth noting that most of these workers are Dalits, and belong to the scheduled caste, tribes, or backward classes.

Evidence Kathir, founder of the Madurai-based NGO Evidence, says there should be equipment to detect the presence of any toxic fumes at sites where manual scavengers are deployed. “The responsible contractors and civic body authorities need to ensure that no life is lost and workers are geared up with all safety equipment before they go to a site."

Activists want deaths booked under SC/ST Act

He emphasises that it is the Dalit workers from the scheduled caste, tribe, or other backward classes who lose their lives due to negligence on the part of authorities, but there is no strict action taken. “The court's order was a wake-up call, but without enforcement, it is hollow,” he says.

He adds that in such cases of deaths due to manual scavenging, the action should be taken under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. “It is a non-bailable offence if the cases are not being filed under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. The action is lacking in most of these cases. Only the case is taken up under the Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Act, 2013. Although they say that rehabilitation measures are being taken, what punishment is given to the contractors, factory owners and civic body authorities?" he asks.

Also read: Sanitation workers: Uncounted, neglected, untouched by tech advances

The Department of Municipal Administration undertakes the rehabilitation of the workers and affected families.

The officials from the Chennai Metro Water Supply and Sewerage Board said that in the case of Kuppan, he was not authorised to enter the drain and clean it manually, but he entered the drain. Additionally, the Metrowater Department stated that all the cleaning and maintenance works are mechanised, and the department has warned of legal action and penalties against anyone entering manholes without official supervisio,n and even private contractors have been strictly instructed to follow the safety norms.