14 Workers Found Illegally Cleaning Drains Near Sarai Kale Khan For Rs 400 Daily

A team of 14 workers has been illegally engaged in manual scavenging to clear a clogged drain tunnel near Sarai Kale Khan in Delhi. Employed by a contractor for a local civic agency, the workers have been clearing a 30-foot clogged tunnel under a road for a daily wage of Rs 400.

The workers have been operating at the Sarai Kale Khan site for two months and plan to remain there until the monsoon season ends. This ongoing work directly violates the Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and Their Rehabilitation Act, 2013, as well as explicit directives from the Supreme Court of India halting manual sewer cleanings in metropolitan hubs like Delhi.

The continued practice of manual scavenging comes shortly after a fatal incident on June 26, when three workers died in a septic tank in Delhi. Despite these deaths and government dialogues, manual scavenging remains active on the ground.

The 14-member team consists of workers from six different Indian states. Led by Subhash from Aligarh in Uttar Pradesh, the group includes Pappu from Haryana, Rinku from Bihar, Ajit Yadav from Odisha, Chotu from Chhattisgarh, and Ankit Narayan from Prayagraj. Prior to their current deployment at Sarai Kale Khan, the team had already cleaned drains in other Delhi localities, including R.K. Puram, Sarita Vihar, and Old Delhi.

During the work, Ankit Narayan, a scavenger from Prayagraj, looked at his dirty Kolhapuri chappal and quoted a dialogue from the film Suhaag, starring Amitabh Bachchan: "ye wo kolhapuri chappal hain, dekhne main nau, par phatke main sau."

The team leader, Subhash, confirmed that the work was given to them by a contractor for a civic agency. Despite the nationwide ban and supreme court directives, the team continues to clear the clogged road tunnel by hand.