Introduction

The Government of India issued an advisory in July 2019 to all States to establish Emergency Response Sanitation Units (ERSU) in all cities with the objective to systemize human entry into sewer/septic tank through the organisation of a professional, well trained, motivated and appropriately equipped establishment.
Despite several efforts by various Ministries, the sanitation sector is highly unregulated, and sanitation services get delivered in various forms/modes – formal governmental delivery of services through its own employees or through service providers formally contracted by the government, informal service providers not registered or licensed and finally by individual sanitary workers. Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 6 of ‘clean water and sanitation for all’ cannot be achieved in its entirety without ensuring SDG 3 (good health and well-being) and SDG 8 (decent work and economic growth) for sanitation workers.

An external, dedicated and sensitive support structure, from the national level to the city level, is required to inculcate safe occupational practices, strengthen the operationalization of Sanitation Response Units and promote skilling and entrepreneurship. The Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment (MoSJE) and MoHUA, formulated the National Action for Mechanized Sanitation Ecosystem (NAMASTE) scheme to make sanitation work safer across urban India in a time-bound mission mode. NAMASTE is a convergent effort amongst different Ministries to ensure the safety and dignity of sanitation workers.

key Definitions

Sanitation Workers/Safai Karamcharis

“Sanitation Worker” means a person, engaged in or employed for any sanitation work and includes waste pickers and also those persons who were engaged in cleaning of sewers and septic tank, but excludes domestic workers.

Sewer and Septic Tank Workers (SSWs)

Sanitation Workers who were engaged in cleaning of sewers and septic tanks will be identified as sewer and septic tank workers during the profiling conducted under the Scheme.

Sewer Entry Professional (SEPs)

Sanitation Workers who were engaged in cleaning of sewers and septic tank and required to enter into Sewer and Septic tank with permission and well equipped with safety kits and devices will be identified as sewer entry professionals (SEPs). All SRU should identify such SEPs during the profiling of SSWs and only then they will be allowed to enter in Sewer and Septic tanks.