MS Act Implementation
The Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Act, 2013 (MS Act 2013), aims to eradicate the inhumane practice of manual scavenging in India. In Kerala, all 14 districts were declared manual scavenging free by the District Collectors in 2023, and the state has achieved the Open Defecation Free (ODF) Plus status, ensuring no insanitary latrines exist within the state.
To support the rehabilitation of manual scavengers, one-time cash assistance totalling Rs 54,80,000 was provided to 137 workers following survey camps in Vazhakulam, Palluruthy, Kothamangalam, and Pambakkuda. This financial aid, disbursed through the National Safai Karamchari Finance and Development Corporation (NSKFDC), aims to empower these individuals. Despite initial challenges with documentation, the majority of applications were successfully processed. District and Sub-Divisional Vigilance Committees have also been constituted in all districts to oversee and ensure compliance with the directives of MS Act 2013. Various projects at the ULB level in Kerala have invested in safety equipment and protective gear for sanitation workers, spending over Rs 1.65 crores as of March 2024.
NAMASTE Scheme
The National Action for Mechanised Sanitation Ecosystem (NAMASTE) scheme, launched in Kerala in October 2023, aims to further ensure the safety and dignity of sanitation workers. This scheme, implemented by NSKFDC, is a collaborative effort by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment and the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs and focuses on the full mechanization of sewer and septic tank cleaning. Under NAMASTE, profiling camps surveyed 1,604 sewage / septage workers (SSWs) across all 93 Urban Local Bodies (ULBs), with 1,588 records validated. Additionally, 492 Ayushman Health Insurance Cards were processed to provide health coverage to these workers and their families.
In order to ensure worker safety 27 PPE kits have been distributed in Palakkad and 25 in Kochi, and a proposal for an additional 1,537 PPE kits has been submitted to NSKFDC. Emergency Response Sanitation Units (ERSUs) have been formed in all ULBs, with proposals for ERSU safety devices submitted to NSKFDC. Welfare initiatives like the Swachhta Udyami Yojana have been undertaken to promote mechanization in cleaning and entrepreneurship among sanitation workers.
