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Hindustan Times
27-05-2025
- Hindustan Times
Delhi: Storm drain desilting raises ‘manual scavenging' alarm
In the afternoon sun near Munirka along the Outer Ring Road, Mahendra Singh removes his shirt and trousers, stripping down to his underwear before stepping into a stormwater drain. With a rusted shovel, he scoops out dark, foul-smelling sludge—a mix of silt, plastic, and broken glass—and passes it to his co-worker Raj Kumar. Neither man wears gloves, boots, or any protective gear. Along a 100-metre stretch from the spot, there are multiple heaps of filth as over 50 workers toil to clear choked storm drains ahead of monsoon. This scene, repeated across hundreds of sites in Delhi, is part of the Capital's annual pre-monsoon desilting drive. Yet, activists and rights groups say this distinction is both technical and misleading. In cities like Delhi, stormwater drains, which generally only carry rainwater to canals from the roads, can often have drains 'puncturing' them. This has been acknowledged multiple times in official government submissions to courts, in NGT orders and by senior officials of drain-owning agencies. 'These stormwater drains are not clean rainwater channels. They're choked with sewage, industrial waste and sludge,' said Bezwada Wilson, a noted rights activist who was awarded the 2016 Magsaysay Award for his efforts to get justice for manual scavengers. 'If a person is made to get into these drains, neck-deep in filth without any safety gear, how is this not manual scavenging?' Wilson said that the work violates both the Manual Scavenging Act and labour safety laws, citing observations from across the city—workers entering blackened, stinking drains, often laced with sewage. 'Machines should be doing this. The law is clear: no human should be entering such spaces unless absolutely necessary and with full protection,' he said. Sanjay Gahlot, chairman of the Delhi Commission for Safai Karamcharis, echoed Wilson's concerns. 'Agencies and contractors are not able to understand that this too is manual scavenging. They are exploiting people by making them manually clear the filth. People's lives are being put at risk,' he said. Public Works Department (PWD) manages 2,026km of small drains, which merge with larger drains under the jurisdiction of the Irrigation and Flood Control Department, which eventually empty into the Yamuna. The Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) oversees 12,892 smaller drains, spanning 6,067km. Officials from both agencies did not respond to requests for comments on the matter. Every year, these agencies carry out a large-scale desilting operation between April and June to prepare the city for the monsoon. At the Munirka site, over 50 labourers were at work along a 100-metre stretch. Similar scenes were observed by HT on Monday near IIT Delhi, Deer Park, Hauz Khas, Safdarjung and near Jangpura. Meanwhile, PWD through its official handle shared similar images of men without protective gear entering filthy drains at places such as Paschim Vihar, Mangolpuri, Rohini and Jahangirpuri. Last month, workers were also seen clearing sludge from the Barapullah drain without gear, just before a high-profile government inspection. The labour is outsourced through private contractors who hire workers—which activists said are mostly from marginalised communities—on a daily wage basis. They are paid between ₹500 to ₹700 a day, often without the legally mandated minimum wage benefits. According to the Delhi government, the current minimum wage for unskilled labour is ₹18,456 per month, or around ₹700 per day. 'This is seasonal work. I also work at tent houses for weddings during the rest of the year,' said Singh, 51, as he paused briefly by the roadside. 'It stinks, it burns your skin, but there's no other job. No one will pay this much for three months.' A supervisor at a site near the National Institute of Health and Family Welfare claimed only minor sections of drains were being cleaned manually. 'We only ask workers to clean near the manholes. Machines will take care of the deeper parts,' he said. But workers at multiple sites contradict this. Vikki Jeenwal, 40, pointed to cuts on his feet while working near Safdarjung Development Area. 'There's glass in the sludge. Sometimes it smells so bad I drink alcohol just to get through the day.' His co-worker Sonu Beniwal, 27, added, 'There are gases that make you dizzy. We've heard people have died in such drains. But here, at least, we get ₹500 at the end of the day. Other jobs don't even pay on time.' Kali Charan, 62, said his eyes water during the first few hours of work. 'I've never seen gloves or boots. Only once, when a TV crew came, the contractor gave us masks.' Wilson emphasised that the law allows human entry into drains only in life-threatening emergencies, and even then with full protective gear and written approvals. 'Yet every monsoon, hundreds of men are forced to enter these filth-filled drains. This is not stormwater. This is neglect, and it is killing people slowly.'
The Hindu
22-05-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
BJP MLA Kanwar Lal Meena surrenders in Rajasthan court after a 3-year sentence in 2005 case
Bharatiya Janata Party MLA Kanwar Lal Meena, whose conviction and three years' sentence in a 20-year-old case was upheld by the Rajasthan High Court earlier this month, surrendered in the trial court at Manoharthana in Jhawalar district on Wednesday. No decision has been taken as yet on his disqualification from the Assembly. The Supreme Court had recently directed Meena to surrender within two weeks, while dismissing his special leave petition (SLP). Elected from Baran district's Anta, Meena was sentenced to three years' rigorous imprisonment in December 2020 in a case of brandishing a revolver at an officer with life threats and damaging public property. Accompanied by his lawyers and supporters, Meena arrived at the court of Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate in Manoharthana on Wednesday morning. The court sent him to judicial custody, after which he was taken to the town's community health centre for a medical examination. He was later shifted to the Aklera sub-jail. 'Full faith' A large number of police personnel and BJP workers were present on the court premises during the surrender. Questioned by journalists about his future move, Meena said he had 'full faith' in the judiciary and his lawyers would decide about filing an appeal. A two-time MLA, Meena first won the election from Manoharthana in 2013, and later from Anta in 2023. He was not elected to the Assembly at the time of the crime in 2005 and already had 15 criminal cases against him. In 2016, he led a mob which allegedly attacked the activists of Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan, founded by Magsaysay Award winner Aruna Roy, during a march in Jhalawar district. Though Meena was initially acquitted by the trial court, a sessions court in Aklera later convicted him in December 2020 after finding him guilty of obstructing the government work, intimidating the government officials and vandalising property. His sentence for three and two years, respectively, on different charges, was upheld by the HC on May 1. Shameful, says Congress In Jaipur, Congress MLA and Leader of the Opposition Tika Ram Jully described the surrender as a 'shameful episode'. 'This is a black spot on our democracy. It has happened for the first time in the history of Rajasthan ,' he said.
Indian Express
15-05-2025
- Health
- Indian Express
Woman missing for 34 years, treated for schizophrenia, reunited with family in emotional homecoming
May 14 was a special day at Abdul Kader Fakir's home in Rupshigaon, Aminkata in Assam's Kokrajhar district as he was reunited with his sister Sohida Bibi, now in her early 70s. Fakir, 61, told The Indian Express over the phone they had searched everywhere for Sohida, who was missing for more than three decades, but couldn't find her. 'My sister was in her early 30s, when one day she left home. Complaints were lodged and searches carried out everywhere. But we gave up hope during the pandemic and thought she was no more,' Fakir, who has a small construction business, said. Fakir's elder brother Hussain, 82, also cannot believe his little sister is back. Overjoyed she has returned after 34 years, Fakir told The Indian Express, 'Meri behen mere paas rahegi (My sister will stay with me).' Sohida, who would call herself 'Musamma', had undergone treatment for mental illness at Guwahati after marriage. Family members say most likely she had wandered off in that mental state. It was 27 years ago on December 12, 1998 that she was admitted to the Regional Mental Hospital at Thane. At the time, she was lodged as an undertrial at Arthur Road Jail and was sent to the hospital for psychiatric treatment following a court order. However, despite receiving seven years of care and being diagnosed with schizophrenia, she was deemed unfit for discharge. Over the years, persistent follow-ups and communication with the help of a Bengali interpreter by a team from Thane Mental Hospital and then later with the Shraddha Rehabilitation Foundation, helped trace her origins to a village in Assam. According to Dr Archana Gadkari, psychiatrist at Regional Mental Hospital, Thane, she was brought to the hospital from jail. 'She had a history of aggressiveness, poor interactions, impaired self-care and sleep,' Dr Gadkari said. She added that later some of the criminal charges were dropped against her and due to the efforts of the hospital, she was converted from a criminal to a civil patient. Varsha Warade, sister-in-charge at Regional Mental Hospital, when contacted, said it took a while for 'Musamma' to respond to medication and counselling. It was several years later that she started responding and spoke in Bengali with the interpreter. The search then began to reunite 'Musamma' with her family and the team at Regional Mental Hospital, reached out to the Shraddha Rehabilitation Foundation. Set up by Magsaysay Award winner Dr Bharat Vatwani with his wife and others, the foundation in Mumbai and Karjat over the years has reunited more than 7,000 mentally ill persons with their families. Dr Vatwani said when she was admitted to hospital in 1998, it was likely that in her disturbed mental state, Sohida may have mentioned Bangladesh and hence there was a court order issued that she should be deported. 'The team of psychiatrists felt she belonged to Assam and reached out to us. Our team went with photographs and other details to Assam and were able to trace her relatives. What added to the challenge was a death certificate issued by the Dotoma block Primary Health Centre in Kokrajhar. However, our team contacted the police and after an identification process, she was sent to the foundation on April 29 this year. Our social worker Samar Basak accompanied her to Assam where she was reunited with the family on May 14,' Dr Vatwani said. Anuradha Mascarenhas is a journalist with The Indian Express and is based in Pune. A senior editor, Anuradha writes on health, research developments in the field of science and environment and takes keen interest in covering women's issues. With a career spanning over 25 years, Anuradha has also led teams and often coordinated the edition. ... Read More
The Hindu
14-05-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
Delay in convicted BJP MLA's disqualification upsets Opposition in Rajasthan
The delay in the disqualification of Bharatiya Janata Party MLA Kanwar Lal Meena, whose conviction in a 20-year-old case was upheld by the High Court, has upset the Opposition Congress in Rajasthan. The Congress has sought an immediate intervention of Governor Haribhau Bagade in the matter. Mr. Meena, elected from Baran district's Anta, was sentenced to three years' rigorous imprisonment in a case of threatening a Rajasthan Administrative Service (RAS) officer with a revolver and damaging public property in Jhalawar. A sessions court convicted the MLA in December 2020, while the High Court upheld the order on May 1. Mr. Meena moved a special leave petition (SLP) in the Supreme Court, which has directed him to surrender in the trial court in two weeks. The Congress has contended that Mr. Meena's membership of the Assembly should have been cancelled forthwith after the high court's judgment as per the Representation of the People Act, 1951. Section 8(3) of the Act provides for the disqualification of a lawmaker following conviction for an offence with a two-year sentence or more. Assembly Speaker Vasudev Devnani has reportedly sought the opinion of Advocate-General and legal experts in the matter, but his decision is still awaited. Mr. Meena, who has to surrender in the court by May 21, was not elected to the State Assembly at the time of the crime and already had 15 criminal cases against him. In 2016, he led a mob which allegedly attacked the activists of Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan, founded by Magsaysay Award winner Aruna Roy, during a march in Jhalawar district. A two-time MLA, Mr. Meena first won the election from Jhalawar's Manohar Thana in 2013, and later from Anta in 2023. Congress MLA and Leader of Opposition in the Assembly Tika Ram Jully, has shot off a letter to the Governor, while accusing the Speaker of deliberately delaying Mr. Meena's disqualification process. 'As per Article 191 of the Constitution and the provisions of the RP Act, an elected representative sentenced to more than two years stands automatically disqualified from holding office,' Mr. Jully said. Mr. Jully said the Speaker's inaction in the matter was a 'blatant disregard of constitutional duty and democratic norms'. He urged the Governor to uphold the constitutional mandate and give direction for Mr. Meena's disqualification with effect from May 1, when the high court had upheld his conviction and sentence. Mr. Jully pointed out that a similar decision was taken in 2016 when Bahujan Samaj Party MLA B.L. Kushwaha was sentenced to life imprisonment in a murder case. Mr. Kushwaha was disqualified and a by-election was held in his constituency, Dholpur. The high court had also rejected his plea to allow him to cast his vote in the Rajya Sabha election when he was incarcerated before his conviction. However, Jhalawar Bar Association president Ram Maheshwari said the Supreme Court would hear Mr. Meena's SLP for admission after he surrenders. Any decision on Mr. Meena's membership of the Assembly would be subject to the judgment of the Supreme Court until his petition challenging the high court's verdict remains pending in the apex court, Mr. Maheshwari said.
