Manual scavenging

Manual scavenging is manual removal of excreta (night soil) from "dry toilets", i.e., toilet without the modern flush system, especially in the Indian subcontinent.

The system of building employing people for public sanitation was introduced during the British rule in India perhaps in the late 19th century when municipalities were organized. The toilets often used a container that needed to be emptied daily.

Chamber pots were used by aristocracy in Europe, where there was often a need to avoid going out in the cold. A chaise percée was brought in when needed.

Manual scavenging is said to have started in 1214 in Europe when the first public toilets appeared. The water closet was invented by John Harrington in 1596. In 1870, S.S. Helior invented the flush type toilet, and it became common in the western world. This caused other types of toilets to disappear in the western world. All surface toilets were abandoned in western Europe in mid-1950s.

In India in 1970s, Dr. Bindeshwar Pathak introduced his "Sulabh" concept for building and managing public toilets in India, which has introduced hygienic and well-managed public toilet system.

Manual scavenging still survives in parts of India without proper sewage systems. In 1970s the state of Karnataka passed a law to ban manual scavenging. The Employment of Manual Scavengers and Construction of Dry Latrines (Prohibition) Act, 1993 punishes the employment of scavengers or the construction of dry (non-flush) latrines with imprisonment for up to one year and/or a fine of Rs 2,000. However some municipalities still run public dry-toilets. The central government has planned eradication of Manual Scavenging by 2007.

References

• History of Public Toilets Bindeshwar Pathak
• History of the Flush Toilet
• Manual scavenging: Court summons Principal Secretaries
• Manual scavengers become fashion models