1. No category

Socio Economic Status of Women
Manual Scavengers
[Baseline Study Report -2014]
Prepared by:
Jan Sahas Social Development Society
Supported by:
Fund for Gender Equality
United Nations Entity for Gender Equality
and the Empowerment of Women
(UN Women)
0
© 2014 UN Women, Fund for Gender Equality
The views expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the
views of the Fund for Gender Equality, UN Women, the United Nations or any of its affiliated
organisations.
The report has been produced by Jan Sahas Social Development Society with support from the Fund for
Gender Equality.
Cover photo: Jan Sahas Social Development Society
Editorial Inputs: Mary Khuvung and Suhela Khan, UN Women
About UN Women Fund for Gender Equality
UN Women is the UN organization dedicated to gender equality and the empowerment of women. UN
Women’s Fund for Gender Equality was established in 2009 as a grant making programme to deliver
much needed funds to national civil society groups and governments working to advance women’s
economic and political empowerment and also as a means to increase national partners’ capacity in
results‐based management and programme implementation.
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About Jan Sahas Social Development Society
Started in 2000, Jan Sahas Social Development Society is a community based organization that is
committed to protection of human rights and development of socially excluded communities through
abolishing all kind of slavery, social exclusion, atrocities and all forms of discrimination based on caste,
class and gender.
14, Mill Road,
Post: Balghar, Dewas 455001
Madhya Pradesh
+ 91 7272 254490; + 91 7272 408090; +91 9826423634
www.jansahasindia.org; www.facebook.com/jansahas
1
Table of Contents
Executive Summary......................................................................................................................... 4
A.
Key Findings ...................................................................................................................................... 4
B.
Analysis and Way Forward ................................................................................................................ 7
1.0 Context ...................................................................................................................................... 9
2.0 Baseline Objective and Methodology ..................................................................................... 12
2.1 Objective ........................................................................................................................................... 12
2.2 Methodology..................................................................................................................................... 12
2.3 Study area and sample size ............................................................................................................... 12
2.4 Layout of the Report: ........................................................................................................................ 14
3.0 Findings ................................................................................................................................... 15
3.1 Respondent Profile ........................................................................................................................... 15
3.2 Economic Profile ............................................................................................................................... 18
3.3 Participation in Local Self-Governance ............................................................................................. 23
3.4 Participation in Political processes ................................................................................................... 24
3.5 Access to Services and Schemes ....................................................................................................... 25
4.0 Analysis and Way Forward ...................................................................................................... 30
4.1 Analysis of Findings ........................................................................................................................... 30
4.2 Way Forward ..................................................................................................................................... 33
Appendix – 1 Status of women engaged in scavenging .......................................................................... 34
Appendix – 2 Baseline Data on Indicators .............................................................................................. 36
Appendix – 3 Survey Format ................................................................................................................... 40
2
List of Tables
Table 1: Number of survey sites ................................................................................................................. 13
Table 2: District wise number of women manual scavengers surveyed .................................................... 13
Table 3: State wise age profile of respondents (%) .................................................................................... 15
Table 4: State wise marital status of respondents (in %) ........................................................................... 15
Table 5: State wise education status of respondents (%) ........................................................................... 17
Table 6: Other income sources ................................................................................................................... 20
Table 7: State wise % of families with additional income ............................................................................ 1
Table 8: State wise % of women participating in local governance structures .......................................... 23
Table 9: Political participation of families of women manual scavengers.................................................. 24
Table 10: Number of respondents whose children go to school ................................................................ 25
Table 11: Details of children below 18 years who were not going to school ............................................. 25
Table 12 State wise number of women manual scavengers with bank accounts ..................................... 28
Table 13: State wise bank account details of women manual scavengers ................................................. 28
Table 14 State wise % of women benefitting from various schemes ........................................................ 29
List of Figures
Figure 1: Time frame of respondents involved in scavenging .................................................................... 16
Figure 2: Educational Status of the respondents ........................................................................................ 18
Figure 3: Monthly Income from manual scavenging (Number of surveyed women in %) ....................... 199
Figure 4: Percentage of families with alternative sources of income......................................................... 20
Figure 5: Families with other sources of Income ........................................................................................ 21
Figure 6: Percentage of families with land ................................................................................................. 22
Figure 7: Sources of land of families with land ........................................................................................... 22
Figure 8: Political participation of community involved in manual scavenging ......................................... 24
Figure 9: Access to health centres .............................................................................................................. 26
Figure 10: Access to anganwadi centres ..................................................................................................... 27
Figure 11: Access to ration shops by women manual scavengers .............................................................. 27
Figure 12: Percentage of women accessing various schemes .................................................................... 29
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Executive Summary
Jan Sahas with support from UN Women’s Fund for Gender Equality is implementing a three
year project titled “Dignity Campaign- Action for Liberation of Dalit Manual Scavenger Women
in India”. It aims to liberate, rehabilitate and empower 10,000 women manual scavengers
through strengthening their economic and political rights. The project is implemented in 15
districts of three states- Bihar, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh for a three year period from
January 2013- December 2015.
A baseline assessment of the project was undertaken in 2013. Primary data was collected from
select locations in nine districts of all three states using structured questionnaires and focus
group discussions (FGDs).
The baseline assessment aimed at gathering information pertaining to socio-economic status of
women manual scavengers who constitute an astonishing 98% of the community. It focused on
analyzing the extent of women’s participation in local governance structures, their access to
various government schemes and services as well as realization of their rights and entitlements.
Data was collected from all women manual scavengers in select locations of nine districts
adding up to 480 women. The analysis also included a review of secondary data.
A summary of key findings and recommendations is presented in the following sections:
A. Key Findings
I.
Profile of the respondents

Age profile- 53% of all survey respondents belonged to the age group of 25 to 40
years. 27% were between 41 to 60 years of age, 16% were below 25 years and only
4% were above 60 years of age.

Education- 12% of all survey respondents were educated upto the primary level, 5%
received education upto the middle school level. Just 1% of respondents studied till
the high school and beyond. Bihar had 98% of illiterates, which is the highest,
compared to Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh which is 60% and 30% respectively.
17% of respondents in all three states acquired functional literacy through literacy
4
mission carried out by the Government during 2000-2002. This data was 41% for
Madhya Pradesh, 18% for Uttar Pradesh and 1% for Bihar.

Caste Profile-In Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh respondents belonged to
‘Valmiki’, 'Haila' and 'Halalkhor' castes while in Bihar they were from ‘Mister’ and
'Dome' castes.

Marital Status- 85% of respondents were married while 15% were single. Those who
were single were either widowed or divorced. Out of the total respondents who
were single, 12% were unmarried, 85% were widowed and 3% were divorced.

Geographic area- 35% of respondents resided in gram panchayats1 (rural areas),
while 65% lived in nagar panchayat2 and nagar palika3 (urban areas)
II.
Economic status

70% of respondents in all three states got involved in manual scavenging after
marriage while 30% were forced into it since childhood. 60% of respondents in
Bihar got indulged in the practice after marriage while 77% in Uttar Pradesh and
76% in Madhya Pradesh started manual scavenging post-marriage.

Women were paid too less. The amount paid was not even fixed at many places.
Most respondents earned less than Rs 2000 per month. 43% received less than Rs
1000 a month while 56% were paid between Rs 1000 to 2000 a month for this
degrading job. Just 1% earned above Rs 2000 per month.

50% of manual scavenging families had no other source of income. The situation
was worst in Uttar Pradesh where 83% of families relied on manual scavenging for
income while in Madhya Pradesh and Bihar 32% and 37% of families respectively
relied on manual scavenging.

Productive Assets: 2% of manual scavenging families had land holdings in all three
states. Only 1% was involved in agriculture for additional income.
1
Gram Panchayat is a local self-government institution at the village or small town level in India and has a
Sarpanch as its elected head.
2
Nagar Panchayat or Notified Area Council or City Council is a form of an urban political unit in India comparable
to a municipality. An urban centre with more than 11,000 and less than 25,000 inhabitants is classified as a "Nagar
Panchayat"
3
Nagar Palika: is an urban local body that administers a city of population 100,000 or more
5
III.
Participation in local governance

Out of the total survey respondents residing in urban areas in all three states, only
13% had ever visited municipal corporations for any work. 11% of respondents in
Bihar, 12% in Madhya Pradesh and 18% in Uttar Pradesh had visited Nagar Nikaya4
for their work.

Out of the total respondents residing in rural areas in all three states, only 9% had
ever visited gram panchayats for any work. In Uttar Pradesh only 7% whereas in
Bihar and Madhya Pradesh only 8% and 11% of respondents ever visited gram
panchayats.

Only 10% of respondents from all three states had participated in gram sabhas5.
The percentage was 13% in Madhya Pradesh, 8% in Uttar Pradesh and 11% in Bihar.
IV.
Participation in political processes

V.
No woman respondent reported her own participation in political processes. 8% of
respondents reported about the participation of their family members in the
political processes. State wise analysis showed that in Madhya Pradesh only 6% of
families participated in political processes, while in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh the
corresponding percentage was 8% and 10% respectively.
Access to services and schemes

Access to education for children of manual scavenging families: State wise data
revealed that in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, children of 62% of respondents each and in
Madhya Pradesh children of 51% of respondents did not go to school. Uttar Pradesh
had the highest percentage of children out of school which was 59% while in Bihar
and Madhya Pradesh it was 48% and 41% respectively.

Access to health and nutrition: Only 25% of respondents from all three states had
access to health services while 75% were deprived of this facility. In Bihar 68% of
respondents never approached government health centers. In Madhya Pradesh and
4
Nagar Nikaya/ Nagar Palika is an urban local body that administers a city of population 100,000 or more.
The electorate of the panchayat, envisioned to be the watch dog of local governance, which must be convened at
least twice a year, to discuss socio-economic as well as development issues impacting the villages.
5
6
Bihar the percentage of respondents who did not approach government health
facilities was 77% and 81% respectively.

Access to Public Distribution System (PDS) centers: 41% of respondents in all three
states had no access to PDS centers where government provides subsidized food
grains. Bihar fared worst where 54% of respondents were not able to use the facility.
In Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh 30% and 36% of respondents, respectively,
were deprived of subsidized grains.

Access to financial services: Only 39% of respondents in all three states had bank
account. Of the total women with bank accounts, 74% had joint accounts and mere
26% had accounts in their name.

Access to rehabilitation scheme: Only 13% of respondents in all three states were
benefitted under the Self-employment and Rehabilitation of Manual Scavenger and
their dependents (SMRS) scheme. 27% of respondents availed benefits in Madhya
Pradesh, while 9% in Uttar Pradesh and only 4% in Bihar availed benefits under the
scheme.
VI.
Access to social protection provisions

Access to wage employment scheme: Families of 17% of respondents in all three
states got employment under Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment
Guarantee Act (MGNREGA)6. State wise data showed that this percentage was 3% in
Bihar and Madhya Pradesh each while 15% in Uttar Pradesh.

Access to housing scheme: In all three states, only 4% of respondents availed
financial assistance for construction of house under Indira Awas Yojna (IAY)7. State
wise data revealed that only 2% of respondents in Madhya Pradesh, 4% in Bihar and
7% in Uttar Pradesh got financial support from the government for building houses
under IAY.
B. Analysis and Way Forward
Survey findings highlight the derogatory situation of women manual scavengers. They are
deprived of crucial services of education and health as well as decent employment
opportunities. 82% never got the opportunity to go to school. Their children face discrimination
in schools because they belong to the community which is considered ‘untouchable’. This
6
A flagship scheme of the Government of India that entitles a below poverty line household guaranteed 100 days
of work in a year.
7
A housing scheme of Government of India that provides financial assistance to the people Below Poverty Line.
7
discriminatory behavior results in their dropping out. 77% had no access to public health
facilities. They depend on private health facilities for their treatment which is expensive, of substandard quality and at distances far from their habitation. 60% of women manual scavengers
and their children had never visited Anganwadi8 centers and 59% families had no access to PDS
where subsidized food grains are provided by the Government. Their participation in local
governance and political processes is negligible. Discrimination and humiliation does not allow
them to raise their voice in gram panchayats. These women and their families have very poor
access to various government schemes and entitlements in all three states. Only 4% got
financial assistance to construct houses under IAY, 17% of families got wage employment under
MGNREGA and 13% of women had availed provisions under SMRS Scheme aimed for
rehabilitation of manual scavengers.
Considering the gravity of the issue, it is imperative that a multi-pronged approach that
intervenes at multiple levels is adopted. The Project has integrated strategies that build on the
strengths of collectives to target voicelessness and promote women’s agency that not only
enables them to question and challenge discriminatory norms but also to take action to liberate
themselves from the slavery and reclaim their rights and dignity.
8
Anganwadi means a courtyard, that is, a play centre. It is located within a village or a slum. It is the focal point for
delivery of all services provided under Integrated Child Development Scheme (ICDS), Ministry of Women and Child
Development, Government of India.
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1.0 Context
In the caste based social structure of India, the ‘Dalit’ community has been excluded from a
dignified right to life. As a result, the community has remained backward in education,
livelihoods, access to services, schemes and opportunities to live a life with dignity. Most
grievous situation in this context is their forced retention in caste based and hereditary
occupations which means that the community is not free and allowed to select occupations of
its choice. Dalits remain in occupations forced upon them centuries ago resulting in their
continued exploitation and discrimination.
Of all the caste based occupations forced on the ‘Dalit’ community, the most despicable and
inhumane is that of ‘head loading’. They lift and carry heavy loads of excrement and night soil in
baskets to designated sites of disposal on their heads. Manual scavengers manually clean dry
latrines used by others in the village/semi-urban areas. Amongst those involved in head-loading
98% are women, who are forced to do this work under social pressure. Since this work is caste
based and is considered compulsory for a particular caste within the ‘Dalit’ community by
traditional society, it has not remained merely an occupation but has continued as a practice
and custom. The system has rendered vast majority of people oppressed who are considered
“untouchables”, deprived of their social, economic and political rights. Any progressive attempt
has been subdued by acts of discrimination and exclusion that has exacerbated their sense of
powerlessness. Discrimination and exclusion in all spheres of life – social, religious, economic
and political– have resulted in loss of their identity and dignity. Further, the lack of resource
ownership and opportunities aggravates their vulnerability.
In Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh people from 'Valmiki', 'Haila' and 'Halalkhor' castes are
involved in the practice while in Bihar they are from ‘Mister’ and 'Dome' castes. Communities of
these castes are placed in the lowest rung of Hindu society- ‘‘Untouchables among the
Untouchables’’. The continuing hold of caste based thinking and practice undermines their selfesteem and dignity. Previous approaches to end manual scavenging include Gandhian Approach
which appeals to conscience of people; Legal Approach relying on the legislative advocacy,
Rehabilitation Approach that advocates for policies of rehabilitation and Technocratic Approach
advocating for replacing dry latrines and constructing flush toilets.
These approaches, however, are limited by their focus on abolishing manual scavenging. By
treating manual scavenging as a form of work or employment—a subset of labor that could be
sanitized through technical interventions or economic empowerment schemes—these
approaches have failed to place the issue of manual scavenging in broader social, cultural and
political context. Such targeted strategies have failed to mount a frontal challenge to the
9
pyramid-like caste structure that confines manual scavengers to its base; do not identify
women as primary group performing this while facing discrimination from their very own
families and recognize the hierarchy maintained among ‘Dalits’. None of these strategies seek
to “liberate” manual scavengers from a mindset that reinforces their confinement to torturous
caste-based duties outlawed under both Indian domestic law and the UN Convention on
Torture9.
Articles 14, 17, 21 and 23 of the Constitution of India make this practice unconstitutional. The
continued prevalence of this inhuman practice is also a violation of several national legislations
and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Some of these legislations and provisions are as
under:






The Employment of Manual Scavengers and Construction of Dry Latrines (Prohibition)
Act, 1993 was made with the avowed aim of eliminating the practice.
The main objective of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of
Atrocities) Act, 1989 has been to effectively prevent and punish perpetrators of
atrocities against the members of the ‘Dalit’ community. It has provisions of severe
punishments for those found guilty.
Bonded Labor System (abolition) Act, 1976.
Under section 7(a) of the Protection of Civil Rights Act, 1955, anyone forcing another
person illegally to engage in bonded labor, manual scavenging or disposing animal
carcasses shall be deemed to be committing a criminal offense and can be sentenced to
3 to 6 months of imprisonment or fined up to Rs. 500/-.
Various provisions of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, to which India is a
signatory, hold all human beings equal and the practice of manual scavenging of human
feces violates several of its provisions.
The Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and Their Rehabilitation Act, 2013
Despite, majority of people involved in head-loading have not been rehabilitated. What has
become increasingly clear is the fact that apart from a number of shortcomings in laws and
schemes themselves, their management and implementation by responsible central and state
authorities has been a major challenge. In an assessment10 of the “Self-employment and
Rehabilitation of Manual Scavenger and their dependents” scheme launched in 2007 by
Government of India with provisions for identification of manual scavengers, subsidized loans,
vocational trainings and stipends, Jan Sahas found the following:
9
Article 1 of the United Nations Convention Against Torture
SRMS Impact assessment study by Jan Sahas 2011
10
10




Identification of beneficiaries was not done by the District Implementing Officers as
required; instead middlemen were involved in selection of beneficiaries who took bribe
in disbursement of loan to beneficiaries. Officials at district level had direct linkages and
contacts with middlemen instead of community members.
Due to high involvement of middlemen in selection of beneficiaries, actual manual
scavengers were left out and never got rehabilitated. Those who were not involved in
manual scavenging benefitted from various provisions of the scheme.
Middlemen had strong connections with local politicians and they intentionally never
reached out to manual scavenging community to generate awareness about the
scheme.
In a cross verification exercise of identified and selected beneficiaries by Government
officials, huge irregularities were found in disbursement of loan to people from the
community. Records showed transfer of loan amount in their name but in reality they
did not receive any financial assistance.
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2.0 Baseline Objective and Methodology
2.1 Objective
The purpose of the study is to develop a baseline for the project through the collection of
primary data in all three project states. The aim is to develop an empirical understanding of the
social and economic conditions of women involved in manual scavenging, their access to social
protection measures and participation in local governance. The baseline will inform the results
framework and monitoring and evaluation (M&E) plan of the project.
2.2 Methodology
The baseline assessment used primary quantitative data collected by Jan Sahas at 54 project
site in three states. A desk review of relevant material was also undertaken. The following
section provides a brief description of the methods and tools employed by the project.
2.2.1. Desk Review:
Project related documents and existing literature on the topic was reviewed. Desk review
aimed at corroborating the primary data with existing evidence, analysis and facts pertaining to
the issue.
2.2.2. Analysis of baseline data
The baseline survey questionnaire was developed and pilot tested by a UN Women and Jan
Sahas team. Major indicators for data collection included socio-economic status of women,
status of education of their children, livelihood and financial situation and access to social
protection measures, schemes as well as services.
Jan Sahas was responsible for data collection. Primary data collection was undertaken during
September- December 2013. All primary information and data collected through survey
questionnaires was fed into an excel software by a team of data entry personnel. A statistical
package ‘World Excel’ software was used to analyse the primary data.
2.3 Study area and sample size
All three project states were selected for the baseline study – Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh
and Bihar. Three districts were selected from each of these states, including two gram
panchayats, two nagar panchayats, and two nagar palika level village or city. Thus, the survey
12
was carried out at six sites in one district. Total of nine districts from three states were selected
for the baseline study, which included 18 gram panchayats, 18 nagar panchayats and 18 nagar
palika. The survey was carried out at 54 sites.
All women involved in manual scavenging in these sites were included in the study. The study
is, therefore, based on 100% sample size. 480 women from nine districts of three states were
surveyed, out of which 178 were from Bihar, 151 from Uttar Pradesh and 151 were from
Madhya Pradesh. State wise distribution is provided in tables below:
Table 1: Number of survey sites
No. State
District
No. of
Gram Panchayat
No. of
Nagar Panchayat
No. of
Nagar Palika
1
MP
2
UP
3
Bihar
Rewa
Satna
Sidhi
Bareli
Mathura
Hardoi
Aurangabad
Rohtas
Aara
9
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
18
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
18
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
18
TOTAL
No. of
Total
Places
6
6
6
6
6
6
6
6
6
54
Table 2: District wise number of women manual scavengers surveyed
State
MP
UP
Bihar
District
Rewa
Satna
Sidhi
Bareli
Mathura
Hardoi
Aurangabad
Rohtas
Aara
Total
Number of surveyed women
50
55
46
51
50
50
59
64
55
480
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2.4 Layout of the Report:
The report is divided into six chapters. The first two chapters present the context, objectives
and methodology of the baseline assessment. The third chapter discusses the findings of the
baseline assessment. Following this, an analysis and discussion of possible areas for
intervention and advocacy that may contribute to the achievement of project objectives are
discussed. Finally, significant baseline data for output indicators of the project are presented.
14
3.0 Findings
This section presents findings from the baseline survey. It first discusses the profile of all
respondents including age, religion and caste, education levels and marital status. This is
followed by a discussion on economic profile including their access to productive resources. A
discussion on the respondent’s participation in local governance and political processes follows.
Finally, respondent’s access to various schemes and social security provisions is presented.
3.1 Respondent Profile
3.1.1 Age Profile
Out of the total 480 respondents, 53% belonged to the age group of 25 to 40 years. 16% were
below 25 years of age, 27% were between the age group of 41 to 60 years and just 4% were
above 60 years.
Table 3: State wise age profile of respondents (%)
State
MP
UP
Bihar
All 3 states
Below 25 years
17
10
20
16
25 to 40 years
44
54
60
53
41 to 60 years
35
29
10
27
Above 60 years
05
07
02
04
3.1.2 Marital Status
85% of women manual scavengers were married while 15% were single. Of those who were
single, most were either widowed or divorced. This fact comes forth in context of the
educational status of surveyed women; most of them never got the chance to study and thus
were married of earlier.
Table 4: State wise marital status of respondents (in %)
State
MP
UP
Bihar
All 3 states
Marital status
Married
89
83
85
90
Single
11
17
15
10
Category of single women
Widowed Divorced
94
06
80
04
85
00
85
03
Unmarried
00
16
15
12
15
The survey stated that 70% women started this work after marriage while 30% were forced into
it since childhood. Most women got involved in scavenging immediately after their marriage in
all the three states. 60% women in Bihar, 77% in Uttar Pradesh and 76% in Madhya Pradesh
started this job post-marriage. Those who were not involved in manual scavenging before
marriage found it very painful to enter into the occupation. These women often get affected
from diseases. Group discussions showed that 90% women suffered from ailments, such as
headache, frequent fever, skin related diseases, hair fall etc. This was told at 32 places out of 54
places surveyed that accounted for 89% of women surveyed in all three states.
Since childhood
After marriage
77%
76%
70%
60%
40%
24%
MP
30%
23%
UP
Bihar
All
Figure 1: Time frame of respondents involved in scavenging
3.1.3 Caste Profile:
In Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh, respondents belonged to ‘Valmiki’, 'Haila' and
'Halalkhor' castes while in Bihar they were from ‘Mister’ and 'Dome' castes. ‘Balmiki/Valmiki’
caste is placed in lowest rung of the caste system, lowest within lower castes. This caste
community is predominantly located in Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh and is involved in
manual scavenging since many generations. Women are compelled to be scavenges; as a result,
they face acute discrimination and practice of ‘untouchability’ against them. ‘Haila’ and
‘Halalkhor’ manual scavenging caste communities are followers of Islam and their fate is similar
to Hindu ‘Valmikies’. These communities are also compelled to do manual scavenging and
suffer humiliation as suffered by the Hindu manual scavenging communities. These caste
communities are located in the states of Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. From historical
perspective, communities those were involved in manual scavenging converted to Islam with an
16
intention that they would not face brunt of discrimination and humiliation of caste system.
However, situation of converted ‘Dalit’s’ remained unchanged as even after conversion they
were forced to be manual scavengers. Moreover, in present situation ‘Haila’ and ‘Halalkhor’
communities do not have scheduled caste status and protection under the Scheduled Caste and
Scheduled Tribes Prevention of Atrocities Act, 1989. They are deprived of other welfare
measures despite being manual scavengers and experience similar discrimination and
exploitation as Hindu manual scavenging communities.
3.1.4 Education Status
Out of the total respondents, 12% were educated up to the primary level while 5% received
education up to the middle school. Just 1% of respondents studied till the high school and
above. About 82% of respondents never got the chance to attend school. Out of these, 65% of
respondents were illiterate at the time of survey, whereas, 17% became literate through the
literacy mission that was initiated by the Government during 2000-2002. The mission enabled
women acquire functional literacy whereby they were taught to write their name and
signatures. This data was 41% for Madhya Pradesh, 18% for Uttar Pradesh and 1% for Bihar.
This shows that the families practicing scavenging were not interested in educating the female
members of their families.
Table 5: State wise education status of respondents (%)
Education
Illiterate
Literate
Primary
Middle
High School & Upper
MP
30%
41%
13%
12%
4%
UP
60%
18%
35%
6%
2%
Bihar
97%
1%
1%
1%
0%
All
65%
17%
12%
5%
1%
As figure 2 shows, higher the level of education, lower the number of women. The status of
education of such women was more or less similar in all the three states. Bihar had highest
percentage of illiterates- 98%, followed by Uttar Pradesh- 60% and Madhya Pradesh- 30%.
17
100%
50%
0%
Illiterate Literate
MP
UP
Primary
Bihar
All
Middle
High School & Upper
Figure 2: Educational Status of the respondents
3.2 Economic Profile
3.2.1 Income from manual scavenging
Facts revealed that a meager amount was paid to women engaged in the dreadful practice of
manual scavenging. This amount was not fixed at many places. For carrying feces of a kaccha11
toilet, a woman was paid Rs 10 to 20 in a month along with something to eat during festivals.
Calculation for monthly income revealed that most respondents earned less than Rs 2000 a
month. 43% received less than Rs 1000 a month while 56% respondents were paid between Rs
1000 to 2000 every month. Only 1% of respondents earned Rs 2000 per month and above.
State wise analysis revealed that 76% of respondents in Bihar, 34% in Madhya Pradesh and 23%
in Uttar Pradesh received less than Rs 1000 a month. 76% respondents in Madhya Pradesh, 77%
in Uttar Pradesh and 21% in Bihar received between Rs 1000 to 2000 per month. 4% of
respondents in Bihar were found to earn between Rs 2000 to 3000 every month.
11
Kaccha toilet is a toilet made up of mud, organic or local material. It has no provision of water.
18
All
Bihar
UP
MP
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
After marriage
50%
60%
70%
80%
Since childhood
Figure 3: Monthly Income from manual scavenging (Number of surveyed women in %)
3.2.2 Income from other sources
Families of 50% of respondents had no other source of income. Situation in Uttar Pradesh was
worst where just 17% of families had alternate sources of income in three categories- as
labourers, owning cattle and receiving pension. 52% of families were labourers, 16% owned
cattle and 1% received pension as extra income. It also meant that 83% of families had no other
option but to depend on a meager amount earned through scavenging.
In Madhya Pradesh, 68% families had alternative sources of income. Majority, 35% of families
worked as labourers for extra income. 31% of families had shops and other self-employment
options, 18% owned cattle while just 1% of families did farming for extra income.
Considering the situation of other sources of income of such families, Bihar seemed to be a
little better than other two states. Here, 63% of families had other sources of income. 78% of
them had shops or self-employment opportunities, 9% worked as labourers and 3% depend on
agriculture for additional income.
19
Table 6: Other income sources
State
MP
Number of families
% of families
UP
Number of families
% of families
Bihar
Number of families
% of families
Total
Number of families
% of families
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
F.
G.
H.
A
22
31%
0
0%
51
78%
73
36%
B
1
1%
0
0%
2
3%
3
1%
C
0
0%
14
21%
0
0%
14
7%
D
25
35%
21
31%
6
9%
52
25%
E
8
11%
20
30%
0
0%
28
14%
F
13
18%
11
16%
3
5%
27
13%
G
3
4%
1
1%
0
0%
4
2%
H
0
0%
0
0%
3
5%
3
1%
Total
72
67
65
204
Self-employment, shop etc.
Own agricultural land
Wages from MGNREGA
Other wages (road, construction work etc.)
Govt. job (helper/ASHA/health worker under Government schemes/teacher/nurse etc.)
Cattle
Pension
Seasonal income
All
50%
Bihar
63%
UP
17%
MP
68%
Figure 4: Percentage of families with alternative sources of income
20
Table 7: State-wise percentage of families with additional income
State
SelfAgriculture Labourer Employment Cattle
employment
In sectors
& shop
Other wages
(road,
construction
work etc.)
Pension
Other
seasonal
work
MP
UP
Bihar
All
3
states
31
00
78
36
04
01
00
02
00
00
05
01
01
00
03
01
35
52
09
32
11
30
00
14
18
16
05
13
2%
1%
12%
Shop & sel-f employment
Agriculture
32%
Labourer
Employment in various
sectors
Cattle
23%
1%
29%
Figure 5: Families with other sources of Income
21
3.2.3 Ownership of Productive Assets -Land
Only 2% families in all three states owned
land. 2% families in Madhya Pradesh and
Bihar each and 1% in Uttar Pradesh owned
land.
All
2%
Bihar
2%
Out of the 2% land owning families, 67% of
families had land patta12, but 50% had no
ownership. 31% of families inherited land
UP
1%
from their ancestors. Most of this land was
granted by the government. Just 2% of
MP
2%
families had purchased land. It is worth
noticing that the area of land of the families
involved in scavenging ranged from mere ½
to 2 ½ acres. This was the reason why the Figure 6: Percentage of families with land
families with agriculture as extra source of
income were just 1%, though 2% families had land, only 1% of them were getting some income
from it. 2% families that purchased land had it registered in the name of the male member of
the family. No purchased land was registered in women’s name.
Patta land
Purchased land
Ancestral land
2%
31%
67%
Figure 7: Sources of land of families with land
12
Land patta is a legal document for land ownership
22
3.3 Participation in Local Self-Governance
73rd and 74th Constitutional Amendment gave power and rights to people to participate in local
governance and take decisions for local development. For this purpose Gram Panchayat13 in
rural area and Municipal Corporations in urban areas are formed.
Table 8: State wise % of women participating in local governance structures
State
MP
UP
Bihar
Total
Municipal Corporations
12%
18%
11%
13%
Gram Panchayats
10%
07%
08%
9%
Gram Sabha
13
08
11
10%
Only 13% of respondents from three states accessed municipal corporation offices for their
own work. These women visited corporation offices to obtain caste certificate for their children,
signatures of government officials for scholarship related certificates, etc.
State wise analysis revealed that of the total respondents residing in urban areas, 11% in Bihar
and 12% in Madhya Pradesh accessed municipal corporations while this percentage was higher
in Uttar Pradesh where the percentage of respondents accessing municipal corporations was
18%.
Data revealed that respondent’s access to gram panchayats was quite low in all three states. Of
the total respondents residing in rural areas, only 9% accessed gram panchayats for their
personal work. It was 7% Uttar Pradesh which is the lowest, whereas in Bihar and Madhya
Pradesh it was 8% and 11% respectively.
Respondent’s participation in gram sabhas was also found to be quite low in all three states.
Only 10% of respondents from all three States participated in the gram sabhas. State wise
percentage ranged between 8% to 13%: 8% in Uttar Pradesh, 11% in Bihar and 13% in Madhya
Pradesh.
13
A Gram Panchayat is a local self-government institution at the village or small town level in India.
23
3.4 Participation in Political processes
No woman respondent reported her own participation in political processes. 8% of respondents
reported about the participation of their family members in the political processes. This
included either being member of the political party or an active worker of the party like poling
agent at the village or town level only and not at the district level.
State wise analysis showed that in Madhya Pradesh only 6% families participated in political
processes, while in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh the corresponding percentage was 8% and 10%
respectively.
uxjh; fudk;
MP
UP
Bihar
All
12%
18%
11%
13%
Figure 8: Political participation of community involved in manual scavenging
Table 9: Political participation of families of women manual scavengers
State
MP
UP
Bihar
All
Percentage of Families
06
10
08
08
24
3.5 Access to Services and Schemes
3.5.1 Access to education for children of manual scavenging families
According to the facts gathered from survey of all three States, 70% women had children below
18 years of age, who were eligible to go to school. Out of these, children of 49% of respondents
did not go to school.
State wise data showed that in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar children of 62% of respondents each
while in Madhya Pradesh children of 51% of respondents did not go to school.
Table 10: Number of respondents whose children go to school
State
Total
women
surveyed
MP
UP
Bihar
All
151
151
178
480
No. of women Women
whose
with
children children go to school
below 18 years
Number
%
107
76
71
108
41
38
121
46
38
336
163
49
% of women whose
children are deprived
of school
29%
62%
62%
51%
In all three states the total number of children below 18 years of age was 1075 wherein 531
were boys and 544 were girls. Out of the total, 50% i.e. 535 children were not going to school.
There was not much difference in percentage between boys and girls who were out of school.
In all three states 50% boys did not go to school, the corresponding percentage for girls was
49%. Uttar Pradesh had 59%, the highest percentage of children out of school while in Bihar
and Madhya Pradesh the corresponding percentage was 48% and 41% respectively.
Table 11: Details of children below 18 years who were not going to school
State
Boys
Total Not
no.
going to
school
MP
148 63
UP
181 106
Bihar
202 98
All of the 531 267
above
% of not
going to
school
43
59
49
50
Girls
Total
no.
165
164
215
544
Not
going to
school
66
98
104
268
% of not
going to
school
40
60
48
49
Boys and girl both
Total Not
no.
going to
school
313 129
345 204
417 202
1075 535
% of not
going to
school
41
59
48
50
25
3.5.2 Access to Health and nutrition
Only 25% of respondents from all three states had access to health services while 75% were
deprived of the facility. In Bihar 68% of respondents never approached government health
centers. In Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh the percentage of respondents who did not
approach government health facility was 77% and 81% respectively.
Access to health center
All
25%
MP
75%
32%
Bihar
UP
No access to health center
19%
23%
68%
81%
77%
Figure 9: Access to health centres
Their access to anganwadi centers was slightly better than health service. While mere onefourth respondents had access to government health services, 55% had access to nutrition
facility of anganwadi centers. This also means that about half of the respondents never
went to anganwadi centers. All three states had similar situation in women’s access to
anganwadi centers. 40% of respondents in Madhya Pradesh, 48% in Uttar Pradesh and 47%
in Bihar never visited anganwadi centers.
26
Access
No access
55%
All
-45%
-47%
Bihar
-48%
UP
53%
52%
60%
MP
-40%
Figure 10: Access to anganwadi centres
3.5.3 Access to PDS (public distribution system) centers
41% of respondents in all three states had no access to PDS centers where subsidized food
grains are provided by the government. Bihar fared worst where 54% of respondents were not
able to use the facility. In Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh 30% and 36% respectively were
deprived of subsidized food grains under PDS.
70%
64%
59%
46%
0
0
0
0
MP
UP
Bihar
All
0
Figure 11: Access to ration shops by women manual scavengers
27
3.5.4 Access to financial services
Out of the total surveyed women respondents in all three states, only 39% had bank account.
Table 12: State wise number of women manual scavengers with bank accounts
State
Total women surveyed
No of women with bank
accounts
% women with bank
accounts
MP
151
48
31
Bihar
178
69
39
UP
151
71
47
Total
480
188
39
Out of the 188 respondents with bank accounts, 140 had joint accounts either with husband or
other family members. Only 48% respondents had bank account in their name. Of the total
women with bank accounts, 74% had joint accounts and mere 26% had accounts in their name.
Table 13: State wise bank account details of women manual scavengers
State
Women with bank
accounts
No and % of women with
joint accounts
% women with bank
accounts
MP
48
39 (81%)
9 (19%)
Bihar
69
69 (71%)
20 (29%)
UP
71
71 (73%)
19 (27%)
Total
188
140 (74%)
48 (26%)
28
3.5.5 Access to social protection provision- wage employment, housing and
rehabilitation schemes
Access to wage employment scheme
Families of only 7% of respondents in all three states got employment under Mahatma Gandhi
National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA). State wise data showed that this
percentage was 3% in Bihar and Madhya Pradesh each while 15% in Uttar Pradesh.
Access to housing scheme
In all three states only 4% of respondents availed benefit under Indira Awas Yojna (IAY). State
wise data revealed that only 2% of respondents in Madhya Pradesh, 4% in Bihar and 7% in Uttar
Pradesh got financial support from the government for building houses under IAY.
Access to rehabilitation schemes
The benefits of the scheme Self Employment Scheme for Rehabilitation of Manual
Scavengers”(SMRS) initiated by the government to liberate and rehabilitate those engaged in
manual scavenging had not reached most of the respondents.
According to the data, only 13% of respondents in all three states were benefitted under the
scheme. 27% of respondents availed benefits in Madhya Pradesh while 9% in Uttar Pradesh and
only 4% in Bihar availed benefits under the scheme.
Table 14: State wise % of women benefitting from various schemes
State
MP
UP
Bihar
All 3 states
IAY
02
07
04
04
SMRS
27
09
04
13
MGNREGA
03
15
03
07
Rehabilitation
Housing scheme
MGNREGA
0%
5%
10%
15%
Figure
12:12:
Percentage
of women
accessing
various
schemes
Figure
Percentage
of Women
Accessing
Various
Schemes
29
4.0 Analysis and Way Forward
Through this baseline study, an effort has been made to understand the socio-economic
conditions of women engaged in the practice of manual scavenging. Focus has been to
understand the status of opportunities available and rights exercised by women from the
manual scavenging community. Along with this, theirs and their family’s situation vis a vis
various pointers of development like education, health, employment, livelihood and nutrition
has been accessed. Also their access to the various public services and government
development schemes has been gauged.
4.1 Analysis of Findings
Within this domain of enquiry, main facts that have emerged are as follows:1. Most women engaged in the practice of manual scavenging are forced to indulge in this
practice immediately after their marriage. This job has been handed down to women
from generation to generation by their mother-in-laws. In other words, a traditional
order has been created by the traditional society, where in this job is continued by being
transferred from one generation down to the next. Along with this, the area where the
woman and her family work is called as their domain, so that no one leaves her domain,
and if one is ready to give up one’s domain, then another woman of the same caste
would easily be ready to take it up. Hence it is a great challenge to break this deep
rooted age old tradition in order to uproot this practice.
2. Most the women who do this job are married. In other words, they are directed by two
kinds of authorities. One is the authority of the family, where, being a woman and a
daughter-in-law, she is forced to do this dirty job. The second is the social authority,
where the feudalistic society pressurizes her to carry on with this job. If the woman
herself wishes to be liberated or freed from this job, then the feudalistic society
pressurizes her family, and as a result, the woman will have to fight for her freedom
from this job at two levels – one at the family level, and the other at the village and
social level. It is very difficult for a woman to fight for her liberation at these two levels
in a male dominated society.
3. Most of the women engaged in the practice of manual scavenging are deprived of
education. The facts that have emerged from the presented study confirm that it was
necessary for the traditional society to keep these women uneducated in order to keep
this job going, so that on the basis of their lack of education, they could be deprived of
30
other opportunities of employment and development. In all the three states taken
together, total 82% women have not had the opportunity to go to school, though 17%
women have achieved literacy during the literacy campaign. The achievement of literacy
by these women through self-motivation is a proof that they are highly interested in
being educated, and had they got an opportunity, they would have probably got rid of
this job at the earliest and looked for better opportunities of employment.
4. Women and their families engaged in this practice of manual scavenging are living in
great poverty. The very fact that 43% families have to take care of their needs with an
income of less than Rs 1000/- and 56% have to manage with a meager income of Rs
1000 to 2000 per month shows their dire circumstances of poverty. These families have
been deprived of constant/stable means of livelihood like land. This is the reason why in
all the three states, only 1% of women have agriculture as an added source of income.
In the families of these women, a great source of added income is labour. In total, the
family members of 32% women are engaged in labour in other places. But even this job
of labour is not regular, while families of 50% of these women do not have any added
source of income.
5. The situation of the women engaged in the practice of manual scavenging with regard
to right to land is very weak. In the survey conducted for this presented baseline study,
not a single woman was found who had any land in her name, while land ownership was
found in the families of a total of 2% of these women, but in all the families, the land
was in the name of the male members. It clearly indicates that men still have control
over resource which is peculiar characteristic of male dominated society and women
manual scavengers are also victim of it.
6. These women have very less access to the local self-government. During the course of
the study, while at one hand not a single women engaged in the practice of manual
scavenging was found on any post of any Mahila Panchayat or women local city body,
on the other hand, the number of women going to these places to get their work done
or to get the benefits of the scheme was also very less. The number of women going to
the offices of the local city bodies is 13%, while the number of women going to the
Gram Panchayat is 9%. The number of women who attended the Gram Sabha meetings
was found to be only 10%. Out of those women who reached the Gram Sabha, none of
them put forward their issues. It is clear from this that the participation of these women
in the local self-government; is almost nil. Mainly, reasons of their less participation are
stigma, discrimination and practice of untouchability with them. Also, lack of education,
political awareness and support by community further restrict their participation in local
governance. Local Governance plays an important role in implementation and selection
of beneficiaries for developmental plans. Limited reach of women manual scavengers to
31
the local governance processes restricts their access to development schemes and
participation in development processes.
7. Their situation in cases of participation in political processes was also found to be very
weak. From the facts that have emerged from the study, it has been proved that the
women engaged in the practice of manual scavenging have no participation in any of
the political parties. Despite reservations for Dalit community, women from manual
scavenging community do not have any opportunity to participate. Though their families
do have some participation, but that also is limited to the families of only 8% of the
women. Those male members of the 8% families who do have some participation in the
political parties, their participation is of a very base level of a propagandist. In other
words, they do not have any role in leadership or decision making. It is clear from this
that those who belong to the community of manual scavengers have no political power
due to the caste system in the area and caste and gender based discrimination also exist
in the political parties also.
8. Not only are the women engaged in manual scavenging deprived of education, a trend
has been set to deprive their children also of education, as a result of which 50%
children who are less than 18 years of age are out of school. Out of these children, 50%
are girls. More often, these girls are asked to help their mother in manual scavenging
and domestic work which further strengthen patriarchal male dominated society.
9. According to the facts that have come to light from this study, women engaged in
manual scavenging understand the significance of education. That is why they get their
children, both girls and boys equally, enrolled in schools. But by the time they reach high
school, 50% of them automatically drop out of school, because they are not able to
complete their study in the school due to the practice of untouchability and
discriminative behavior. Also, lack of money, information and importantly a traditional
trend has been set to push their children out of the school. This is the reason why the
children of almost half the women are out of the school today.
10. Women engaged in the practice of manual scavenging are deprived of health services as
well. The reason being the practice of untouchability and discrimination faced by them
and their children. ‘Non-dalits’ never use anything touched by them. This makes it
difficult for them and their children to go to health and Anganwadi centers. In all the
three states, a total of only 23% women go to the government health centers for their
treatment and consultations regarding their health. This means that the rest 77%
depend on the private doctors for their treatment, which is not only very expensive, but
also in far off villages. The available private treatment is not of a good quality and is
risky for their health. Also, it was observed that Government Hospitals were not opened
on time and most of the time doctors were not present in the hospital.
32
11. Another fact that has come into light with this study is that these women are deprived
of nutrition and cheap ration through public distribution systems. 60% of the women
and their children do not go the anganvadi centers and the families of 50% of these
women are not able to buy cereals at a cheap rate from the controlled rate government
shop due to practice of untouchability and discriminative behavior.
12. These women and their families do not have access to the other development schemes
run by the government. The number of women who got the benefit from Indira Avas
Yojana is only 4%, whereas families of only 17% women got employment from
MGNREGA. Similarly, the benefit of the scheme initiated by the government for the
rehabilitation of those engaged in the practice of manual scavenging reached only to
13% women. Absences of transparent selection procedure under the rehabilitation
scheme and lack awareness among manual scavenging community were important
obstacles.
13. In this way, we can conclude that a large number of women engaged in the practice of
manual scavenging are deprived of the public services and the various schemes run by
the government. The reasons for their deprivation are no doubt caste based, but their
job of manual scavenging also, in itself, comes forth as a great reason in this direction.
4.2 Way Forward
Considering the enormity of the issue, it is absolutely essential that any intervention that aims
at liberation and rehabilitation of women manual scavengers adopt concerted efforts with
multi-pronged strategies intervening at multiple levels.
The project has integrated approaches directed at organizing women manual scavengers and
empowering them for reclaiming their identity, rights and dignity at the household and
community level, strengthening their capacities to engage with community, institutions and
governance processes and capacitating them to access resources and provisions for decent
livelihood and employment opportunities. This report will provide a useful basis to measure the
change in the status of women manual scavengers in project locations due to this intervention.
At the same time awareness generation and sensitization is required among the employers,
community and service providers considering it as an issue that needs greater attention and
focused interventions with affirmative actions. The success of the new legislation would depend
on effective implementation with adequate provision of resources, greater awareness
generation, adequate rehabilitation plan and packages for holistic empowerment, linkages with
other social and economic development schemes, and its regular monitoring, including by the
community.
33
Appendix – 1
Status of women engaged in scavenging based on different socio economic indicators
No. Indicators
Unit
M.P. U.P.
Bihar
Number, age and education of surveyed women
1
Total surveyed women
Number 151 151
178
2
Married women engaged in scavenging
%
89
83
85
3
Single women engaged in scavenging
%
11
17
15
4
Widowed women engaged in scavenging Number 16
20
22
5
Divorced women engaged in scavenging Number 1
1
0
6
Unmarried women engaged in
Number 0
4
4
scavenging
7
Women engaged in scavenging (below %
17
10
20
25 years)
8
Women engaged in scavenging (25 to 40 %
44
54
60
years)
9
Women engaged in scavenging (41 to 60 %
35
29
10
years)
10 Women engaged in scavenging (above %
5
7
2
60 years)
11 Women in scavenging after marriage
%
76
77
60
12 Women in scavenging since childhood
%
24
23
40
13 Women who never went to school
%
71
72
98
14 Women got literate through literacy
%
41
12
1
mission
15 Women who are illiterate
%
30
60
97
16 Women educated up to primary level
%
13
23
1
17 Women educated up to middle school
%
12
4
1
Economic status of women engaged in manual scavenging
18 Monthly income less than 1000 Rs
%
24
23
76
19 Monthly income between Rs 1000-2000 %
75
77
21
20 Monthly income between Rs 2000-3000 %
00
00
02
21 Alternative sources of income in family
%
68
17
63
22 Agriculture as alternate income source
%
01
00
03
23 Land ownership
%
02
01
02
24 Self-employment/shop
keeping
as %
31
00
78
alternative source of income
25 Labour as alternative source of income
%
35
52
09
26 Livestock/cattle rearing as alternate %
18
16
05
source of income
27 Pension as alternate source
%
05
01
00
28 Seasonal employment as alternate
%
00
00
05
income source
All 3 states
480
90
10
58
2
8
16
53
27
4
70
30
81
17
65
12
3
43
56
01
50
01
02
30
32
13
02
01
34
Status of women engaged in scavenging based on different socio economic indicators
No. Indicators
Unit
M.P. U.P.
Bihar
Women’s access to local governance and participation in political processes
29 Access to municipal corporations
%
12
18
11
30 Access to gram panchayats
%
10
07
08
31 Participation in gram sabhas
%
13
08
11
32 Participation in political processes
%
06
10
08
Women’s access to schemes and services
33 Women with bank accounts
Number 48
69
71
34 Women with joint bank accounts
Number 39
49
52
35 Women with bank accounts in their
Number 9
20
19
name
36 Women’s whose children are below 18
Number 107 108
121
years
37 Children below 18 years
Number 313 345
417
38 Children eligible but out of school
%
41
59
48
39 No access to health facilities
%
75
68
81
40 No access to anganwadi centres
%
45
47
48
41 No access to PDS/ration shops
%
30
36
54
42 Assistance availed under Indira Awas %
02
07
04
Yojna (housing scheme)- families
43 Employment availed under MGNREGA %
03
15
03
(families)
44 Assistance availed under SMRS (families) %
27
09
04
All 3 states
13
09
10
08
188
140
48
407
1075
50
77
40
41
04
17 family
members
13
35
Appendix - 2
Baseline Data on Indicators
GOAL/OUTCOME/OUTPUTs
Indicators
Baseline
Final Target Planned
Number of women liberated from
manual scavenging
0
10000 women
Number of women rehabilitated in
alternative livelihoods
0
7500 women
Number of women active in political
process (participation in Gram Sabha
meetings, raising their issues, context
the election, etc)
10% in all states.3 9000; 1 new
policy/legislations
policy/legislation
Outcome 1
Indicators
Baseline
Final Target Planned
Women manual scavengers and relevant
institutions in 15 districts are encouraged
and made aware to end manual
scavenging.
Number district free from manual
scavenging, (i.e. all women liberated
from manual scavenging)
0
10000 women from 15
districts
Output 1.1
Indicators
Baseline
Final Target Planned
Multiple stakeholders (local bodies and
community) have increased awareness
and knowledge on issues faced by
women in manual scavenging in 15
districts of Bihar, Madhya Pradesh and
Uttar Pradesh.
Number of men and women
participating in community meetings
and orientations
Number of resolutions/ statement
passed by local and community bodies
against manual scavenging in
programme districts
0
40000 people
0
50 resolutions
Outcome 1
Goal
Eradication of manual scavenging and
ensuring social, economic and political
rehabilitation of women manual
scavengers through the rights,
entitlements and holistic empowerment
in 3 States in India
36
Output 1.2
Indicators
Baseline
Final Target Planned
Women engaged in manual scavenging
have increased access to their rights and
entitlements
Number of women secure rights and
entitlements under government
schemes
11%
4000
Output 1.3
Indicators
Baseline
Final Target Planned
0
150 cases
0
45
0
200 cases registered
affecting women
Baseline
Final Target Planned
20%
7500 women
Increased access to legal support services
to women engaged in manual scavenging
in project areas.
Outcome 2
Number of cases filed in courts
regarding atrocities and violence
Number of new dignity centers
established
Number of cases registered at the
Dignity Centers
Indicators
Outcome 2
Number of women engaged in
government employment schemes,
Women
liberated
from
manual agriculture or alternative forms to
scavenging in project areas have employment
increased income and livelihood options,
Percentage increase in the average
including access to land
income of women liberated from
manual scavenging
Output 2.1
Women manual scavengers have
increased alternate livelihood
opportunities including under relevant
government schemes like NREGA, MDM,
ICDS and others
per women, per
Rs 1600 to Rs.5000 (400%
month Rs.400 to
to 500%)
Rs.1000
Indicators
Baseline
Final Target Planned
Number of women employed in
MGNREGA, Mid-Day Meal (MDM),
Integrated Child Development Service
(ICDS) and other government
employment schemes
17%
6000 women
37
Output 2.2
Indicators
Baseline
Final Target Planned
Women
liberated
from
manual
scavenging secure their rights to arable Number of women securing right to land
land
2%
2500
Output 2.3
Indicators
Baseline
Final Target Planned
Women liberated from manual
scavenging secure access to government
services and schemes
Number of women accessing relevant
government schemes
34%
6000 women
Outcome 3
Indicators
Baseline
Final Target Planned
Women manual scavengers have
strengthened collective political force in
respective districts to advocate against
manual scavenging.
Percentage increase in women’s
participation and voicing of their
opinions in Gram Sabha and village
meetings.
0%
40%
Baseline
Final Target Planned
Outcome 3
Output 3.1
CBOs formed by women liberated from
manual scavenging act as a strategic
collective political force in respective
district
Number of CBOs formed
0
15 CBOs at district level
Number of women who are part of CBOs
Number of CBOs that are actively
pursuing advocacy in their districts
0
9000 women
0
15 CBOs at district level
Output 3.2
Indicators
Baseline
Final Target Planned
Women liberated from manual
scavenging trained in better negotiation
and leadership skills
Number of women receiving leadership
training
0
120 women
Number of people using the resource kit
0
Stakeholders at 15 district,
3 state and national level
38
Outcome 4
Outcome 4
Indicators
Baseline
Final Target Planned
Strengthened government and policy
makers support in formation and
implementation of policies to ensure the
rights and entitlements of women
engaged in manual scavenging
Number of policies and resolutions on
manual scavenging that are gender
responsive.
3 (2 Policy and 1
legislation)
5 Policy/ legislation
Output 4.1
Indicators
Baseline
Final Target Planned
Government and policy makers who are Number of gender responsive guidelines
supportive of rights and entitlements of issued by government and policy makers
women manual scavengers
for women manual scavengers
0
20 Policies and Resolutions
documents
Output 4.2
Indicators
Baseline
Final Target Planned
Evidence based knowledge products on
women manual scavengers developed
and disseminated
Number of knowledge products
developed and disseminated.
0
20 reports
39
Appendix – 3
Survey Format
1. Information of person filling the survey form:
Name: …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
Signature: ……………………………………………..……………………………………………………………………..
Date of filling the form: ……………………………………….……………………………………………………….
Place: …………………………………………………………………..……………………………………………………….
2. Introduction of respondent:
Name: ……………………………………………………………………..……………………………………………………
Name of husband/father/mother: …………………………………………………………………………………
Age:
 Below 25 years
 25-40 years
 41-60 years
 Above 60 years
3. Address:
Name of the village: ……………………………………… Block: ……………………………………….
District: …………………………………………………………. State: ……………………………………….
4. Your religion
 Hindu
 Muslim
 Christian
 Sikh
 Other
5. Your caste/religion:
 Scheduled caste
 Scheduled tribe
 Backward class
 General
40
6. Your education:
 Literate
 Recently literate (can read and write a little)
 Lower primary (up to class 1)
 Upper primary (up to class 8)
 High school (up to class 10)
 Intermediate (class 12)
 Graduate (B.A.)
 Post Graduate (M.A.)
7. Marital status:
 Married
 Single
8. If single, then:
 Widowed
 Divorced or living separately
 Unmarried
9. Do you have children:
 Yes
 No
10. If yes, how many (number):
Gender
Boy
Girl
Below 18 years
Above 18 years
11. If the children are below 18 years, do they attend school?
No.
Boy
Girl
Yes
No
Not applicable
12. The status of livelihood of the woman respondant:
41
12.1 Since when are you involved in manual scavenging?
 From childhood
 After marriage
 Other………………………………………………………………..
12.2 How many households do you serve? (Number):
12.3 What is your total monthly income? (With reward):




Less than Rs 1000
Rs 1000 – 2000
Rs 2000 – 3000
Above Rs 3000
12.4 Are there other sources of your income?


Yes
No
12.5 If yes, what are they:
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
F.
G.
H.
I.
Self-employment, shop etc.
Your own agricultural land
Wages from MGNREGA
Other wages (road, construction work etc.)
Govt. job (helper/asha worker/teacher/nurse etc.)
Cattle
Pension
Seasonal income
Other …………………………………………………………………………
13. Do you have any bank account in your name?
 Yes
 No
13.1 If yes, of which kind:
 Personal
 Joint
 Collective group
42


Other …………………………………………………
Doesn’t apply
14. Do you have the right to keep all your earning?
 Yes
 No
15. Do you have any land in your name?
 Yes
 No
15.1 If yes, what kind of land?
 Ancestral
 Govt.
 Purchased
15.2 Who is the owner of the land?
 Personal
 Joint
 Collective group
 Other
 N.A.
 The right to social security
16. You and your family receive benefits of which of these social security schemes?
Name
MGNREGA
Ration
Aanganbadi
Aawasyojana
Scholarship
Rehabilitation
for families free
of manual
scavenging
Yes
No
N.A.
Don’t know
16.1 Any other scheme for the family? ………………………………………………………………….
43
17. Have you ever received benefits of these schemes personally?
Name
Yes
Nutritious food/vaccination in
aanganbadi
Indira Aawas yojana
Old age pension
Widow/single woman pension
Janani suraksha yojana
National maternity scheme
Indira Gandhi maternity scheme
Domestic violence law
Sexual violence law
Law for sexual exploitation at
workplace
No
N.A.
Don’t know
17.1 Did you ever come across discrimination or untouchability?
 Yes
 No
18. Participation in political process and relations with different institutions:
 Yes
 No
19. Are you a member of any group or organization?
 Yes
 No
19.1 If yes, what kind of group/organization?
 Savings group
 Garimaabhiyan/organization
 Other political group
 Can select more than one answer
20. Have you ever received information from any information center?
 Yes
 No
21. Have you ever utilized the right to information law?
44


Yes
No
22. Have you visited these places during the past one year?
No.
Gram
Gram
Aanganbadi School
panchayat/ Sabha
Nagar
panchayat
Yes
No
Health
center
Ration
Shop
22.1 If yes, what was the nature of your participation? You can give more than one
answer.
Just visited
Visited and raised some
issue
Visited and solved some
issue
Other
22.2 Did you ever face discrimination or untouchability at these places?
 Yes
 No
23. Do you have a pakka toilet in your house?
 Yes

23.1 If yes, who gave the construction expenses?
 You
 Some scheme
45