The Annihilation of Manual Scavenging in India

Abstract

Justice, social, economic and political; [...] are the words enshrined in the Preamble of the Indian Constitution. Regrettably, the quotidian engagement by the lower castes in manual scavenging punctures the high ideals of our constitution. Meena Gopal notes that “manual scavenging is the worst manifestation of the ideology engendered by the caste system, while also being a highly gendered occupation.” In intersectional feminism, it is important to scrutinise this practice as it mixes class, caste and gender in an oppressive manner. The paper hopes to open the debate to eliminate this practise from a feminist standpoint.