Waste Pickers

Context: On March 1, International Waste Pickers Day, waste pickers across the world will pay homage to fellow pickers who were murdered in Colombia in 1992.

About waste pickers

• According to the Solid Waste Management Rules (SWM), 2016: “informal waste collectors” includes individuals, associations or waste-traders who are involved in sorting, sale and purchase of recyclable materials. 
• SWM 2016 define a “waste picker” as a person informally engaged in the collection and recovery of reusable and recyclable solid waste from the source of waste generation to sale of waste to recyclers directly or through intermediaries. 
• The Periodic Labour Force Survey 2017-18 indicates that there are nearly 1.5 million waste pickers within India’s urban workforce, with half a million being women.
• It is estimated that India generates 65 million tonnes of waste each year.
• On average, an individual waste picker collects between 60 kg to 90kg of waste a day in an eight to 10 hour span of time.
• High-Power Committee on Solid Waste Management by the Planning Commission, 1995 called for integration of rag-pickers into the formal system.
• Solid Waste Management Rules and Plastic Waste Management Rules, 2016, recognise the contribution of rag-pickers and hold that they be included in the solid waste management of local bodies.

Challenges faced by waste pickers in India

• Exposed to occupational hazards: They are potentially exposed to a wide range of occupational hazards like gastrointestinal ailments, dermatological and respiratory issues, as community waste bins and dumpsites act as breeding grounds for various bacterial and viral diseases.
• Least rewarding job: It is widely recognised that the informal sector engaged in waste collection and sorting carries out the most labour-intensive and least rewarding job of recovering recyclable materials from unsegregated waste.
• Socially existential precarity: They are treated as dirty and unwanted elements of society, and they have to deal with exploitative social behaviour. 
• Lack access to sanitary and healthcare facilities: While the wages and living conditions of different strata of informal waste-workers differ greatly, a majority of them (street waste-pickers) work and live in hazardous conditions. They typically lack access to sanitary and healthcare facilities.
• Exclude from social security schemes: They are not covered under any labour legislation. As a result, they do not benefit from social security and medical insurance schemes. They have not been included in any disaster management plan of the administration, leaves them without support during any emergency situation. 
• Lack of centralised data: Has hindered the development of programs and policies to support Safai Saathis.
• Poor access to financing: Out of the total Safai Saathis, surveyed, who had a bank account, only 20% were linked to the Jan Dhan Yojana.
• Obstructions in Formalisation: More than 90% of the workers reported owning an Aadhaar card - in line with broad national trends, but only a tiny subset owned an income, caste, or occupation certificate. This thwarts any attempts at formalising their work and limits their access to government social security schemes.

Way forward

• Comprehensive laws: There is lack of clear and comprehensive laws and policies to protect the rights of waste-pickers in India. There is an urgent need to frame and implement a uniform waste-picker welfare law that recognises and integrates them into the waste management chain.
  • The law must include basic provisions related to mandatory identity cards; access to waste for collection, segregation, and sorting; PPE to minimise occupational hazards; right to basic necessities like water, sanitation and facilities for clean living; and health insurance.
• Exploring alternatives and skill enhancement: Exploring technology-led circular economy models to eliminate hazardous manual work. 
• Formalisation of waste pickers: Allowing them access to designated collection and compaction stations such as transfer stations and material recovery facilities within a city for sorting recyclables.
  • Registering Safai Saathis with Urban Local Bodies (ULBs): Issue ID cards to them as municipal workers.
• Addressing social and economic upliftment: Ensuring access to subsidized food grains through initiatives like One Nation One Ration Card scheme. Focus on building resilience, expanding social protection, and creating opportunities for dignified livelihoods.