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‘Timely compensation most important,’ Bombay HC tells state govt on pending relief to deceased manual scavengers’ kin

The bench also sought to know from the state government whether compensation had been paid to the family of a man who was electrocuted in June 2023 while cleaning a drain in Kalyan in Thane district.

3 min readMumbaiUpdated: Jan 17, 2026 10:23 PM IST

The court sought suggestions from the workers’ union on the “practical implementation” of guidelines aimed at preventing manual scavenging and on measures for rehabilitation of injured workers. (File Photo enhanced using Google Gemini)

The Bombay High Court on Thursday told the Maharashtra government that it was “most important” to ensure timely payment of compensation to the families of manual scavenging workers who died on duty, after it was informed that 12 such compensation cases were pending in the state.

“We find that the conundrum is not as to who will pay the compensation, as it is now clear that the State Government will bear the compensation, and it is entitled to recover it from the erring Contractor, but what is most important is the award of timely compensation to the legal heirs of the scavengers, who have lost their lives,” a bench of Justices Bharati H Dangre and Manjusha A Deshpande observed.

The court sought suggestions from the workers’ union on the “practical implementation” of guidelines aimed at preventing manual scavenging and on measures for rehabilitation of injured workers.

The bench also sought to know from the state government whether compensation had been paid to the family of a man who was electrocuted in June 2023 while cleaning a drain in Kalyan in Thane district. The petitioner union sought registration of an FIR and an inquiry into alleged violations by civic officials and the contractor involved.

Also Read | From Manusmriti to British Empire: what history tells us about the practice of manual scavenging in India

The bench was hearing a plea filed by Shramik Janata Sangh, a trade union, which cited three deaths, including that of Ritik Kurkute, who died while engaged in manual scavenging by M/s Pawani Enterprises, a contractor for the Kalyan-Dombivli Municipal Corporation (KDMC).

Advocate Sudha Bharadwaj, appearing for the petitioner union, argued that the deaths highlighted serious concerns regarding the safety of manual scavengers and the implementation of the Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and Their Rehabilitation Act, 2013. She sought rehabilitation and Rs 30 lakh compensation for Kurkute’s family in line with past Supreme Court judgments, and also sought an inquiry into his death.

The union further raised concerns over the lack of safety equipment for workers and the absence of safety tests conducted by contractors before workers were asked to enter nullahs.

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In response, Additional Government Pleader O A Chandurkar placed on record a November 18, 2025 report submitted by the state to the Union Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, along with a document detailing state-wise deaths and compensation paid between 1993 and October 31, 2025.

The High Court noted that while 12 compensation cases were pending in Maharashtra, no compensation had been paid in 11 of them.

The court was also informed that 1,327 manual scavenging workers had died across the country between 1993 and October 31, 2025.

Chandurkar sought time to obtain instructions from officials on whether compensation had been paid to Kurkute’s family, which the court granted.

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The bench also asked the state government to incorporate feasible suggestions made by the petitioner and senior advocate Gayatri Singh to safeguard the interests of manual scavengers and posted the matter for further hearing on February 5.