Sanitation workers - One of most underrated profession in India

They are not only the most underrated, but are also involved in a very deadly job.

Not only do they ensure that the garbage doesn't clog anywhere in the city, keeping it clean, they are also putting their life on line in duty. They are the soldier of cleanliness and their mortality rate is perhaps higher than most armies of the world.

Only in Mumbai, an average of 20 sewer workers die each month from accidents, suffocation or exposure to toxic gases. This is a news from my city about a month back - 2 workers die of suffocation while cleaning sewage treatment plant. There is another article depicting the deaths in the gutter in the city of Chennai. As per Dying In The Gutters, at the very least, 22,327 sanitation workers die every year cleaning sewage.

80% of these workers don't retire at 60, they die before that

And despite the huge number of deaths, these sanitation workers work without any protective gear. They are ridiculed by their employers when they ask even for pair of gloves! Their lives just seem to have no value for Indians at all.

Although it's already illegal to employ them in India as per the law passed in the year 2013, however there is a small catch. The law has still not been enforced. Not enforced not just in rural India, but also in the economic hub of Mumbai.

2 workers died in manhole in May'13 in Hyderabad

The only safety for these workers is, believe it or not, a candle. Here is the candle test which is supposed to save their lives:

1. Put a lit up candle down the manhole.
2. If the candle explodes - Don't go in, toxic gases!
3. If the candle extinguishes - Don't go in, less oxygen!
4. If the candle keeps on burning, you are good to go.

So the next time your flush works fine, do thank that dark angel covered in the filth, who is supposedly an untouchable.