The Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment has reported significant progress under the National Action for Mechanized Sanitation Ecosystem (NAMASTE) Scheme, which aims to improve working conditions and dignity for sanitation workers across India. As of September 22, the scheme has validated nearly 90,000 sewer and septic tank workers and identified over 2,51,000 waste pickers for support and protection.
What has been achieved so far
Under the sewer and septic tank workers component, NAMASTE has reached all 36 States and Union Territories. The validated workforce of 90,186 includes 86,468 men, 3,713 women and five transgender persons. The scheme has distributed over 87,000 personal protective equipment kits and 753 emergency response safety equipment sets to workers.
Training and health coverage have been prioritized. The Ministry has completed 27,034 health insurance enrollments, conducted 5,449 occupational training programmes and held 1,841 workshops for sewer and septic tank workers. Under the mechanization support scheme known as Swachhta Udyami Yojana, 983 workers have received capital subsidies totalling Rs 34.16 crore to purchase equipment.
The waste picker component has profiled 2,51,756 workers across 34 States and Union Territories. This group includes 1,35,233 men, 1,16,498 women and 25 transgender persons. For waste pickers, 7,526 health insurance enrollments have been completed, with 17 training providers and 33 resource organizations helping with implementation.
What this means for you
If you work as a sewer cleaner, septic tank worker or waste picker, the NAMASTE Scheme offers you protective equipment, occupational health training, health insurance coverage and financial support to buy mechanized tools that reduce manual labour. The scheme recognizes your work as essential to public health infrastructure and provides both immediate safety protections and longer-term livelihood support through skill training and access to mechanization subsidies. Implementation is being managed by the National Safai Karamcharis Finance and Development Corporation.