Manual scavenging: HC seeks report from local bodies to ensure they are equipped with necessary infrastructure
In this context, the court has also observed that it is incumbent that all local bodies are equipped with necessary infrastructure either on their own or by engaging a contractor who must be equipped with the necessary machines and equipment to be used by sanitation workers engaged by the local body or the contractor.
The court passed an order in this regard on July 7, while acting on a public interest litigation (PIL), seeking strict implementation of the 2013 Act in Gujarat.
The PIL was moved by an Ahmedabad-based voluntary organisation, Manav Garima, in 2016, seeking strict implementation of the Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Act, 2013, in the state. In the PIL, the petitioner had highlighted repeated incidents of death of people engaged in manual scavenging by contractors hired by the municipalities and municipal corporations as well as other local bodies across the state.
Complying with an earlier order of the court, the Commissioner of Municipalities had filed an affidavit before the court, stating that a virtual meeting was convened with the Regional Commissioners of municipalities of six zones, the Mission Director, Swachchh Bharat Mission and Deputy Commissioner (Administration) on April 30 this year wherein they were directed to strictly adhere to the guidelines issued by the state government through its Urban Housing and Urban Development department to all local bodies by a government resolution, dated April 3, 2025.
As recorded by the court in its latest order, the guidelines in the government resolution included procurement of 'certain machineries (equipment) for cleaning of drains so that the safety of safai karmi of the local bodies can be ensured.'
In its order, the court noted, 'As there is a mandate for cleaning of drains and manholes in a particular manner, there is a requirement to equip the nagarpalika, municipal corporations and other local bodies with these equipment. There is a requirement to make an inquiry as to whether the local bodies in the state are equipped to carry out the mandate of the government resolution dated 03.04.2025…'
The court order added, 'We say so, as according to us, payment of compensation, termination of contract, blacklisting of contractor and lodging of first information report against the contractor and erring officers are not a complete answer to the problem. The main issue is about absolute eradication of manual scavenging or manual sewer cleaning in the state of Gujarat by ensuring strict compliance of the provisions of the Act.'
'Once manual scavenging is completely banned, any engagement of a single person as manual scavenger is violation of the legislative prohibition. It is the duty of the executive to ensure strict implementation of the legislative provisions and in this direction, it is incumbent that all local bodies are equipped with necessary infrastructure either on their own or by engaging a contractor who must be equipped with the necessary machines and equipment to be used by safai karmi, engaged by the nagarpalika or the contractor.'
It also stated: 'We, therefore, require the Commissioner of Municipalities (Administration), Gandhinagar, to get a specific report from each of the local bodies through the concerned officer…whomsoever is in direct supervision of the local bodies to ensure that all local bodies in the state are equipped with the equipment/machineries as mandated in the government resolution dated 03.04.2025.'
The court said that after receiving reports from the officers concerned, the office of Commissioner of Municipalities has to 'compile the same and place it before the court'.
'Considering the seriousness of the issue', the court also said that the Advocate General of the State should be engaged to assist the court in the matter.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
&w=3840&q=100)
Business Standard
2 minutes ago
- Business Standard
Can Elon Musk be trusted as two cases threaten Tesla, his car company
In Miami, a Tesla driver who has admitted he was wrong to reach for a dropped cell phone moments before a deadly accident, spoke of the danger of putting too much faith in Musk's technology AP Miami Elon Musk fought court cases on opposite coasts Monday, raising a question about the billionaire that could either speed his plan to put self-driving Teslas on US roads or throw up a major roadblock: Can this wildly successful man who tends to exaggerate really be trusted? In Miami, a Tesla driver who has admitted he was wrong to reach for a dropped cell phone moments before a deadly accident, spoke of the danger of putting too much faith in Musk's technology in this case his Autopilot programme. I trusted the technology too much, said George McGee, who ran off the road and killed a woman out stargazing with her boyfriend. I believed that if the car saw something in front of it, it would provide a warning and apply the brakes. In unusual coincidence, regulators arguing an Oakland, California, case tried to pin exaggerated talk about the same Tesla technology at the centre of a request to suspend the carmaker from being able to sell vehicles in the state. Musk's tendency to talk big whether its his cars, his rockets or his government costing-cutting efforts have landed him in trouble with investors, regulators and courts before, but rarely at such a delicate moment. After his social media spat with President Donald Trump, Musk can no longer count on a light regulatory touch from Washington. Meanwhile, sales of his electric cars have plunged and so a hit to his safety reputation could threaten his next big project: rolling out driverless robotaxis hundreds of thousands of them in several US cities by the end of next year. The Miami case holds other dangers, too. Lawyers for the family of the dead woman, Naibel Benavides Leon, recently convinced the judge overseeing the jury trial to allow them to argue for punitive damages. A car crash lawyer not involved in the case, but closely following it, said that could cost Tesla tens of millions of dollars, or possibly more. I've seen punitive damages go to the hundreds of millions, so that is the floor, said Miguel Custodio of Los Angeles-based Custodio & Dubey. It is also a signal to other plaintiffs that they can also ask for punitive damages, and then the payments could start compounding. Tesla did not reply for a request for comment. That Tesla has allowed the Miami case to proceed to trial is surprising. It has settled at least four deadly accidents involving Autopilot, including payments just last week to a Florida family of a Tesla driver. That said, Tesla was victorious in two other jury cases, both in California, that also sought to lay blame on its technology for crashes. Lawyers for the plaintiffs in the Miami case argue that Tesla's driver-assistance feature, called Autopilot, should have warned the driver and braked when his Model S sedan blew through flashing lights, a stop sign and a T-intersection at 62 miles-an-hour in an April 2019 crash. Tesla said that drivers are warned not to rely on Autopilot, or its more advanced Full Self-Driving system. It say the fault entirely lies with the "distracted driver" just like so many other accidents since cellphones were invented. Driver McGee settled a separate suit brought by the family of Benavides and her severely injured boyfriend, Dillon Angulo. McGee was clearly shaken when shown a dashcam video Monday of his car jumping a Key West, Florida, road and hitting a parked Chevrolet Tahoe which then slammed into Benavides and sent her 75 feet through the air to her death. Asked if he had seen those images before, McGee pinched his lips, shook his head, then squeaked out a response, No. Tesla's attorney sought to show that McGee was fully to blame, asking if he had ever contacted Tesla for additional instructions about how Autopilot or any other safety features worked. McGee said he had not, though he was heavy user of the features. He said he had driven the same road home from work 30 or 40 times. Under questioning he also acknowledged he alone was responsible for watching the road and hitting the brakes. But lawyers for the Benavides family had another chance to parry that line of argument and asked McGee if he would have taken his eyes off the road and reached for his phone had he been driving any car other than a Tesla on Autopilot. McGee responded, I don't believe so. The case is expected to continue for two more weeks. In the California case, the state's Department of Motor Vehicles is arguing before an administrative judge that Tesla has misled drivers by exaggerating the capabilities of its Autopilot and Full Self-Driving features. A court filing claims even those feature names are misleading because they offer just partial self-driving Musk has been warned by federal regulators to stop making public comments suggesting Full Self-Driving allows his cars to drive themselves because it could lead to overreliance on the system, resulting in possible crashes and deaths. He also has run into trouble with regulators for Autopilot. In 2023, the company had to recall 2.3 million vehicles for problems with the technology and is now under investigation for saying it fixed the issue though it's unclear it has, according to regulatory documents. The California case is expected to last another four days. (Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Time of India
12 minutes ago
- Time of India
Missing girl's dad made chilling ‘white van' claim before 9-year-old's body found as ‘inconsistent' timeline exposes truth
Officials said Monday, July 21, that Luciano Frattolin , a father who reported his daughter missing while on vacation in the United States, was charged with second-degree murder and concealing of a corpse. Luciano, 45, called the police on Saturday to report that 9-year-old Melina may have been kidnapped near Lake George, New York. Explore courses from Top Institutes in Select a Course Category Project Management Cybersecurity Technology MCA Public Policy Finance healthcare Leadership Digital Marketing PGDM MBA Operations Management others Artificial Intelligence Data Analytics Design Thinking Management Degree Data Science Product Management Others Healthcare CXO Data Science Skills you'll gain: Portfolio Management Project Planning & Risk Analysis Strategic Project/Portfolio Selection Adaptive & Agile Project Management Duration: 6 Months IIT Delhi Certificate Programme in Project Management Starts on May 30, 2024 Get Details Skills you'll gain: Project Planning & Governance Agile Software Development Practices Project Management Tools & Software Techniques Scrum Framework Duration: 12 Weeks Indian School of Business Certificate Programme in IT Project Management Starts on Jun 20, 2024 Get Details Also read: Melina Frattolin death: how New York cops found girl's body after father Luciano's account and timeline sh by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Play War Thunder now for free War Thunder Play Now Undo After Melina was discovered dead in a nearby town, inside a pond, an Amber Alert was issued for the girl, however it was cancelled. When she was discovered, Luciano "was suspected of having visited" the location. Live Events Luciano's strained ties with Melina's mom At a press conference Monday morning, Captain Robert A. McConnell of the New York State Police said that Luciano and the girl's mother had been at odds since 2019 and that the mother had full custody of Melina. Melina had called her Montreal-based mother just before she passed away to let her know that the two of them were headed home. According to McConnell, "the child did not appear to be under any duress and appeared to be in good health." "The investigation has found that Mr. Frattolin allegedly murdered Melina and left her body in a remote area, where she was later found by law enforcement, sometime after Melina called her mother and before he called 911." Authorities say the man said he had stopped in a parking lot to urinate and then went back to the car, but Melina was not there. Also read: What happened to Melina Galanis Frattolin? Everything we know so far about the missing 9-year-old found de White van used to coerce child, says 'dad' "Initial reports from Mr. Frattolin of a suspicious white van in the area of the alleged disappearance was proven to be untrue," McConnell stated. Later, the chief disclosed that Luciano had stated that she had been coerced into the van by two unidentified men. "That lead was thoroughly investigated and disproven," he stated. The state police were "working tirelessly to hold those responsible fully accountable," according to a post made by New York Governor Kathy Hochul on Sunday night. NY Gov. Kathy Hochul makes statement about case "Lake George has broken the news. She wrote on X, "We're grieving the loss of 9-year-old Melina Frattolin . "There is no ongoing threat to the public at this time." Timeline of Melina Frattolin's murder Authorities released a detailed timeline following the death of Melina Frattolin. July 19, 5:30 p.m. – Melina is captured on surveillance cameras with her father, Luciano, in Saratoga Springs, New York. July 19, 6:30 p.m. – Melina speaks to her mother and mentions they are heading back home to Canada. July 19, 10:00 p.m. – Luciano contacts 911 to report a possible abduction. July 20, early morning – An Amber Alert is issued for Melina. July 20, 1:50 p.m. – A body is discovered in a shallow section of a pond in Ticonderoga, New York. Source: New York State Police According to authorities, Luciano had no past criminal history, including domestic violence, and the cause of the girl's death will be disclosed after the autopsy is completed. "We were informed that she had passed away while I was in the command post. "It was really emotional and challenging," he added. "At that point though, the best we could do is provide some measure of justice to the family and we are just fortunate we're able to do that in this case." Also read: Who is Luciano Frattolin? The grieving father at the heart of the Melina Frattolin tragedy Since the beginning of their journey on July 11, the two have been touring the United States, stopping in destinations like New York City and Connecticut. According to the police, Melina's mother didn't worry for her when she was with her father. It is anticipated that Luciano would face charges in New York.
Mint
32 minutes ago
- Mint
Coldplay concert cheating scandal: Why HR executive Kristin Cabot hasn't been fired yet
Kristin Cabot, the Chief People Officer at US-based data science company Astronomer, is at the centre of a viral scandal involving the company's now-former CEO Andy Byron, but she has not yet been sacked from her role, despite growing public pressure. According to a New York Post report, legal experts suggest that firing her might not be as straightforward as it seems. The controversy erupted after Coldplay frontman Chris Martin called out Cabot and Byron from the stage at a recent concert at Gillette Stadium, Boston, with the duo allegedly caught 'canoodling' on the jumbotron. The moment went viral online and led to Byron's swift resignation. Cabot, however, has only been placed on leave while an internal investigation is underway. While the company confirmed the probe, it has remained tight-lipped about Cabot's employment status. Lawyers cited by the New York Post suggest that this may be due to potential legal and contractual liabilities, particularly since Cabot leads the HR department. 'In a real-world big company, you can't just fire someone because the headlines are ugly,' attorney Nicole Brenecki told The Post, noting that any decision would likely involve careful legal vetting, internal reviews, and possibly even exit negotiations. Cabot, who joined Astronomer in November 2024, has not publicly commented on the incident. Both she and Byron are reportedly married to other people, according to their social media activity, adding a personal layer to the workplace scandal. Pete DeJoy, Astronomer's interim CEO and co-founder, acknowledged the intense scrutiny in a LinkedIn post, calling the attention 'surreal' for the company. 'While I would never have wished for it to happen like this, Astronomer is now a household name,' he wrote. As for Cabot's future at the company, attorney William Cafaro believes discussions around her exit may already be underway. 'It's difficult to conceive how she could continue in her current role,' he said, adding that, from a legal standpoint, her public involvement with the CEO could constitute cause for termination. However, other lawyers noted that unless the relationship was non-consensual or involved coercion, it's unlikely that Cabot could file a sexual harassment complaint — even though Byron was her superior. 'Being embarrassed on a jumbotron isn't the same as being harassed at work,' Brenecki said. Attorney Douglas Wigdor pointed out that more information about the relationship could still surface. 'Maybe there's more to the story from her,' he said, adding that the brief video clip from the concert doesn't provide enough context. The final decision on Cabot's employment may rest on the outcome of the internal inquiry, and whether the HR department had previously approved or overlooked the relationship.
