Union Minister of State for Social Justice and Empowerment Manikrao Gavit has said that the practice of manual scavenging is a blot on a civilized society and it should be banned immediately.

He was reviewing the implementation of the law banning manual scavenging and for rehabilitation of people involved in such work in Chhattisgarh a day earlier.

State Minister for Tribal and Scheduled Caste Development Kedar Kashyap said that normally manual scavenging is not in practice in Chhattisgarh and the State Government had been making serious efforts to rehabilitate those who were involved in this profession. He said that three woman employees engaged in the job in Mungeli municipality were relieved from it and rehabilitated.

Union Minister Gavit on the occasion gave away certificates of `40,000 each meant for the rehabilitation to the three woman employees.

State School Education Minister Kedar Kashyap said that the State Government, through PHED, has launched Nirmal Bharat Abhiyan, under which clean toilets have been constructed in many villages. The Central government had awarded such 817 villages with Nirmal Gram Puraskar.

He said that in the urban areas of the State, the urban Administration Dpartment has been constructing clean toilets and community

lavatories.

Under the IlCS scheme, more than 10500 toilets had been constructed in six municipalities, whereas, sanction has been given for the construction of 278 public toilets in different municipal corporation areas in the state.

The Minister hoped that Chhattisgarh would be free from manual scavenging soon.