Determined to make Sultanpur as the first manual scavenger free district in the country, BJP MP Varun Gandhi on Monday launched training programmes for 600 scavengers in handicrafts and food items which would “ensure them alternative employment” and “ economic sustainability”.
“My experience is that to break this evil, one has to ensure alternative mode of employment and ensure its sustainability,” said 37-year-old MP from Sultanpur. He said to ensure that they do not go back to their old profession, they would be paid by him for next six-months and trained in making their products linked to handicrafts and food items.
Varun told The Pioneer that as of now scavengers would be trained in making jam, jellies, pickles and processing of organic food as also in knitting and sewing. “Most of them have picked up food items as in this areas they do not need skill training”, he said.
To ensure that that scavengers have long-term alternative employment, the products would be sold by NGOs outside Sultanpur “as here the demand is limited.” In Sultanpur there are 862 manual scavengers even as Government record shows “zero scavengers”, he said.
Varun said 600 people have died in the in the manholes in last one year while carrying out scavenging .