A bench of justices Badar Durrez Ahmed and Sanjeev Sachdeva said there has been no improvement in the plight of the manual scavengers as the municipal authorities till date have not carried out the survey in the manner prescribed under the Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Act of 2013.
"Even after enactment of the Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Act of 2013, it appears that plight of persons engaged in manual scavenging in Delhi has not improved.
The court said three municipal corporations, New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) and Delhi Cantonment Board (DCB) "have not conducted the survey as contemplated under the Act".
"That is the first step in as much as rehabilitation of persons identified as manual scavengers will only follow, after final list of manual scavengers is published.
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"Package of rehabilitation would be meaningless unless and until list of manual scavengers is prepared. That first step of preparing final list has not been undertaken,"it said.
The court also directed the MCDs, NDMC, DCB and Railway authorities to furnish a report with regard to construction of adequate sanitary community latrines as stipulated under the Act, saying these had to be constructed within three years from commencement of the Act in December 2013.
The court's order came on a PIL filed in 2007 seeking rehabilitation of manual scavengers.
The court in its order also noted that the municipal bodies as well as other authorities like the Railways have not carried out survey of insanitary latrines as stipulated under the Act.