Bhagwat Prasad Makwana Appointed Chairperson of National Commission for Safai Karamcharis

The Department of Social Justice and Empowerment appointed Bhagwat Prasad Makwana as Chairperson of the National Commission for Safai Karamcharis (NCSK) on 6 September 2026, and he assumed charge on 9 September 2026 in New Delhi. Kaishab Bihari, a farmer from Odisha, was appointed Vice-Chairperson along with three new Members. The appointments will remain in effect until 31 March 2028, which is the remaining tenure of the present Commission.

New Leadership Takes Charge at the Commission

The National Commission for Safai Karamcharis received its new leadership in the first week of September 2026. The Department of Social Justice and Empowerment, which functions under the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, issued the orders for one Chairperson, one Vice-Chairperson and three Members. The new team assumed work at the Commission headquarters in New Delhi and will complete the tenure of the present Commission, which runs until 31 March 2028.

Bhagwat Prasad Makwana, the new Chairperson, holds a Master’s degree in Economics and has long experience in social work linked to the welfare of Scheduled Caste communities. He earlier served as Vice-Chairman and then Chairman of the Safai Karamchari Commission of Uttarakhand. He also served as an Independent Director on the Board of NHPC and as a Member of the Central Monitoring Committee set up under the Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and Their Rehabilitation Act, 2013. On taking charge, he said protection of the rights and dignity of Safai Karamcharis and improvement of their social and economic condition would be his priority.

Kaishab Bihari, the new Vice-Chairperson, also holds a Master’s degree in Economics. He is a farmer by profession from Odisha and has worked at the grassroots for the welfare of Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and other disadvantaged groups. He has held organisational roles connected to Scheduled Caste welfare and has been linked with civic and social organisations. His profile brings grassroots field experience to the Commission at a time when implementation of safety and rehabilitation schemes depends heavily on local bodies.

National Commission for Safai Karamcharis Under Which Ministry?

The National Commission for Safai Karamcharis works under the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment. The Department of Social Justice and Empowerment appoints its Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson and Members, provides its secretariat support, and receives its reports and recommendations for action.

The Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment is the nodal ministry for the welfare of socially disadvantaged groups, including Scheduled Castes, Other Backward Classes, senior citizens and persons with disabilities. The Commission functions under the Department of Social Justice and Empowerment within this ministry. The Chairperson holds the rank and status of a Union Minister of State, while the Vice-Chairperson and each Member hold the rank and status of a Secretary to the Government of India. The Commission is assisted by a Secretary in the rank of Joint Secretary along with research and administrative staff. Its headquarters are in New Delhi, with jurisdiction across India to inquire into matters linked to Safai Karamcharis and to take up grievances with central, state and local authorities.

Is NCSK a Statutory Body?

The National Commission for Safai Karamcharis is currently a non-statutory body under the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment. It was first created as a statutory body in 1994, but the parent Act lapsed in 2004, and since then its tenure has been extended through government resolutions.

The National Commission for Safai Karamcharis Act, 1993 was passed by Parliament on 4 September 1993 and came into force on 12 August 1994. The Commission was first set up on that date for three years until 31 March 1997. The validity of the Act was later extended until March 2002 and then until February 2004 through amendment Acts passed in 1997 and 2001. With the lapsing of the Act on 29 February 2004, the Commission lost its statutory status. Since then, the Union Cabinet has extended its life from time to time through resolutions. The present extension runs from 1 April 2025 to 31 March 2028, as approved by the Union Cabinet in March 2025. As a non-statutory body, the Commission does not enjoy the powers of a civil court, unlike bodies such as the National Commission for Women or the National Commission for Minorities. It can still call for information from any government, local body or other authority while discharging its functions.

Who Is a Safai Karamchari and What Is Manual Scavenging?

A Safai Karamchari means a person engaged in or employed for any sanitation work, and the term includes his or her dependants. In simple English, it covers sanitation workers such as sweepers, drain cleaners, solid waste collectors and conservancy staff employed by governments, municipalities, panchayats or private agencies.

Manual scavenging means the practice of manually removing human excreta from insanitary latrines, open drains, railway tracks, sewers or septic tanks. An insanitary latrine is a dry latrine that needs human excreta to be cleaned by hand with bare hands, brooms or metal scrapers, instead of being flushed out by water. The law also treats hazardous cleaning of sewers and septic tanks without protective gear and safety devices as a prohibited practice. This work is extremely harmful because workers face exposure to poisonous gases such as hydrogen sulphide, carbon monoxide and methane, along with the risk of infection, injury and death. The practice is closely linked to caste based discrimination, since official and survey data have repeatedly shown that a very large share of those engaged in such work belong to Scheduled Caste communities.

Legal Framework From the 1993 Act to the 2013 Prohibition Act

India’s law on manual scavenging has moved in two clear stages. The first stage focused on sanitation and dry latrines, while the second stage focused on human dignity, prohibition and rehabilitation. The NCSK sits at the centre of the second stage as the monitoring body.

The Employment of Manual Scavengers and Construction of Dry Latrines (Prohibition) Act, 1993 received the assent of the President on 5 June 1993. It prohibited the employment of manual scavengers and the construction or continuance of dry latrines, and it provided for regulation of water seal latrines. The law came into force in stages from 1997 and applied first to selected states and all Union Territories, with other states expected to adopt it. In practice, implementation remained weak. The NCSK noted in its reports that dry latrines and manual scavenging continued in several parts of the country, including in public institutions.

The Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and Their Rehabilitation Act, 2013, often called the MS Act 2013, replaced this narrow approach. It received presidential assent on 18 September 2013 and came into force on 6 December 2013. It is administered by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment. The Act prohibits the construction of insanitary latrines and the direct or indirect employment of any person as a manual scavenger. Every person so employed stands discharged from any obligation to do manual scavenging. The Act also prohibits hazardous cleaning of sewers and septic tanks without protective gear, safety devices and observance of safety precautions. Every insanitary latrine existing at the start of the Act had to be demolished or converted into a sanitary latrine by the occupier within a fixed period.

Under Section 31 of the 2013 Act, the NCSK must monitor implementation of the Act, inquire into complaints about violation and send findings with recommendations to the concerned authorities, advise central and state governments on effective enforcement, and take suo motu notice where the Act is not implemented. The District Magistrate is responsible for rehabilitation of each identified manual scavenger, while local bodies such as municipalities and panchayats must survey insanitary latrines and identify manual scavengers. The Supreme Court judgment in Safai Karamchari Andolan versus Union of India (2014), delivered on 27 March 2014, directed all states and Union Territories to fully implement the 2013 Act and ordered compensation and rehabilitation measures, including support for families of persons who died in sewer work and time bound action to end manual cleaning on railway tracks.

Core Mandate and Functions of the Commission

The mandate of the NCSK is laid down in government resolutions of 2 March 2009 and 6 March 2013, read with Section 31 of the 2013 Act. The central idea is simple. The Commission studies the condition of Safai Karamcharis, checks whether welfare schemes reach them, hears their grievances, and advises governments on what needs to change.

The Commission recommends specific programmes to the central government for removing inequality in status, facilities and opportunities for Safai Karamcharis within a time bound plan. It studies and evaluates schemes for their social and economic rehabilitation, with special attention to scavengers. It investigates specific grievances and takes suo motu notice where schemes, decisions, guidelines or laws meant to reduce hardship are not implemented. It studies working conditions linked to health, safety and wages of Safai Karamcharis employed by governments, municipalities, panchayats and other employers, and it makes recommendations for improvement. It sends periodical reports to central and state governments on difficulties faced by Safai Karamcharis. It also handles any other matter referred to it by the central government. In its monitoring role under the 2013 Act, the Commission follows up on complaints, advises on enforcement, and highlights cases of non-implementation so that corrective action can be taken quickly.

Welfare Support Through Finance Corporation and NAMASTE

The work of the Commission is closely linked to two support systems. One provides money and training for self employment. The other promotes safe and mechanised sanitation work. Together, they give practical shape to the goal of dignity and economic security.

The National Safai Karamcharis Finance and Development Corporation (NSKFDC) is a government company under the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment. It was set up on 24 January 1997 and started functioning in October 1997 as the apex body for the economic upliftment of Safai Karamcharis, scavengers and their dependants. It gives concessional loans through State Channelising Agencies, Regional Rural Banks and nationalised banks for viable income generating activities. Its schemes include Mahila Samridhi Yojana, Mahila Adhikarita Yojana, Micro Credit Finance, General Term Loan, Education Loan, Sanitary Marts Scheme, Green Business Scheme and Swachhta Udyami Yojana for purchase of sanitation vehicles and equipment. It also supports skill development training to help beneficiaries take up jobs or start small enterprises.

The National Action for Mechanised Sanitation Ecosystem (NAMASTE) was launched in July 2023 jointly by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment and the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs. NSKFDC is its implementing agency. The scheme profiles sewer and septic tank workers, provides health insurance under Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana, gives occupational safety training, supplies personal protective equipment kits and safety devices, and offers capital subsidy for sanitation vehicles and equipment. It also supports formation of self help groups and sanitation enterprises so that workers move from hazardous manual cleaning to skilled and mechanised work. In 2024 and 2025 the coverage was widened to include waste pickers, with enumeration, identity cards, safety training and support for dry waste collection centres. For the new NCSK team, faster grievance redress, enforcement of safety norms in urban local bodies and close tracking of NAMASTE and NSKFDC benefits will be the key tests.

Key Takeaways

• Bhagwat Prasad Makwana assumed charge as Chairperson of NCSK on 9 September 2026 after appointment on 6 September 2026.
• Kaishab Bihari from Odisha was appointed Vice-Chairperson, with tenure until 31 March 2028.
• Three new Members appointed are Manoj Kumar Balmiki, Sushma Gaudiyal and Ravi Ramu Kalose.
• The National Commission for Safai Karamcharis works under the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment and is currently a non-statutory body.
• The Commission was first set up on 12 August 1994 under the NCSK Act, 1993, which lapsed on 29 February 2004.
• The Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and Their Rehabilitation Act, 2013 tasks NCSK with monitoring implementation under Section 31.