About
- The National Action for Mechanised Sanitation Ecosystem (NAMASTE) Scheme was launched in 2022 as a Central Sector Scheme.
- The NAMASTE scheme is being undertaken jointly by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs and the Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment (MoSJE) and aims to eradicate unsafe sewer and septic tank cleaning practices.
Objectives
- Zero fatalities in sanitation work in India.
- All sanitation work is performed by skilled workers.
- No sanitation workers come in direct contact with human fecal matter.
- Sanitation workers are collectivized into Self Help Groups (SHGs) and are empowered to run sanitation enterprises.
- Strengthened supervisory and monitoring systems at National, State, and Urban Local Body (ULB) levels to ensure enforcement and monitoring of safe sanitation work.
- Increased awareness among sanitation services seekers (individuals and institutions) to seek services from registered and skilled sanitation workers.
Key Features of the Scheme to be Implemented in all ULBs
- Identification: NAMASTE envisages identifying the Sewer/Septic Tank Workers (SSWs).
- Occupational Training and distribution of PPE Kits to SSWs.
- Assistance for Safety Devices to Sanitation Response Units (SRUs).
- Extending Health Insurance Scheme Benefits to identified SSWs and their families under the Ayushman Bharat- Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY).
- Livelihood Assistance: The Action Plan will promote mechanization and enterprise development by providing funding support and subsidy (capital interest) to the sanitation workers, to procure sanitation-related equipment.
- IEC (Information Education and Communication) Campaign: Massive campaigns would be undertaken jointly by the ULBs & NSKFDC (National Safai Karamcharis Finance & Development Corporation) to spread awareness about the interventions of NAMASTE
National NAMASTE Management Unit
National Safai Karamchari Financial Development Corporation (NSKFDC) will be implementing an agency for NAMASTE.
The NAMASTE Scheme will operate as a joint initiative of MOSJE and MoHUA, with a dedicated national team.
- At the apex of the structure will be the National NAMASTE Monitoring Unit (NNMU) under the Managing Director, NSKFDC, which will report to the concerned Division head in the MoSJE, Government of India.
- A Technical Support Unit (TSU) consisting of a team of IT professionals, Experts in the implementation of similar programs, SHG experts, IEC experts, banking experts, etc., will be established to support the implementation of NAMASTE and facilitate coordination between MoSJE and MoHUA.
- Maximum monitoring and reporting will be on a real-time basis through a mobile app and a dedicated website.
State NAMASTE Management Unit
The State Govt. will decide on a suitable officer to be designated as State Namaste Director to head the State Namaste Management Unit (SNMU).
The officer may be from SBM, NULM, AMRUT, the ULB, or any other relevant Department of the State.
City NAMASTE Monitoring Unit
While constituting the Project Management Unit as an implementation body at the city level, the PMU would be organized in clusters of municipalities to work as the City NAMASTE Monitoring Unit (CNMU) to coincide with the SBM clusters.
The financing of the Action Plan shall be leveraged under the Schemes of MoHUA (SBM and DAY-NULM), particularly for the following interventions:
- SHG formation of core sanitation workers
- PPE procurement and distribution
- Safety devices and equipment procurement (can also be financed through NSKFDC to ULBs)
- Occupational safety training and skilling for SEPs & Duty Supervisors (can also be done through NSKFDC under SRMS)
- Providing work assurance to sanitation workers interested in availing Sanitation Related Projects.
- Interventions under AMRUT
