91.9% of the 38,000 workers profiled so far belong to Scheduled Caste (SC), Scheduled Tribe (ST), or other backward class (OBC) communities.
Of the profiled workers, 68.9% were SC, 14.7% were OBC, 8.3% were ST, and 8% were from the general category.
Between 2019 and 2023, at least 377 people across the country have died from hazardous cleaning of sewers and septic tanks.
The profiling of sewer and septic tank workers (SSWs) is being carried out by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment as part of its NAMASTE programme.
This scheme aims to mechanise all sewer work and prevent deaths due to hazardous cleaning work.
In 2023-24, this scheme was brought in to replace the Self-Employment Scheme for Rehabilitation of Manual Scavengers (SRMS).
Twelve States and UTs have completed the profiling process, while the exercise is still underway in 17 States.
Tamil Nadu and Odisha are running their own programmes for SSWs, and are not reporting data to the Centre under this programme.
Of the identified manual scavengers of 43,797, 97.2% of them were from the SC communities.
The share of STs, OBCs, and others were each around 1%.