NAMASTE scheme is a Central Sector Scheme launched by the Government of India to eliminate hazardous manual scavenging and ensure the safety, dignity, and social security of sanitation workers, especially those cleaning sewers and septic tanks.

Launch

• Launched in 2022 (approved in the Union Budget 2022–23) as a joint initiative of the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment (MoSJE) – nodal ministry and the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA)

Objectives

• Achieve zero fatalities in sanitation work in India.
• Ensure sanitation workers have no direct contact with human faecal matter.
• Promote 100% mechanised cleaning of sewers and septic tanks.
• Provide alternative sustainable livelihoods and entrepreneurship opportunities to sanitation workers.
• Strengthen occupational safety, skill development, and social security for sanitation workers.

Implementation

• Implementing Agency: National Safai Karmacharis Finance Development Corporation (NSKFDC) under MoSJE.
• Implementation Area: Initially targeted at 500 cities notified under the AMRUT scheme; the process is underway to extend it to all Urban Local Bodies (ULBs).
• Duration & Outlay: Approved for four years: 2022–23 to 2025–26.

Source: The Hindu