Supreme Court issues contempt notices to 15 State Chief Secretaries
Babushai Bureau
New Delhi, July 28, 2026: The Supreme Court on Monday issued contempt notices to the chief secretaries of 15 states, including Delhi and Punjab, for failing to prevent deaths caused by manual scavenging despite its 2023 directive banning the practice.
A Bench comprising Justices Aravind Kumar and Vipul M. Pancholi expressed serious concern over the continued deaths of workers entering sewers and septic tanks, observing that such incidents were occurring despite clear directions issued on October 20, 2023, to eliminate manual scavenging.
The court took note of government data placed before Parliament in March, which recorded 165 sewer and septic tank deaths across 15 states. The figures included 65 deaths in 2023, 54 in 2024, and 46 in 2025. The court was also informed that around 100 deaths occurred during 2024-25, while unverified reports suggested that more than 100 such deaths may have already taken place this year.
Issuing notices, the Bench directed the chief secretaries to explain within four weeks why contempt proceedings should not be initiated against them for alleged wilful disobedience of the court's earlier order.