Social Entrepreneurship and Developing Skills as Mechanisms for Eradicating Manual Scavenging

Abstract: Manual scavenging remains as one of the worst human rights violations in India even though laws exist to protect people from it and the Constitution ensures their safety. The analysis in this document evaluates social entrepreneurship together with skill development as operational tools to eliminate this dark practice. The research investigates state-supported rehabilitation initiatives through Self Employment Scheme for Rehabilitation of Manual Scavengers (SRMS) and NAMASTE scheme that focus on alternative livelihood opportunities through financial backup and skills development. The paper demonstrates community entrepreneurship and Bandicoot robotic capabilities which combine to eliminate manual work through automation and create respectable employment opportunities for previous scavengers. Apart from NGOs and cooperatives the study examines their efforts to draw community involvement and provide psychosocial support. This research based on socio-legal principles through field investigations demonstrates economic training together with business establishment provides viable alternative income while confronting caste-based power systems that preserve manual scavenging. Finding show that enforceable laws must merge with inclusive policy frameworks and local problem-solving initiatives to sever the fundamental bases of this practice. The paper ends by suggesting ways to expand these models through cooperation between public and private organizations.

Keywords: Manual Scavenging, Social Entrepreneurship, Technological Innovation, Skill Development, Rehabilitation and Empowerment