The right to sanitation in India: Realisation of what?

In the context of recent degeneration in manual scavengers in Uttar Pradesh, India, where women are forced to undergo uterus removal surgery to perform efficiently at work, this article investigates what precisely realisation of the right to sanitation in India entails. It reviews the existing literature and finds that there is a narrow conception of sanitation as an infrastructure provision that influences the conceptualisation of sanitation as a right in India. The limited understanding of sanitation impacts the livability outcomes of the individuals, specifically the Dalit manual scavengers who are subjected to insufferable circumstances. The paper argues that the evaluation of the realisation of sanitation as a right is comprehensively achieved by deploying Amartya Sen's conception of justice, given its compatibility with the human rights framework. It concerns with the reduction of human suffering. It assesses individual well-being by focusing on expanding people's freedoms and opportunities to live a life of dignity.