Ragpickers in India

Thousands of people, mainly women and children in India are forced, by chance of fate, to work picking through rubbish to collect recyclable waste to make a living. Known as ‘ragpickers’, these people go to the city dump or rubbish bins on the streets to collect tin, paper, metal, or glass that can be resold to scrap dealers. Without gloves or boots, they have to trawl through hazardous mounds of rubbish to find anything that could be recycled.

The sad reality of the levels of poverty in India is that abolishing ragpicking is not an option. Comic Relief Australia is working to support these people, to gain access to healthcare, education and protection from harassment from police and security guards. We also support them by lobbying local government and the local communities to help the ragpickers gain access to better working conditions.



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