New Delhi: Four people reportedly died after falling into a septic tank in Uttar Pradesh’s Kushinagar district on Sunday (May 29).According to ETV Bharat, 45-year-old Nandkumar was hired to clean a septic tank in Ramnagar village. While cleaning, he fell in and was trapped inside, at which his 25-year-old son Nitesh rushed to help him. Nitesh too was trapped inside the tank.Their family then called for help, and three other men tried to get them out. They too fell in and were trapped in the septic tank. The five were pulled out when the police reached the spot, the report says.Nandkumar, Nitesh, 40-year-old Dinesh and 22-year-old Anand were declared dead, according to ETV Bharat.The rules under the Employment as Manual Scavengers Act and their Rehabilitation Act 2013 state that you cannot hire a person to manually clean a septic tank, and there are specific safety measures that must be employed while cleaning. Workers are supposed to be provided with adequate safety gear to ensure such accidents do not occur, and sucking and jetting machines are supposed to be used for the cleaning.Despite 10 years having passed since this law came into being, news of septic tank deaths is still commonplace in India. Often, those responsible – where contractors or owners of the septic tanks – are not held to account. The Safai Karamchari Andolan has been raising this issue relentlessly, and alleging that systemic oppression under the caste system (manual scavengers come from the lowest castes) has meant that these deaths are not taken seriously and the law not implemented.