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Welcome to Safai Sena

Who Are We?

Safai Sena means An Army of Cleaners. We are a registered group of waste pickers, doorstep waste collectors, itinerant and other small buyers, small junk dealers, and other types of recyclers. Safai Sena's vision is that adult waste handlers must be able to upgrade their work to green jobs, which means that apart from being good for the environment, our work should be safe, respected recognized and clean for us. Our dream is also for our children to go to school instead of becoming waste pickers.

Why Did We Organize?

We organized to advocate for our vision to become a reality and in order to be acknowledged as important urban actors by the government, by the public and by those who manufacture materials that end up becoming waste. We believe that by organizing, we have a voice that can be heard louder and by more people, in our own cities and across the country, as well as globally, where over 20 million people like us work as recyclers.

Our Brief History

Safai Sena is a newer name for an older association. We came together as a group called RSSS, or Rashtriya Safai Seva Sangathan. However, we were frequently confused for another, better known organization with which we have no links. Besides, many members felt it was not a good name even otherwise. Therefore, we agreed upon another name. The RSSS began in 2001. Safai Sena registered itself in 2009, after over 2 years of struggling with the government, because our name was not initially acceptable to the Registrar of Societies.

Why is This Page in English?

This website is in Hindi and in English. Safai Sena wanted a website where we can tell you about our work, about us and a means by which you could learn about waste recyclers and their work in general. Our website is made to help the public to understand us better, and to learn about why we are important. That is why it is in English as well as Hindi. We also hope that since we cannot meet you face to face, we can still talk to you via our website.