India, Aug. 25 -- Mechanisation and access to affordable finance can transform sanitation work into safer, dignified and sustainable self-employment. Timely assistance enables experienced workers to acquire modern equipment, improve service delivery and secure a more stable livelihood.

Sushil Kumar Sharma, a 32-year-old resident of Ward No. 23 near Loyalka School, Rajura, Pilani, in Jhunjhunu district of Rajasthan, has experienced this transformation through the Swachhta Udyami Yojana (SUY) under the NAMASTE initiative of the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, Government of India.

A graduate with a Bachelor of Arts degree, Sushil belongs to a modest family and lives with his elderly parents. He is the principal earning member of ...