This book attempts to delineate certain facets of the practice of manual scavenging in India by understanding how the concept and need for 'cleanliness' can be historically traced from its functionality within the caste system, to its consumption in the modern political economy. This book also probes into the relation between work and democracy, by including the 'rational' choice of work within the premise of political participation. As a focus of ethical activism, this book also addresses issues of pathology evident from the inability of different state regimes to put an end to this practice...