ABOUT THE PROJECT: In this episode of Insider’s hit series “Risky Business”, Insider takes viewers to India and Pakistan to follow the individuals who risk their lives to dive into sewers filled with toxic waste to unclog pipes. What Insider found was that many workers were discriminated against and stuck in these dangerous, low-paying jobs because of a centuries-old caste system. In Delhi, Parmeshwar is our guide. He has cleaned the sewers of one India's largest and most polluted cities for most of his life. He cannot afford any PPP so he uses his bare hands and a pole. This line of work was thrust upon his family for generations because of the Hindu caste system, which determines his hierarchical place within society and thus his future. As a Dalit, Parmeshwar is at the very bottom. For centuries, people like him were not only treated like outcasts but forced to work in the least desirable jobs. 'I’m helpless that I can’t even fight against them', said Parmeshwar. Despite India abolishing the caste system in 1950, Dalits, who make up a quarter of the population, are still stuck in these roles because of prevalent caste-based discrimination. In neighboring Pakistan, Hindus face similar issues even though they are a minority. Some have even converted to Christianity to try to escape this cycle. Insider followed Anil and Raju who showed us how they clean the sewers of Karachi, a city with a population of 20 million people. While the cleaners are jaded to the physical dangers of the job, the stigma and discrimination they face everyday is a bigger hurdle. Parmeshwar's wife Bhumika said, "If a man works in an office, then people respect his wife as well because of the job. I feel embarrassed when I discuss his work, because people feel disgusted that he cleans gutters." To produce a story with so much cultural nuance, Insider tapped local videographers in India and Pakistan to interview and follow our subjects for a few days, documenting the extreme conditions of their livelihood. In India, freelancer Bhaavan Goswami's shoot proved to be very challenging because the Indian government was cracking down on, and even arresting, sewer cleaners during the pandemic because the virus had shown up in the wastewater systems. Parmeshwar had to stop working for a period and the shoot was postponed. But they stayed in touch and as soon as Parmeshwar was back to work, shooting continued. The episode garnered over 1.5 million views to date and many messages from viewers on how they could help individuals like Parmeshwar. As a result, our freelancer in India arranged for people to directly submit their donations to him. While these gestures won’t solve the long-term issue at hand, they demonstrate that viewers are grappling with the traumatizing and discriminatory realities faced by so many of their fellow humans and are being spurred to do something about it.

Judge’s comments: Insider’s “How Sewer Diving Became One of The Most Dangerous Jobs In India and Pakistan” is ten minutes of action packed and effective storytelling. The judges liked that Insider highlighted this story and the care and dignity afforded to the main characters. The story was very well produced, not only filming the deadly work itself but also filming in the character’s homes and across languages, countries, and contexts of the ethnic and religious backgrounds of these communities. We saw the threats to the character’s life expectancy, safety and the social impacts on his family. The use of graphics was particularly effective and far beyond the creativity of other video submissions. It was executed flawlessly.

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