Young Innovator Builds Lifesaving Device for Sanitation Workers

In a bid to make sewer cleaning safer and prevent tragedies caused by toxic fumes, a young student has created a device that could transform how sanitation workers assess underground spaces.

School student Arth Patel has built an IoT-enabled ‘Smart Stick’ designed to detect hazardous gases before workers step into sewers or septic tanks. Developed under the guidance of Parth Shah and Priyam Parikh from Anant National University, the device brings together affordability, practicality, and real-time monitoring.

Government records show the urgency of such an innovation. Between 2019 and 2023, at least 377 sanitation workers died from exposure to poisonous sewer gases. The National Commission for Safai Karamcharis earlier reported 282 deaths between 2016 and 2019, and in Haryana alone, 17 workers died in 2022 during manual cleaning due to toxic inhalation.

The Smart Stick, built using a simple PVC pipe, integrates multi-gas sensors, a Bluetooth camera, and Wi-Fi connectivity, enabling workers to remotely inspect underground spaces without risking their lives. Acting as the worker’s “eyes and nose,” it transmits live visuals and air-quality data to a smartphone app and instantly alerts the team if methane, ammonia, carbon monoxide, or hydrogen sulphide levels become dangerous.

Constructed from low-cost, widely available components, the device is lightweight, rugged, and easy to use, requiring no advanced technical training. Its design allows for affordable mass production, making it a potentially lifesaving tool for municipal sanitation teams across the country.