Denizens feel the heat as the contract municipal workers’ Statewide indefinite strike enters the 7th day on January 1 (Monday), with heaps of garbage piling up on the city streets.
According to an auto driver from Ajith Singh Nagar, garbage has not been lifted in the area since last Monday.
Atluri Prasad, proprietor of a restaurant in the city, has said the workers’ strike affected hotels and restaurants. “The garbage is being lifted only on alternate days. Other times, we are making our own arrangements,” he said.
However, the contract municipal workers stand firm on their demands. “We want equal pay for equal work. We understand that the public has been affected by our strike, but we cannot be silent anymore. Everyone should know what we are going through,” Jyoti Basu, a sanitary worker and a member of the Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU), said, adding that though their work is no different from that of permanent employees, they are paid only around ₹15,000, while the latter gets ₹26,000.
He said at present clearing of waste is happening at major centres and roads, including Mahatma Gandhi (Bandar road), Karl Marx (Eluru road) and Road No. 5 in the city. “There are 4,700 outsourced employees in the city. Out of them, 4,400 are participating in the strike,” Mr. Jyoti Basu said.
On being asked about the alternative arrangements the Vijayawada Municipal Corporation (VMC) has made, Chief Medical Officer of Health (CMOH), VMC, P. Ratnavalli said the corporation has hired around 100 workers from Gudivada, Nuzvid and other nearby places to support the permanent municipal workers (300 in number) in keeping the city litter-free. They are being paid ₹500 per day.
“Around 550 tonnes of waste is generated on a daily basis in the city. At present, we are managing to collect around 300 tonnes every day, with the help of 500 permanent and hired workers. We are trying to clear 60% of the piled up garbage from the main roads and busy areas,” Ms. Ratnavalli said, adding that JCB machines and tractors were put to service to lift heaps of garbage near shopping complexes, restaurants and other places on December 31 (Sunday).
Earlier, Commissioner Swapnil Dinkar Pundkar asked for cooperation from the public in dealing with the situation. He said people should dispose of the waste in dustbins put up on the roads and that it will be cleared at the earliest.
