Coimbatore: At the 13th Conference of Rural Development and Local Government Employees Union, CITU, MP P R Natarajan stated that the death of sanitary workers can be avoided if machines can replace manual scavenging.
Coimbatore: At the 13th Conference of Rural Development and Local Government Employees Union, CITU, MP P R Natarajan stated that the death of sanitary workers can be avoided if machines can replace manual scavenging.
The Conference was held at the Sarkarai Chettiar Thirumana Mandapam, Varadarajapuram. Along with an administrative team of 25 members, MP P R Natarajan, C Padmanaban, President, K Rathnakumar, General Secretary, P Ganesan, Treasurer and MP P R Natarajan graced the Conference.
Addressing the gathering, the MP said, "Coimbatore Corporation has now increased to 100 wards. But the number of sanitary workers employed has not increased. How can cleanliness in the city be achieved without increasing the number of sanitary workers on par with the increasing population? When authorities are questioned about the stagnant debris piled like a mountain, they point out to sanitary workers being the cause. But it is the mistake of the authorities who are not deploying new employees."
"The labouring sanitary workers who are working for years as contract workers are exploited as they are not promoted to being permanent workers. The Government must recognize the need for these workers and immediately recognise and reward them. The minimum wages for the contract workers should be set at Rs. 18,000. Manual scavenging should be replaced with machines for repairing clogs in the sewer tanks, which will drastically reduce the event of deaths on the job," opined MP P R Natarajan.
"We must fight for the caste and inequality that prevails in society as we fight for economic demands, including wages. In particular, it is very essential to carry out protests demanding strong legislation against caste-based honour killings. Decisions like equal salary payment for Panchayat employees and city employees, with Panchayat self-help group employees also being granted PF and ESI and timely settlement of allowances and pensions to permanent workers were discussed at the convention," stated the MP. The convention was attended by a large number of sanitary workers from across Coimbatore district.
The Conference was held at the Sarkarai Chettiar Thirumana Mandapam, Varadarajapuram. Along with an administrative team of 25 members, MP P R Natarajan, C Padmanaban, President, K Rathnakumar, General Secretary, P Ganesan, Treasurer and MP P R Natarajan graced the Conference.
Addressing the gathering, the MP said, "Coimbatore Corporation has now increased to 100 wards. But the number of sanitary workers employed has not increased. How can cleanliness in the city be achieved without increasing the number of sanitary workers on par with the increasing population? When authorities are questioned about the stagnant debris piled like a mountain, they point out to sanitary workers being the cause. But it is the mistake of the authorities who are not deploying new employees."
"The labouring sanitary workers who are working for years as contract workers are exploited as they are not promoted to being permanent workers. The Government must recognize the need for these workers and immediately recognise and reward them. The minimum wages for the contract workers should be set at Rs. 18,000. Manual scavenging should be replaced with machines for repairing clogs in the sewer tanks, which will drastically reduce the event of deaths on the job," opined MP P R Natarajan.
"We must fight for the caste and inequality that prevails in society as we fight for economic demands, including wages. In particular, it is very essential to carry out protests demanding strong legislation against caste-based honour killings. Decisions like equal salary payment for Panchayat employees and city employees, with Panchayat self-help group employees also being granted PF and ESI and timely settlement of allowances and pensions to permanent workers were discussed at the convention," stated the MP. The convention was attended by a large number of sanitary workers from across Coimbatore district.