CM announces free safety kits for sanitation workers

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, July 15

The government would provide safety kits for free to every worker who works for the cleaning of the sewers, said Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal during a workshop on sewer safety and awareness on Monday.

“It is very disheartening to hear when workers die during sewer cleaning. We have to put an end to such incidents. But, this can’t be achieved by the Delhi Government or the Delhi Jal Board (DJB) alone, we need to work together for the safety of our workers,” said the Chief Minister.

The workshop was organised by the DJB at the Talkatora Stadium, which was attended by a number of sanitation workers. DJB vice-chairman, Chief Secretary of Delhi and DJB CEO, apart from other officials of the DJB, were also present at the occasion.

Interacting with the field staff who work for sewer cleaning, Kejriwal, who is also the chairman of the DJB, said, “We will ensure that free-kit is given to every worker so that even if the contractor doesn’t provide them with the gear, they use their own gear to stay safe and no untoward incident takes place.”

The Chief Minister also administered oath of safety and security to the workers. The oath said, “No worker will enter any sewer without proper safety gear and will take proper care of safety.”

“The government and the DJB are making solid arrangements for your safety. This workshop and training is being done to ensure that no one dies the manner in which we have seen people dying after getting into sewers,” he said.

Kejriwal said, “It is not only the government’s job, but you also have to make sure that you don’t get down the sewer without the safety gear. Don’t act careless by risking your safety,” he said.

Live demonstration was carried out at the workshop to help the participants understand the right procedure and steps required to clean the sewer and use of the safety gear. 

The DJB had also created committees at divisional level to identify field-level functionaries for sewer cleaning who show good performance. These selected 17 DJB workers were felicitated by the Chief Minister and other dignitaries with plaques and certificates for their performance towards the organisation.

The Chief Minister also took stock of the machines being used for the cleaning of sewers by the DJB.