Short by 1,844, sanitation staff in Rohtak struggle to stay afloat

Sunit Dhawan

Rohtak, June 13

Due to an acute shortage of sanitation workers at the municipal corporation, those assigned the task of cleaning Rohtak are overworked. Sources say that only 656 sanitation workers are deployed in the Rohtak municipal area against the required 2,500 workers.

Workers’ assn expresses resentment

• Cleanliness worker Sushila died while working on May 31.
• Sanitation supervisor Naresh died on duty on June 4.
• The municipal authorities relaxed the working hours, but no effective steps have been taken to hire more staff.
• Municipal workers’ association expressed resentment over the non-availability of basic amenities like drinking water, women’s washrooms and changing rooms, sheds and seating facilities at attendance points.
• There has been no direct recruitment of sanitation workers for about three decades.
• Contractual workers have not been brought on the municipal payroll despite the state government’s written orders.

Cleanliness takes hit

Garbage lies scattered in the lane opposite our house. Strays forage for food in the garbage dump which worsens the situation and presents an ugly picture of the locality to passers-by. — Anand Sharma, Resident

Two employees, including a cleanliness worker and a sanitation supervisor, died carrying out their duties under the scorching sun recently. Cleanliness worker Sushila died while working on May 31 and sanitation supervisor Naresh died on duty on June 4.

The municipal authorities did relax the working hours of these workers in the wake of the death of the two employees, but no effective steps have been taken to increase the strength of the staff.

“The cleanliness workers are overburdened. They have to clean the streets as well as the roads under the sweltering sun due to a staff crunch,” lamented Sanjay Bidlan, president of the district chapter of Nagarpalika Karmchari Sangh, Haryana.

He pointed out that as per norms there should be one worker against a population of 400, in accordance to which Rohtak city required 2,500 cleanliness workers. “However, only 656 cleanliness workers are working in the city as of now. More than 350 workers, who were employed on contract till March 31, 2023, were laid off last year,” he added.

The reason behind their retrenchment was a legal tussle between the previous and current contractors, due to which floating of fresh tenders for maintenance and cleanliness staff was stayed by the court.

As a result, shortage of sanitation staff prevails in the city and the lifting of garbage gets delayed in many colonies, causing inconvenience to residents as well as passers-by.

“Garbage lies scattered in the lane opposite our house. Stray cattle and dogs forage for food in the garbage dump which worsens the situation and presents an ugly picture of the locality to passers-by,” rued Dr Anand Sharma, a resident of Housing Board Colony.

Devender, Asha, Ompati, Anil, Mahesh and several other residents of old Rohtak city also complained about the prevalence of insanitary conditions in their localities.

On the other hand, the municipal workers’ association expressed resentment over the non-availability of basic amenities like drinking water, women’s washrooms and changing rooms, sheds and seating facilities at their attendance points.

“There has been no direct recruitment of sanitation workers for about three decades now. The contractual workers have not been brought on the municipal payroll despite the state government’s written orders to this effect having been passed in February last year,” said Shravan Bohat, the general secretary of the local unit of the association.

The workers’ union plans to stage state-wide protests on June 13 and 14.