Punjab Safai Karamchari Commission committed to sanitation workers’ welfare: Chandan Grewal

Chairman of the Punjab State Safai Karamchari Commission, Chandan Grewal, has reaffirmed the Commission’s commitment to enhancing the welfare of sanitation workers employed across municipal corporations, councils and nagar panchayats in Punjab, with full backing from the state government.

Grewal, who was addressing a meeting held at the District Administrative Complex in Kapurthala, was joined by key officials including Dr Akshita Gupta (Commissioner, Municipal Corporation Phagwara), Anupam Kaler (Commissioner, Municipal Council Kapurthala), Additional Deputy Commissioner Navneet Kaur Bal, as well as representatives of safai workers’ unions.

He emphasised that the Commission is actively engaged in addressing the long-pending demands of sanitation workers. “Our goal is to ensure safai workers live with dignity and contribute meaningfully to society,” Grewal stated, underlining the essential role these workers play in maintaining cleanliness across Punjab.

Grewal assured that challenges faced by safai karamcharis will be resolved on a priority basis. He directed municipal officials to provide basic and essential facilities such as uniforms, timely disbursal of salaries, proper health care services, and adequate equipment for daily operations. He also stressed the need to promptly resolve issues related to KYC compliance in workers’ bank accounts, which often delay their payments and benefits.

Further, the Chairman instructed municipal authorities to actively address local-level grievances within their jurisdiction and escalate any matters that require higher-level resolution to the Punjab Government. A key directive issued by Grewal was the immediate implementation of ESI (Employees’ State Insurance) card issuance for all sanitation workers, to ensure their access to free medical treatment.

He also mandated that EPF (Employees’ Provident Fund) numbers be included on workers’ ID cards to simplify access to retirement and social security benefits.