Sanitation workers demand end of ‘unfair’ contractual work for desilting drains

Mumbai: In order to better the lives of nullah cleaning workers hired on a contract basis across Mumbai, especially before monsoons, the Jan Haq Sangharsh Samiti, a people’s collective working on rights of sanitation workers, demanded that the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation should end the contract system for nullah cleaning every year. Yashodhara Salvi, a member, said, “I want to introduce these people as the labourers and not as sanitation workers because sanitation workers have rights, but here, people are picked up as labourers, made to work in drains for some days and then let go without any rights or health benefits.” Salvi demanded that the civic body should end the contractual works for the desilting of drains before monsoons. At least five deaths are recorded this year of the labourers while cleaning drains or sewers, FIRs are lodged in all but the workers continue to remain without compensation,” said Shubham Kothari from the JHSS. JHSS also demanded all gutters, drains, rivers, and stormwater drains of Mumbai should be declared as sewer lines under the Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and Rehabilitation of Workers Act 2013.