Hyderabad, July 07: Heaps of garbage got piled up across Greater Hyderabad as workers of the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) went on strike on Monday demanding abrogation of the agreement between the GHMC and Ramky Enviro Engineers on the Integrated Solid Waste Management Project (ISWM).
While union leaders claimed that strike was a total success as nobody attended the sanitation works, GHMC Commissioner SP Singh said that garbage lifting was affected partially.
Workers and leaders belonging to the Bhartiya Mazdoor Sangh were taken into custody by the police for not allowing the garbage vehicles to move on the roads or lift the garbage.
In the GHMC limits, more than 3,500 tonnes of garbage is generated and cleared everyday. The 15,000-odd sanitation workers clear the garbage in the morning keeping the city neat and clean. Today, because of the strike, garbage got accumulated in a majority of the trashbins located on the main and interior roads causing inconvenience to people.
Speaking to reporters, the commissioner said that as many as 229 private tippers and 71 vehicles were pressed into service and they could clear about 60 percent of the garbage from different corners of the city. He appealed to the people to bear with the inconvenience due to dislocation of the garbage clearance service.
He said that a Joint Action Committee (JAC) consisting of 12 GHMC unions submitted a letter extending supporting to the authorities and expressing determination not to participate in the strike.
To deal with the garbage problem, a contingency plan was being prepared, he said and appealed to the residential welfare associations (RWAs) and bulk garbage generators such hotels, restaurants and other eating establishments to cooperate with the corporation in dealing with the problem.
The commissioner reiterated his assurance that there would not be any retrenchment of the work force and even claimed that the agreement with Ramky would, in fact, help generate additional employment. He said the GHMC was ready to hold talks with the striking unions.
“If they have doubts or apprehensions on the agreement, we are ready to clear their doubts and redress their grievances. If they submit valid suggestions, the corporation is ready to incorporate those in the agreement.’’ Singh said that in the public interest and as per the governing laws on solid waste management and the Supreme Court orders, the GHMC decided to carry out solid waste management on scientific lines. With this scheme there would not be retrenchment of any sanitation worker including those outsourced, he assured.
Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh leaders said that a majority of the GHMC unions had been demanding scrapping the agreement. “The agreement would result in the retrenchment of many employees who are working in extreme conditions to keep the city clean. At least keeping their interest in mind, the agreement should be scrapped immediately.’’ they said.
“The agreement has several disadvantages.
It will result in a hike in the charges for collecting dump and other waste material by Rs 20 per house and a 5 percent increase per year in the case of small-scale entrepreneurs and businessmen.
The GHMC spends around Rs 500 to process a tonne of waste. Going by the agreement Ramky would be getting Rs 1,431 per tonne for the same process.
This shows the agreement favours the private firm. The union will intensify the strike until the State Government scraps the agreement,’’ the BMS leaders asserted.
–Agencies–