Concern over halt in garbage collection
In Short
CPM district secretary T Arun workers are not paid even for Dasara, and with Diwali approaching, they were facing severe financial difficulties
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CPM district secretary T Arun speaking at a meeting on Friday
Rajamahendravaram: CPM district secretary T Arun criticised the municipal authorities for failing to ensure the smooth operation of CLAP vehicles used for door-to-door collection of wet and dry waste in Rajamahendravaram city.
Speaking at a meeting held at the CPM district office on Friday, he said that 12 out of the 72 CLAP vehicles had been lying idle for a long time due to the contractor’s failure to carry out repairs. The remaining 60 vehicles had also stopped operating as gas was not supplied for the past 10 days. As a result, door-to-door garbage collection had come to a standstill over the past week, leading to heaps of garbage accumulating across the city.
Arun said the contractor was reportedly due around Rs 4.5 crore from the Municipal Corporation and had failed to pay workers’ salaries for the past three months. Workers were not paid even for Dasara, and with Diwali approaching, they were facing severe financial difficulties. Provident Fund and ESI contributions were also pending, he alleged.
He said the problem had been recurring for the past one-and-a-half years, but municipal officials had failed to find a permanent solution.
The CPM demanded immediate payment of three months’ pending salaries to workers in one instalment, clearance of PF and ESI dues and release of the contractor’s pending bills to resume operations of all 72 vehicles. It also demanded that the corporation take over the operation of the vehicles after the present contract expires in December, while retaining the existing drivers and sanitation workers.
