After Minto Hospital, the Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) has sought exemption for its staff from election duty citing disruption in essential services.

Stating that its services will not be able to function smoothly if critical staff are picked for the duty, the civic body has written to Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), Karnataka, seeking exemption of employees from election duty.

As many as 1,150 employees including engineers, clerks, inspectors, valvemen and other workers have been asked to attend training sessions for the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections.

Rudre Gowda, president, BWSSB employees union, said after the letter was written, about 23 employees, mainly engineers, were exempted from election duty. However, others remain and have to attend training, he said.

“Employees working in the operation and maintenance of the Board should be exempted as it is essential service. The pumping stations always need some operator to work round-the-clock, so the CEO should reconsider while hiring BWSSB employees for election duty,” he added.