City sanitation workers go on day's strike today

Corporations short of money, haven't paid salaries

Municipal sanitation workers have decided to strike work for a day and stage a protest at Civic Centre demanding salaries, clearance of dues and regularisation of contractual employees on Thursday.

Safai karamcharis’ unions said workers will not lift garbage from dhalaos (roadside dumps) on Thursday.

Workers’ unions said unification of the three corporations is the only way out as all the sources of income has gone to the South Delhi Municipal Corporation.

“According to the notice given to the municipal corporations, the main reason for staging a dharna at Civic Centre is timely payment of salaries. Safai karamcharis feel that trifurcation of the unified Municipal Corporation of Delhi in 2012 is the cause of North and East Corporations being bankrupt today as all the sources of income has gone to South Corporation,” said Rajender Mewati, general secretary, of United Front of MCD Employees.

Even officials said some departments have not given salary for over two months.
“The civic agency is not able to pay salary to some departments in the past couple of months,” said the official.

“I have not received salary for some time. But it’s too difficult for class IV employees to look after their daily expenses if they don’t get paid for even a month,” said an official.

The East Delhi Municipal Corporation requires over Rs 100 crore to pay salaries and other benefits to its over 32,000 employees.

Even the North Corporation is in the red and it requires Rs 171 crore to pay salaries and other benefits to its over 70,000 employees.

The cash-strapped corporations have been demanding funds from the city government. Even the Delhi BJP had attacked the AAP government for delay in issuing funds to MCDs.

After the High Court order, the city government should not delay giving funds to the three municipal corporations as recommended by the Fourth Finance Commission, it added.

City unit chief Satish Upadhyay, also a councillor, said the AAP government has to accept its responsibility of providing funds to the BJP-ruled corporations as pointed out by the Delhi High Court.

He said the Fifth Finance Commission should be set up within eight weeks as directed by the court.