In a major relief for residents struggling with heaps of garbage and poor sanitation conditions, sanitation workers on Thursday ended their 14-day-long strike and resumed work in different parts of the city.
While cleaning and garbage lifting operations started in some areas on Thursday itself, the remaining workers are expected to fully resume duties from Friday.
The Municipal Employees Union (MEU) assured residents that all roads would be cleaned and accumulated garbage would be lifted within the next couple of days.
“We had a state body meeting in Rohtak on Thursday under the leadership of our state president Naresh Kumar Shashtri. We discussed the outcome of talks held with the government on Wednesday,” said Raj Kumar, president of the MEU’s Karnal unit.
He said the government had assured the union that contractual employees of MCs as well as fire brigade workers would be regularised. “We are satisfied that the government has accepted our main demands, so we have decided to end the strike,” he said.
Kumar also said the government has also issued job security letters to workers employed under the Haryana Kaushal Rozgar Nigam (HKRN). “Like during the Covid pandemic, all sanitation workers will work with full dedication to clean the city and remove garbage from roads as soon as possible,” he added.
The sanitation workers had been staging a ‘dharna’ outside the Karnal Municipal Corporation (KMC) office since May 1, on the call of the state body. Their key demands included regularisation of jobs for sanitation and fire brigade workers, along with implementation of minimum wages. During the protest, sweeping and sanitation work across the city came to a standstill.
The situation worsened earlier this week after workers associated with the door-to-door garbage collection agency also joined the strike from Tuesday, leading to garbage piling up dustbins inside residences and market areas. Residents had been complaining about foul smell and unhygienic conditions in several localities.
However, before the official announcement of ending the strike, some workers linked with the door-to-door garbage collection agency had resumed work on Thursday morning itself.
Residents welcomed the decision and expressed hope that normal sanitation services would be restored soon. Chief Sanitary Officer Surinder Chopra said special drives would be carried out over the next few days to clear pending garbage and restore cleanliness across the city.
