Sanitation workers hold dharna outside Kejriwal's house
Sanitation workers on Friday staged protest outside the Chef Minister Arvind Kejriwal house, demanding to clear their salaries and arrears
New Delhi, Mar 17: Scores of municipal sanitation workers on Friday staged a protest outside Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's residence here, demanding payment of their salaries and arrears. The safai karmacharis from the corporations raised slogans near the 6 Flagstaff House in Civil Lines area, partially obstructing the flow of traffic in the street.
"We have been telling time and again that our salary and arrear issues be resolved comprehensively but we are stuck between the AAP government and the BJP-led corporations. "We have assembled here on Friday to demand from Kejriwal that a meeting of the three municipal commissioners be called by him and the issue be resolved once and for all," Mazdoor Vikas Samyukta Morcha president Sanjay Gehlot said.
[Also read: Delhi Stinks: As sanitation workers' strike enters 8th day, AAP busy with Punjab polls]
He said the workers have also threatening to go on an "indefinite" strike if their demands were not met. "We have not got our due salaries and arrears and we will continue to protest till we don't," he said. Gehlot claimed employees from all three civic bodies took part in the protest outside Kejriwal's residence.
Delhi
Deputy
Chief
Minister
Manish
Sisodia
had
in
late
February
approved
a
loan
of
Rs
200
crore
to
the
cash-strapped
North
Delhi
Municipal
Corporation
(NDMC)
for
payment
of
its
employees'
salaries.
In
January,
he
had
announced
a
fresh
fund
of
Rs
119
crore
to
the
East
Delhi
Municipal
Corporation
(EDMC).
The
erstwhile
unified
Municipal
Corporation
of
Delhi
(MCD)
was
trifurcated
in
2012
into
NDMC,
SDMC
and
EDMC.
AAP government has said that adequate fund has been given by it to the three corporations, which have "not been properly utilised" by the MCD. Gehlot alleged that despite announcement of release of funds, "workers have not received it."
The government in Lok Sabha recently had said that salaries of sanitation workers in NDMC have been paid till January.
"The South Delhi Municipal Corporation has informed that there is no pendency of disbursement of salary to its employees. "The salary of EDMC employees other than sanitation staff are reportedly pending for January and February 2017," the Centre had said in the Lower House
PTI