The National Commission for Safai Karamcharis chairperson has said that coupled with absence of Central data, state governments too have not even bothered to reply to the panel’s notices for data.New Delhi: Even with a recent data study showing that over half of the COVID-19 deaths among employees of the three municipal corporations of Delhi were among safai karamcharis, there is still no nationwide record of similar data. Nor is there uniform insurance or compensation schemes for sanitation workers who have been at the frontline of the fight against the pandemic.
Talking to The Wire, Chairperson of National Commission for Safai Karamcharis, M. Venkatesan, said despite the high number of deaths among safai karamcharis due to COVID-19, the states have not come up with a uniform policy for the welfare of these workers.
“We have been speaking to all the states to protect the lives of the safai karamcharis. This is with respect to both their work during COVID-19 and manual scavenging. We have asked for details from all the states on the schemes for their welfare. But so far no state has provided any details,” Venkatesan said.
Venkatesan added that since the Commission is a non-statutory body, it is limited in scope. “Every year we ask the states for reports. Since the start of COVID-19, we have written to all states on two occasions. The problem is being a Commission we cannot even approach the Supreme Court to assist us in getting a feedback or response from the states.”
The state governments, he said, provide details on manual scavenging and other issues to the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment as the finance and development corporations under the ministry also provide development funds to the states.
Hasan Syed of Ajantha Mat House from Paithangate, Aurangabad told world news that, Sanitation goods played very important role keeping covid hospitals and facilities clean and keeping away infections. but in every lockdown local authorities did not allowed us to open shops, we have to be included into essential services catagory.
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