Focus on welfare, education of pourakarmikas’ children: Commission member
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A proposal will be submitted to the government seeking special grants and sanction of houses for these pourakarmikas under the Rajiv Gandhi Housing Corporation or other government housing schemes. | Photo Credit: File photo
Karnataka State Safai Karmachari Commission member C. Shankar Ankanashettipura on Monday stressed the need to create greater public awareness on segregating wet and dry waste at source before handing it over to pourakarmikas.
He was speaking at a progress review meeting held at the Mysuru City Corporation (MCC) office. Before the meeting, Mr. Shankar interacted with pourakarmikas and sought information about the problems and difficulties faced by them.
He said drivers and helpers working in the garbage collection vehicle section were also part of the sanitation workforce, but were receiving low wages. A letter had already been submitted to the government seeking better salaries and other facilities for them, and the issues would be resolved soon, he said.
Mr. Shankar said the mindset that children of pourakarmikas should also take up the same occupation needs to change. The educational details of children of pourakarmikas, sewerage workers, drivers and helpers should be collected through environmental engineers and the children encouraged to pursue higher education, he said.
They should also be provided the benefits available under the MCC’s 24.10% allocation, the Social Welfare Department and other government schemes, he added.
He said permanent pourakarmikas were already being provided sites and houses under the Gruha Bhagya scheme. Similarly, direct-payment sanitation workers, sewerage workers, loaders, cleaners and drivers were also playing an important role in maintaining the city’s cleanliness and sanitation by working continuously from morning to evening.
A proposal would be submitted to the government seeking special grants and sanction of houses for these workers under the Rajiv Gandhi Housing Corporation or other government housing schemes, he said.
MCC Commissioner M.K. Savitha said a single-window system had been introduced to enable workers to freely air their grievances. In the first stage, complaints could be submitted to environmental engineers and health inspectors. If the issues were not resolved, powers had been decentralised to the Additional Commissioner for further action, she said.
Karnataka State Safai Karmachari Commission Research Officer Mahadevaswamy, Secretary Raghu, MCC Deputy Commissioner Veena and other officials were present.
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