Sanitation workers in Madhya Pradesh continue indefinite strike over job regularisation
More than two lakh workers have stopped work across the state, affecting waste collection and transport in Bhopal and other cities.
More than two lakh sanitation workers across Madhya Pradesh have started an indefinite strike to demand the regularisation of jobs and an end to the outsourcing system, according to a report by India Today.
The strike has impacted the collection of household waste and the movement of refuse to disposal sites in Bhopal and various other cities over the last two days. In several markets, traders have hired workers to clean their premises before the Diwali festival.
Magan Jhanjhot, president of the Madhya Pradesh Akhil Bharatiya Safai Mazdoor Congress, said that discussions held on Wednesday with Urban Administration Department Additional Chief Secretary Sanjay Dubey to resolve the strike failed.
Jhanjhot claimed that nearly 2.5 lakh workers employed by civic bodies throughout the state have ceased work. He stated the union would only end the strike once their demands are met.
The union plans to approach Chief Minister Mohan Yadav with its demands to break the deadlock. Urban Administration and Housing Development Department Commissioner Sanket Bhondve and Bhopal Municipal Commissioner Ramprakash Ahirwar could not be reached for comment.
In the state capital, Bhopal, 850 tonnes of waste are produced daily. More than 400 vehicles are used for door-to-door collection, with waste being moved from 17 stations to Adampur Chhawni via capsule tankers.