Residents’ missiles leave BMC workers with bloodied heads
The ‘Swachh Bharat Abhiyan’ has generated a lot of public interest with a steady stream of politicians and celebrities joining the campaign, posing for pictures with brooms in their hands.
But away from the media glare, 35,000 conservancy workers toil in Mumbai’s narrow alleys every day, risking injury from broken bottles, kitchenware and other missiles thrown from windows by careless residents.
Conservancy worker Selokumar Devendra, 28, suffered a hand injury last Friday when a resident of a building in south Mumbai’s Pakmodia Street threw a broken glass bowl from a window while he was cleaning a lane.
His wife, Pushpa, also a contracted conservancy worker, went to every floor of the building to find out who had hurled the bowl and other stuff, but no one accepted responsibility or apologised.
Afew weeks ago, 40-year-old Ganesh Kamre was left with a bloodied head after a resident in Null Bazaar threw a coconut out of the window while he was cleaning a house gully, narrow lanes between two buildings.
“For a few minutes, I was so disoriented that I didn’t realise what had happened. I felt like my head was spinning. A colleague held me and took me to a doctor,” Kamre said. He added that they can’t even take sick leaves as they would lose the day’s salary.
Injuries and close calls have become routine for the city’s conservancy staff who are not provided adequate protective gear such as helmets and gumboots despite a court order. Apathetic residents complicate their lives by throwing discarded articles from windows and balconies.
Some staff members claim that if they are injured, the BMC does not pay for their medical expenses as they are not formally recognised as municipal employees.
Of the 35,000 conservancy workers, 29,000 are paid salaries by the BMC, while the rest are hired by private contractors. The workers not only pick up trash, but clear filthy house gullies that have become neighbourhood dumping grounds. Many house gullies also serve as open drains.
“Many of the buildings have broken drainage pipelines so sewage accumulates in the narrow lanes. Last week, a rat bit me while I was wading through the sewage,” said Pushpa, who, along with her husband, cleans alleys near JJ Hospital.
Apart from facing the risk of contracting diseases, the workers also put up with missiles thrown from windows — broken cutlery, wooden boxes, discarded furniture and other rubbish. “People who live on higher floors should show some common sense and not throw objects and garbage while workers are trying to clean their locality,” said Milind Ranade of Kachara Vahatuk Shramik Sangh, an employee union. “These workers are also human beings and should be treated with some respect.”
Retired conservancy worker Ramesh Haralkar, who works for the welfare of the employees, said that he could not understand residents’ behaviour. “They blindly throw things out of their flats. The BMC does not consider us municipal employees so we don’t get any compensation for any injuries,” he said.
Ranade said that according to the high court’s guidelines, all conservancy workers should be provided a safety kit comprising gumboots, gloves, helmets, masks, towels and soap. “But many workers do not have these kits,” he said.
Rajesh Mohite, who also cleans house gullies, said the last time the staff got helmets was five years ago when an NGO organised an event. “We were given some 20 helmets at the time. The masks the BMC has provided us are so thick that it’s difficult to breathe through them. We have also stopped using soaps given to us because they cause skin problems,” Mohite said.
WHAT OFFICIALS SAY
Vijaykumar Kaskar, head supervisor of conservancy workers department in the BMC, rejected the employees’ claims that they had not been given adequate gear. “The BMC always provides safety kits to them. It is compulsory to wear a helmet while cleaning a house gully, but most of the workers ignore the rule,” he said.
But Kaskar admitted that many residents consider house gullies as a dump ground and threw garbage into the lanes from windows.
But away from the media glare, 35,000 conservancy workers toil in Mumbai’s narrow alleys every day, risking injury from broken bottles, kitchenware and other missiles thrown from windows by careless residents.
Conservancy worker Selokumar Devendra, 28, suffered a hand injury last Friday when a resident of a building in south Mumbai’s Pakmodia Street threw a broken glass bowl from a window while he was cleaning a lane.
“It missed my head and landed on my right arm. I screamed at the residents that I was working and that they should be careful. But almost immediately, hot tea water and a mix containing red chilli powder were thrown at me from the same window,” Devendra said.
His wife, Pushpa, also a contracted conservancy worker, went to every floor of the building to find out who had hurled the bowl and other stuff, but no one accepted responsibility or apologised.
Afew weeks ago, 40-year-old Ganesh Kamre was left with a bloodied head after a resident in Null Bazaar threw a coconut out of the window while he was cleaning a house gully, narrow lanes between two buildings.
“For a few minutes, I was so disoriented that I didn’t realise what had happened. I felt like my head was spinning. A colleague held me and took me to a doctor,” Kamre said. He added that they can’t even take sick leaves as they would lose the day’s salary.
Injuries and close calls have become routine for the city’s conservancy staff who are not provided adequate protective gear such as helmets and gumboots despite a court order. Apathetic residents complicate their lives by throwing discarded articles from windows and balconies.
Some staff members claim that if they are injured, the BMC does not pay for their medical expenses as they are not formally recognised as municipal employees.
Of the 35,000 conservancy workers, 29,000 are paid salaries by the BMC, while the rest are hired by private contractors. The workers not only pick up trash, but clear filthy house gullies that have become neighbourhood dumping grounds. Many house gullies also serve as open drains.
“Many of the buildings have broken drainage pipelines so sewage accumulates in the narrow lanes. Last week, a rat bit me while I was wading through the sewage,” said Pushpa, who, along with her husband, cleans alleys near JJ Hospital.
Apart from facing the risk of contracting diseases, the workers also put up with missiles thrown from windows — broken cutlery, wooden boxes, discarded furniture and other rubbish. “People who live on higher floors should show some common sense and not throw objects and garbage while workers are trying to clean their locality,” said Milind Ranade of Kachara Vahatuk Shramik Sangh, an employee union. “These workers are also human beings and should be treated with some respect.”
Retired conservancy worker Ramesh Haralkar, who works for the welfare of the employees, said that he could not understand residents’ behaviour. “They blindly throw things out of their flats. The BMC does not consider us municipal employees so we don’t get any compensation for any injuries,” he said.
Ranade said that according to the high court’s guidelines, all conservancy workers should be provided a safety kit comprising gumboots, gloves, helmets, masks, towels and soap. “But many workers do not have these kits,” he said.
Rajesh Mohite, who also cleans house gullies, said the last time the staff got helmets was five years ago when an NGO organised an event. “We were given some 20 helmets at the time. The masks the BMC has provided us are so thick that it’s difficult to breathe through them. We have also stopped using soaps given to us because they cause skin problems,” Mohite said.
WHAT OFFICIALS SAY
Vijaykumar Kaskar, head supervisor of conservancy workers department in the BMC, rejected the employees’ claims that they had not been given adequate gear. “The BMC always provides safety kits to them. It is compulsory to wear a helmet while cleaning a house gully, but most of the workers ignore the rule,” he said.
But Kaskar admitted that many residents consider house gullies as a dump ground and threw garbage into the lanes from windows.
