Pourakarmikas to get civic work lessons from abroad

MYSURU: Pourakarmikas will be taken abroad to study the best practices in foreign countries, said president of Karnataka State Safai Karmachari Commission, M R Venkatesha.
Addressing media persons at Mysuru City Corporation premises here on Wednesday, Venkatesha said, “There are about 1.45 lakh pourakarmikas across the state. Nearly 1,000 of them will be taken to foreign countries to expose them to civic works there. They will then come back and brief the others what they have learnt.”
“Their jobs have now given them an opportunity to go abroad.The programme was mulled following the interest shown by social welfare minister H Anjaneya,” he added.
Regarding their passports and other formalities, Venkatesha said agencies will take care of all the procedures. “The government has given green signal and we will soon decide on the locations. The tour will happen by the end of this financial year,” he said adding there are nearly 2,000 pourakarmikas including 616 permanent ones.
Speaking to TOI, N Mara, president of Mysuru Mahanagara Palike Pourakarmikara Sangha, said, “It’s a great initiative by the government and will motive pourakarmikas to do better. From each corporation, they may probably take 20 to 25 pourakarmikas for each trip".
Helpline for pourakarmikas
Venkatesha said a helpline will be launched for pourakarmikas in January, under the initiative of P Manivannan, secretary of social welfare department. “The helpline will allow pourakarmikas to register complaints if they face any issues,” said Venkatesh. He added that pourakarmikas who have been working on a contract basis for a long time will be made permanent in a phased manner.
Short films and a syllabus on pourakarmikas in schoolbooks:
Venkatesh said, in the future, to create awareness about the efforts of pourakarmikas, short films will be made and plays will be staged. “Apart from this, we will also request the education department to come out with a syllabus on pourakarmikas,” he said.