In show of strength, conservancy workers demand a life they deserve

Standing in the lobby of the Churchgate station on Wednesday morning with a group of slogan-shouting workers, Mahendra Patil is a manifestation of the dichotomy in the system.

As celebrities and politicians pose for photographs with brooms in hand, pretentiously cleaning the streets trying to be a part of Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, Patil and lakhs of conservancy workers, who help keep the country clean literally find themselves at the bottom of the sewers, are shorn of basic human dignity.

These workers, a large number of whom are Dalits and backward classes, complain that apart from poor pay, they are also denied safety apparatus, gloves, gum boots, medical care, paid leave and even soap to wash themselves once they are done cleaning filth. Most are contract workers serving with contractors hired by municipal bodies.

Conservancy workers from municipal bodies across the Mumbai metropolitan region, who were part of a protest organized by former Vasai MLA Vivek Pandit's 'Shramjeevi Kamgar Sanghatana,' planned to march on to chief minister Devendra Fadnavis' official residence on Malabar Hill before they were intercepted by the police.

"Our pay is very low. While people who sit on chairs in offices get all benefits, we lack even basic medical facilities. Even if a worker is injured while on duty, he is compelled to work. We get just around Rs 7,500 for this," complained Usha Chavda from the Mira Bhayander Municipal Corporation.

"We have no place to eat our lunch and no toilets. We are not given protective gear. At times, masks are given once every six months and we have to subsist on two uniforms annually," said Shankar Sonavane. Others complained they were not allowed paid leave. Even a day off on health reasons leads to their wages being cut. "We must be treated like permanent workers," sought Hemant Patil from Mira Bhayander.

"This is risky work. We are not given safety belts, gloves, boots and oxygen masks when we do down into manholes and sewers. Many have fainted or died after inhaling poisonous gases. If we complain, our supervisors ask us to fall in line or lose our jobs," complained Anil Patil.

Workers complained that those who worked on dumpers were also put to a lot of inconvenience.

"According to the Contract Workers (Regulation and Abolition) Act, 1970, contract labour is regulated in seasonal work and prohibited in continuous work. This is continuous work and is hence prohibited, thus violating the law… the exploitation is immense," noted Pandit, stating that these workers are caught in a vicious cycle of poverty, addictions, alcoholism, indebtedness. Many were unable to educate their children due to lack of resources or marry them off.

He demanded that while they were paid around Rs 7,500 per month, they needed to be treated as skilled workers and get the municipal minimum wage of around Rs14,000 as they had the municipal bodies as principal employers despite being contract workers. "If these people are unskilled then let corporators, ministers and municipal commissioners work in this filth for an hour. We are willing to give them a month's wage in return," challenged Pandit, adding that these workers also needed family mediclaim instead of depending on poorly functioning ESIC hospitals.

He added that they did not get leave even during festivals, when ironically they had to work harder as more garbage was generated.

"If something untoward happens, civic bodies claim that we are not their workers and wash their hands of," complained a sweeper. "What hurts is more is the harsh attitude of people," lamented another worker, noting that if they struck work for a day, the city would be almost unlivable due to the filth.

"Cuts and wounds because of metal and glass shards are common. However, the municipal corporation does not arrange to give us injections. We are forced to take injections every few months at our own expense," said Suresh Mangela from the Vasai Virar Municipal Corporation. "We are voiceless," said his colleague Chandrakant Chipat.

"Workers in service for around 15 years have not been made permanent and their salaries have also stagnated," complained Dinesh Solanki and Siddique Fazalali Mandal from Nalasopara.