CHENNAI: The Greater Chennai Corporation has been conducting a special cleaning drive for the past two nights with workers from other zones and contract workers. Though the workers of (National Urban Livelihood Mission) offered to clear the piled-up solid waste in Royapuram and Thiru Vi Ka Nagar zones, while protesting against privatisation, their offer was rejected.
The local body has made a strong move against the workers by employing contract staff at Royapuram and Thiru Vi Ka – two zones that have been most affected as uncleared solid waste has piled up on every street. The protest has been going on for more than 11 days and there seems to be no resolution in sight.
Adding fuel to the fire was public criticism over uncleared garbage and the failure of several rounds of negotiations with the protestors, which pushed the GCC to take an action. Considering public health, protestors volunteered to clear the waste without pay, but the GCC denied the offer and conducted a special cleaning drive at night on August 11 and 12.
To undertake the work, the GCC employed contract workers and cleanliness workers from other zones. An official with GCC said, “Nearly 1,200 workers are employed to clean the garbage. More than 650 metric tonnes of waste were collected from both the zones.”
“The GCC is trying to create bad blood between cleanliness workers by conducting this cleaning drive. But, we’ll not succumb to this move. The protest will continue,” said S Kumarasamy, adviser, LTUC, a trade union which is leading the protest. “Contract workers from other zones, especially, from Tondiarpet and Anna Nagar zones are willing to join our protest. If that happens, the situation will go uncontrollable.”
However, the GCC issued a statement explaining their stand regarding the demands of protesting workers. In its statement, the local body assured that all NULM workers who worked in both the zones would get jobs with other benefits including PF, bonus and ECI. Hence, the GCC urged the protestors to withdraw the protest and join under contract.