BMC wants to hire unskilled labourers, engage contractors for Pesticide in city!

BMC takes erratic decision disinfection task handed over to Solid-Waste-Management, asks to hire and train new ones dumps the others

Mumbai: As the efforts to contain the spread of Corona virus shows no immediate signs of flattening the curve, the BrihanMumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) which has just seen a major bureaucratic shake-up in its administration, has taken yet again another erratic decision. This time the BMC wants to hire unskilled labourers and contractors to be engaged in spraying of pesticides in the city. To make matters worse the task is being handed over to the Solid Waste Management department.

In the past few days Maharashtra has witnessed the doubling from 10,000 to 20,000 of COVID-19 patients, and the state health ministry has revealed that there is a drastic rise in asymptomatic patients of coronavirus. In the situation like this the state government and BMC are supposed to increase its healthcare services.

Over the last more than two months, Pesticide department of BMC is spraying the disinfectant – sodium hypochlorite via quick response vehicles and fog blowing machines in each public places, public toilets, each building , small and big pockets of slums across the city. It is a part of mass sanitation drive carried out by the experts and well trained labourers from the Pesticide department to tackle and slow down the spread of COVID-19.

A source from BMC said, “It is pure waste of money and time in a pandemic. The skilled labourers are well aware of handling machines while in disinfection. They are already trained staff if the situation is on hiring more why the SWM is engaged to hire new contractor in return new labourers and trained them. The BMC official by taking irrational decision like this wants waste money and man power.”

“The time taken by unskilled labourers would be more. They cannot be hired at this juncture. Moreover, the skilled labourers can deliver good productivity,” added the source.

The BMC administration on May 5 took erratic decision that instead of expert, trained and skilled labourers of the Pesticide department, the disinfection work will be delivered by the Solid Waste Management (SWM) department. Not only that SWM department a separate specialized department is asked to look into disinfection across the city but in the crucial ‘community transmission ‘of coronavirus,  they will have to trained new labourers to perform the disinfection duty in each public places, departments, private places and even containment zones of each wards.

TheNews21 has accessed a letter written by the Municipal Mazdoor Union to additional municipal commissioner, BMC requesting not to direct SWM in wasting crucial time on training new labourers and engaging in new contractors in this pandemic situation.

The letter states that in 2005 the BMC had laid off about 500-600 contract labourers from the Pesticide department. These labourers were well trained to handle the machines and equipment’s used for sanitation process however, due to shortage of work, these labourers were handed the pink slips.

The letter highlights that the SWM has been asked to engage new contractors for the job, as well as should provide training to new contract labourers.

Advocate Mahabal Shetty, Joint -Secretary Municipal Mazdoor Union has stated that when sanitation at containment zones and red areas of city is crucial and plays vital role in terms of safety and precautionary measures against the coronavirus, engaging contractor and new labourers is putting lives of citizens of Mumbai in danger. The BMC authorities instead of spending time and money on new entrants, the Pesticide department should engage the laid off labourers earlier by the BMC who are much experienced and trained to handle the disinfection in the city