Sanitation services in east Delhi could be affected starting on Friday as municipal workers have threatened to go on strike in protest against delayed salaries.
The East Delhi Municipal Corporation (EDMC), which has been grappling with a financial crisis for over a year now, has not paid its staff for November and December. A senior EDMC official said on Thursday that October salaries for Group A and B category staff were completely released only this week.
While the sanitation staff has protested outside the EDMC headquarters on several instances in the past few months, Thursday saw them launching a stir with a protest. Thursday being a holiday on occasion of the 350th birth anniversary of Guru Gobind Singh, the strike would start from Friday, said workers.
Apart from the strike, the workers plan to carry out a demonstration outside the office of Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia on Friday. Mr. Sisodia is the MLA from east Delhi’s Patparganj.
‘Govt not releasing funds’
“Workers are on the brink of starvation. Not only is the corporation not releasing salaries on time, but the Delhi government is also not handing out funds to civic bodies as per schedule,” said Sanjay Gehlot, president of the Swatantra Majdoor Vikas Sanyukt Morcha, one of the unions participating in the protest.
The EDMC, for its part, has asked the Delhi government to release funds. Jitendra Choudhary, chairperson of the EDMC Standing Committee, said ₹350 crore in salaries was pending.
“The Delhi government has to give us ₹134 crore by February. We have asked the government to release the amount soon so that we can at least pay the sanitation staff,” said Mr. Choudhary.
While the EDMC faces the biggest deficit among the three municipalities, the North Delhi Municipal Corporation is also lagging behind on salaries. Group A and B category officials of the North Corporation have not been paid salaries for November, while the rest of the staff have not been paid for December.
Senior officials in both corporations said that the final instalment of grants from the Delhi government for this financial year was expected soon.
