The much-awaited direct payment for pourakarmikas has finally taken off, but it has failed to live up to its promise of eliminating the hold contractors have over the civic body’s solid waste management system.
Following protests by pourakarmikas, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah had in June 2017 announced that the BBMP would take over the entire Solid Waste Management in the city, and that all pourakarmikas would be paid directly. However, it appears that direct payment is restricted to sweepers, leaving those working in garbage collection and transportation at the mercy of contractors.
The BBMP, in a recent order on the implementation of direct payment, fixed the ratio of pourakarmikas to population at 1:700, limiting the total number of pourakarmikas to less than 18,000.
Unions, who are opposing this move, argue that auto drivers, garbage collection helpers and transportation vehicle drivers are also SWM workers and should be brought under the direct payment system. They want the ratio to be revised to 1:500, which would take the total number of pourakarmikas to 25,000.
Clifton D'Rozario of BBMP Guttige Pourakarmikara Sangha, which led the agitation in June 2017, claims that civic officials are conspiring to keep the contract system in place in contravention of the assurance given by the chief minister. “They are trying to divide SWM workers along the lines of sweepers and garbage collectors, which is wrong. All SWM workers are pourakarmikas,” he said, adding that the only report to date that considered the interests of pourakarmikas was the IPD Salappa report of 1976, which prescribes a ratio of 1:500. “If the BBMP opts for direct payment only for sweepers, the contractor mafia will continue to thrive.”
Sarfaraz Khan, Joint Commissioner, Solid Waste Management, said that it was decided at the government level to first take all sweepers on direct payment, with the civic body monitoring garbage collection and transportation by renting out vehicles from contractors. “We will pay the rent of vehicles, and the salaries of a driver and helper on each of these vehicles. There are 5,000 autos and 500 compactors in the city, which totals up to 11,000,” he said.
Meanwhile, the BBMP has placed orders for 600 autos and a few compactors, which it will operate directly.
Pourakarmikas, however, remain unconvinced, and argue that until the BBMP handles all aspects of garbage collection, contractors will be able to blackmail the civic administration by going on flash strikes and will harass workers.
