Noida: Several sectors are reeling from untended waste even as sanitation workers and garbage collectors continued their strike for the fourth day on Tuesday.Unsanitary conditions and potential health hazards have left the residents from various sectors — 105, 5, 10, 52, 12, 19, 36, 51, 26, 82 and 40 — high and dry. The strike commenced on Saturday but matters snowballed on Monday after Noida Authority CEO Krishna Karunesh removed four sanitation workers, two supervisors and withheld salaries of some staffers over poor upkeep, resulting in piles of garbage accumulating on streets, roads and vacant plots. Police complaints were also filed by the Authority against some sanitation workers, who did not allow others to turn up for work. Authority officials, meanwhile, made alternate arrangements through private labourers and agencies, even as they were in talks with the workers and assured a resolution soon.The sanitation workers began the protest following Noida Authority’s decision in Feb to officially merge the public health department with the work circles (civil department). This restructuring aimed to reduce confusion among staff, improve accountability and streamline civic duties under a single point of responsibility, replacing the previous independent functioning of the public health and civil departments.However, the workers protested, citing increased workloads and advocated enhanced compensation, comprehensive medical insurance and job security. “Why is additional civil work being imposed on us in place of our core sanitation work? The authority wants additional work without a salary hike. How are we supposed to feed our families?” said Ravi Kumar, a sanitation worker.CEO Karunesh told TOI that the situation became increasingly challenging, as every 10 days there seemed to be a reason for the workers to launch strike, highlighting “a pattern of repeated behaviour”. He claimed that since taking charge in Jan this year, it marked the fourth strike by the workers in Noida. “Recently, we took a stand for cleanliness, which should not be compromised. But the following day, the workers ceased operations. An FIR was filed against six-seven individuals, who stopped others from coming to work. This cannot go on because, at the end of the day, the city and its residents end up suffering. When some of them came to discuss, we expressed our willingness to resolve the issue. Meanwhile, we communicated to the contractors to make alternate arrangements for 1,500 workers, as there are currently only 1,200 working on the ground. We expect them to be prepared to accommodate this number from alternate areas by tomorrow so that the city’s operations are not interrupted. We will resolve the matter very soon, potentially by tomorrow,” said Karunesh.Meanwhile, the Authority also agreed to the work’s medical insurance demand and approved medical insurance for outsourced workers. “Each worker and up to five dependent family members will get medical cover of up to Rs 5 lakh annually. The Authority will pay a premium of Rs 10,000 per worker through the outsourcing agency,” said a senior official of the Authority.Mukesh Chand Sharma, a resident of Sector 105, said garbage collection vans have not arrived for the past two days in the sector. “The accumulation of waste is not just unsightly, it poses a serious health risk to all,” he said.Sector 105 RWA president Deepak Sharma confirmed that several sanitation workers went on strike, impacting the entire garbage collection process across the sector.While some sectors, such as sectors 51 and 34, resorted to hiring private labourers to manage household waste, they claimed the strike made sanitary conditions dire.
