Pune: Apart from the administration, police and health workers, another Corona Warriors were rag-pickers and garbage collectors, who without fearing the crises, were leading the task of keeping Pune hygienic.

The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) has decided to give incentive allowance to the garbage collectors of Swachh Seva Sahakari Sanstha who go to the houses in the city to collect garbage. The agitation was staged by the employees of Swachh Sanstha expressing their displeasure over the delay in deciding to provide incentive allowance.

The proposal was immediately approved in the standing committee of the corporation which was formed after the agitation. Therefore, clean waste-collecting workers will get an incentive allowance of Rs 20 per household instead of Rs 10 per month. This allowance will be given for the next six months.

During the on-going COVID-19 crisis, as many as 3,400 garbage collectors of Swachh Sanstha were successfully collecting garbage. The uninterrupted service of garbage collection was provided by the garbage collectors when the public transport was closed due to the lockdown, while warnings were being given by the societies and the arrears of the police were being tolerated. This work is still going on. Against this backdrop, the administration had proposed to increase the incentive allowance from Rs 10 to Rs 20 per house.

An incentive allowance of Rs 10 per household is given by the Municipal Corporation to the garbage collectors who collect garbage from door to door at the settlement level. This allowance will be increased from Rs 10 to Rs 20. Accordingly, an allowance of Rs 20 per household per month will be given for a period of the next six months. It will also apply to rehabilitated slums as well as undeclared slum areas.

Regarding the approval of this proposal, the office bearers of Swachh Sanstha had met the office bearers of the political parties in the Municipal Corporation. However, since the proposal was not accepted, Swachh Sevak had taken the role of the agitator. There was also an agitation carried "Thali Wajwa" agitation in front of the Pune Municipal Corporation building. The proposal was then approved.