LMC to not hire Bangladeshis for sanitation work in city

LUCKNOW: The Lucknow Municipal Corporation (LMC) has decided to not hire any Bangladeshi or Assamese person for sanitation work in the city. In a directive to all agencies and contractors working for it, the LMC has made it clear that they cannot take services of any Bangladeshi.

Additional municipal commissioner Anil Mishra said , “Bangladeshis are not residents of India. They come here as Assamese without any Aadhar or voter Id card , gradually start earning through petty jobs and settle here permanently. Above all, leaders of the Valmiki community ( who are sanitation workers) have complained against them as these Bangladeshis have threatened then and clashed with them a number of times .”

Durgesh Valmiki, leader of the Valmiki community in the LMC said, “The Valmiki community is traditionally into the job of cleaning and sanitation and these Bangladeshis have started creating trouble for us. They are aggressive and have clashed with Valmikis and Dhanuks a number of times because of the support they get from some local contractors who help them in establishing their colony on government land. Today Valmikis and Dhanuks are under threat because of these illegal immigrants from Bagladesh.”

The LMC officials say that to get cheap labour, local contractors prefer recruiting Bangladeshis and colonizing them in hutments. So the population of Bangladeshis is increasing in the city as well as in sanitation work.

The LMC has also conducted an internal survey in which it found that the number of Bangladeshis was almost equal to local Valmikis. It also found that the Bangladeshis had started forming string groups and clashed with Valmikis and dhanuks for domination in sanitation jobs. such clashes were reported at more than 34 places last year.

It is said that the leaders of Valmiki community approached municipal commissioner and CM office. Additional municipal commissioner Anil Mishra said, “There were several complaints about the Bangladeshis affecting the working of the LMC. So the municipal corporation directed that no Bangladeshi would be recruited for sanitation work and those who did not have Adhaar and voter ID card would not be given job through contractors.”