Swachh rankings to take Delhi civic bodies’ Covid response into account

NEW DELHI: Future Swachh Bharat rankings will assess the municipal bodies of Delhi on their response to the Covid-19 pandemic, particularly the vaccination of sanitation workers and insurance cover and protective gear provided to them, senior civic officials said.

But that’s not all: the overall assessment will also factor in the training provided to workers in dealing with epidemic-related emergencies and providing fair compensation to the dependents of municipal workers who have lost their lives in the line of duty.

Sanitation workers were the worst-hit by the pandemic among the municipal staff. Of the 94 officially reported deaths among civic staff due to Covid, 49 were of safai karamcharis.

The Swachh Survekshan is an annual national survey to assess cleanliness and sanitation in cities and towns across India. It was launched in 2016 as a part of the Swachh Bharat Mission. Barring 2018, when the south corporation fared relatively well, Delhi’s three municipal corporations have consistently performed poorly in these rankings. In the Swachh Survekshan 2020, the East Delhi civic body was ranked 46th among 47 local bodies in its category, as the South body ranked 31 and the North DMC was at 43rd .

A South civic body official from the sanitation department said that the first preparatory meeting for the 2022 Swachh Survekshan happened on September 30 where the new parameters were discussed. “Of the total 2,250 points, 200 will be awarded in epidemic response preparedness; 50 points will be awarded if more than 95% of the frontline workers have been fully vaccinated, while 30 marks will be awarded if between 65 and 80% of the staff have received both doses of the vaccine,” the official said, on condition of anonymity.

The municipal corporations have also been asked to provide monthly training to the frontline workers for dealing with epidemic-related emergencies. Another 30 points have been kept for adequate compensation, making it binding on corporations to offer compensation in all cases under the national insurance scheme, official added.

The South Delhi Municipal Corporation lost 21 frontline workers to Covid-19. It reported having paid ₹10 lakh as compensation to 20 of them and approving payment in the pending case. Dependents of 11 of the deceased have also been provided jobs

The five local bodies of the city, including the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) and Delhi Cantonment Board, will also be assessed on gear provided to sanitary workers such as personal protective equipment, fluorescent jackets, gloves and boots.

In the past year, several sanitation unions have flagged the issue of lack of protective equipment during the pandemic. Deepak Pihal who heads Nigam Karamchari Ekta Manch, a union of sanitation workers, said that while most of the workers have been vaccinated, no significant progress has been made in terms of providing protective equipment or training. “Since the onset of the pandemic, we have been demanding that protective equipment be provided to us. But only tall claims have been made,” Pihal said.

The new survey methodology also states that all sanitary workers will have to be trained in segregating waste, collecting waste from quarantined homes, and handling Covid waste. Sanitation workers’ unions say structural changes need to be incorporated to improve working conditions.

AMONG THE MUNICIPAL STAFF, SANITATION WORKERS WERE THE WORST-HIT BY THE PANDEMIC