PERAMBALUR: Day in, day out, sanitation workers in several villages across Perambalur district run the risk of being dragged down by bouts of ill health as they punch into mountains of trash with bare hands. According to the sanitation workers, they have little to no choice but to collect waste in empty sacks owing to lack of equipment, including buckets, pushcarts and battery vehicles.
Most of these vehicles, which have undergone depreciation over the years due to poor maintenance, could be spotted in front of panchayat offices or on the side of roads, the workers rue. On top of it all, the sanitation staff are exposed to detrimental health effects as they go about collecting and segregating garbage door-to-door in the remotest areas of the district without adequate safety equipment or gear, albeit multiple complaints have had been raised in this regard with the authorities concerned.
Sources said sanitation woes stemming from lack of equipment ail several villages in the district, including Vayalur, Adaikkampatti, Perali, Ayikudi, Kottarai, Nochiyam, Pasumbalur, Keela Perambalur and V Kalathur. Under the solid waste management scheme, sanitation workers segregate and dump the garbage collected from households into the three pits respectively dug in each of the panchayats; biodegradable waste is converted to fertiliser, while non-biodegradable waste gets recycled.
A 41-year-old sanitation worker, on conditions of anonymity, told TNIE, "We are allocated Rs 3,000 every year to meet our basic expenses, including soap, oil, gloves and uniform. At times, even this meagre wage does not reach us in its entirety. Despite all this, we are forced to face the risk of getting infected as we collect garbage with bare hands. Even the pushcarts are not equipped with enough buckets to collect waste. Moreover, most of them have incurred damage, including punctured tyres.
Most often, we ourselves pay from our pockets to repair the damaged vehicles, propelling many of us to prefer sacks to vehicles." S Kathirvel, a resident of Perambalur, said, "At Least seven battery vehicles, three pushcarts and 20 garbage bins were worn out only in Pasumbalur, V Kalathur and Keela Perambalur over poor maintenance.
Other villages, too, have encountered similar plight. Yet, the authorities fail to fix them. Many a times, segregated waste is dumped on roadsides owing to lack of equipment. When enquired, the workers pointed their fingers at official apathy." District Rural Development Agency (DRDA) Executive Engineer A Sujatha told TNIE, "I recently took charge as the DRDA. Hence, I am not aware of the condition of the available vehicles. However, we are ready to purchase new ones for the purpose of waste collection."