SHIMLA: THE CITY could soon be staring at overflowing garbage dumps during the peak tourist season as SEHB workers have announced an indefinite strike from tomorrow, accusing the Shimla Municipal Corporation (SMC) of ignoring their long-pending demands.
The protesting workers who have come under CITU banner said the civic body has failed to implement assurances regarding a 10 percent annual wage hike, gratuity benefits, bonus payments and deployment of additional staff despite repeated representations. Agitated over the alleged “step-motherly treatment” by the corporation, the workers have decided to stop work indefinitely.
The strike is expected to severely affect the city’s waste collection system at a time when tourist footfall has surged with the summer rush. Garbage lifting from households, hotels and markets is likely to be hit, raising fears of waste piling up across the town within days.
SEHB workers said sanitation staff are already overburdened as the volume of garbage has increased manifold due to growing tourism and urban expansion, while manpower and facilities have remained almost stagnant.
Meanwhile, the Shimla Municipal Corporation has appealed to residents to cooperate during the strike period and dispose of household waste only at designated garbage collection points and community dumping spots identified by the civic body across different wards of the city.
Residents have been advised not to dump garbage on roadsides, drains or open spaces to avoid a sanitation mess. However, many citizens fear that if the deadlock continues for long, the hill town could witness a full-blown garbage crisis in the middle of the tourist season.
The strike has also triggered concern among hoteliers, traders and tourism stakeholders who fear that heaps of uncollected waste could damage Shimla’s image among tourists arriving in large numbers to escape the scorching heat in the plains.
