Haryana Sanitation Workers Tonsure Heads During Month-Long Strike Over Job Regularisation

Several sanitation workers across Haryana tonsured their heads on Friday as part of a protest against what they described as the state government's “repressive” approach towards their month-long strike demanding regularisation of their jobs.

The workers held demonstrations and dharnas at multiple locations, including Ambala, Karnal, Jhajjar, Fatehabad and Charkhi Dadri. At some of these protests, sanitation workers shaved their heads as a symbolic expression of their anger over the government's handling of their demands.

The sanitation workers have been on strike since August 6, pressing for permanent employment among their 17 demands. With the agitation continuing, accumulated garbage has been reported at several locations across the state.

The Haryana government, meanwhile, has directed the protesting employees to return to work by September 5, warning that failure to do so could result in legal and departmental action.

On Wednesday, the Urban Local Bodies Department instructed municipal corporation commissioners and district municipal commissioners to ask striking employees under their jurisdiction to resume their duties by Saturday. The government said the workers had remained absent without prior notice or permission.

According to the department's letter, the striking employees were also allegedly preventing other workers from carrying out their responsibilities and damaging sanitation equipment and machinery. The government said FIRs had been registered against some employees in connection with such incidents.

The state government has maintained that it has already accepted 12 of the workers' demands. However, it said the demand for regularisation involves several legal issues and is currently being examined from a legal perspective.

The government has also said that six rounds of discussions were held with representatives of the employees' union between May 13 and August 31. According to an earlier official statement, the union was repeatedly urged not to prolong the strike while negotiations were continuing.

However, union leaders said the government's actions would not weaken the workers' movement.

Naresh Kumar Shastri, state president of the Nagarpalika Karamchari Sangh, Haryana, and Rajendra Singh, state president of the Haryana Fire Department Employees' Union, alleged on Friday that measures such as dismissals, suspensions and criminal cases were being used to suppress the agitation.

The union leaders claimed that more than 500 employees participated in the mass tonsure protest against the government's alleged “repressive policies”.

They further announced that the next phase of the agitation would involve demonstrations outside the residences and camp offices of Haryana ministers on September 5 and 6. The protesters plan to question the ministers over the alleged failure to fulfil the BJP's earlier promise to regularise sanitation workers.

The union leaders alleged that sanitation and sewer workers had faced years of exploitation under the contract system. They claimed that low wages and employment insecurity had pushed several workers' families towards financial hardship.

They also alleged that despite regular recruitment being carried out for various government departments and positions, sanitation workers continued to face discrimination.

According to the union, the government should fill vacant sanitation worker posts through permanent appointments and end the contractual system instead of taking punitive measures against employees participating in the strike.

Shastri and Singh said the agitation would continue until all 17 demands agreed upon during discussions on May 13 are implemented. They also demanded a policy for regularising contractual sanitation, sewer, municipal and fire department workers and the withdrawal of punitive action taken against protesting employees.

with inputs from PTI