Demanding the state government to revoke privatisation of solid waste management, DMK’s allies - Communist Party of India and the Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi, Bahujan Samaj Party, Welfare Party, and Social Democratic Party of India, participated in a rally on Friday, November 28. The rally was taken from Chitra theatre to Langs Garden in Chennai’s Egmore.
The protest was organised by the Uzhaiypor Urumai Iyakkam workers’ union, which is spearheading the struggle.
The protesting workers demanded the government to reinstate them under the Greater Chennai Corporation, and regularise their jobs. The workers have been protesting since August 1 after the waste management in the Thiru Vi Ka nagar and Royapuram zones was contractualised under Chennai Enviro Engineers Limited, a private contractor.
Vowing to fight for the workers’ rights, CPI state committee member Karunanidhi said that they have always worked to safeguard the rights of the workers. “The Communist Party of India is in coalition with the DMK because we want to stop the BJP and AIADMK from entering the state. However, in matters relating to workers issues, the party will always stand with the workers. When the DMK government tried to introduce a Bill in the Tamil Nadu assembly to increase the working hours from 8 hours to 12 hours, the Communist party protested against the Chief Minister in the Parliament.” Karunanidhi said.
Similarly, VCK leader T Parventhan said that despite being allies they would not remain silent if the government’s policies affect the marginalised communities.
“During the pandemic, CM Stalin said that we should fall at the feet of the sanitation workers. Why is he unwilling to fulfil his own promises that he made then. To the chief Minister, I say, "we may be in your coalition, but we will not stand idle when marginalised people are affected by your policies,” he said.
He said that it would be revolutionary if the government released a hundred percent of the workers from sanitation work by implementing mechanisation of sanitation work. “We would applaud Stalin for it. Leaving the workers to the mercy of the private sector and washing his hands off the issue, is that revolutionary?,” he questioned.
Advocate Pulianthope Mohan, coordinator of the rally, participating in the protest said that their primary demand is roll back the decision to privatise.
“For 13 days, we raised only one demand. Revert to the system that existed before August 1.” “The fight for permanency can be fought in the court,” he said referring to the DMK party’s promise in the election manifesto to regularise the jobs of the sanitation workers.
Meanwhile, four women sanitation workers – Genova, Bharathi, Geetha and Vasanthi – launched an indefinite hunger strike on November 18 after obtaining permission from the Madras High Court.
For the past four months sanitation workers have been relentlessly protesting against the privatisation of solid waste management. The protest intensified after the police launched a midnight crackdown forcibly evicting the protesters from GCC on August 13.