Shimla, May 21
The seven day strike by sanitation workers in Shimla city ended on Thursday after a consensus was reached between the Municipal Corporation and SEHB workers during talks held in the afternoon.
The decision to withdraw the strike was taken after several key demands of the workers were accepted during the meeting between Mayor Surender Chauhan and representatives of the sanitation staff.
Under the agreement, sanitation workers will receive a 10 percent wage increase. The services of 41 workers who were terminated during the strike period will also be reinstated. The civic body has further agreed to provide 15 days of special leave under the 4-9-14 policy, addressing a long pending demand of the workers.
Mayor Surender Chauhan gave a written assurance that all agreed demands would be implemented in a phased manner.
SEHB Society president Jaswant Kaha said the workers would resume duties from Friday. He said most of the demands were accepted by the Municipal Corporation, following which the strike was called off. He also expressed regret over the inconvenience caused to residents and assured them that sanitation services would be restored at the earliest.
The strike had severely impacted sanitation services across Shimla for the past week, leading to the accumulation of garbage in several areas and causing inconvenience to residents and tourists during the ongoing tourist season. Around 800 sanitation workers had been on strike during this period.
With the agreement reached between the civic body and workers, normal sanitation operations are expected to resume from Friday.
