Garbage lifting in Madurai city comes to a standstill as conservancy workers go on strike
Conservancy workers in Madurai have launched a strike to demand the termination of a private waste management agency they claim is anti-labour. The strike has led to significant garbage accumulation across the city, with workers calling for better staffing and direct municipal management.
Why it matters
The strike highlights ongoing tensions regarding the privatization of essential municipal services and the impact of labor disputes on public sanitation and urban health.
Demanding the ouster of the private agency outsourced by the Tamil Nadu government immediately, the conservancy workers’ affiliated to various trade unions commenced their strike on Monday (October 5).
As a result, the garbage, which had piled up, across the 100 wards in Madurai city, could not be cleared. In many extension areas and around Sri Meenakshi Temple, near Periyar bus stand and other locations, the garbage was strewn on open spaces.
The workers staged a sit-in protest in front of the Anna Maaligai, the headquarters of the civic body, demanding the attention of the government.
Speaking to media persons, CITU district secretary M. Balasubramanian said that they had been seeking the termination of the private agency, outsourced to clear the garbage for over one year. The private agency had not only violated the norms, but also was ‘anti-labour’.
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