Ludhiana: Amid complaints, MC to ascertain where 1,200 sanitation workers are

MC commissioner Ojasvi Alankar says such employees have been drawing salaries but councillors have complained that they never came across such workers; zonal commissioners will look into the issue

Amid complaints from councillors that the 1,200 sanitation employees, hired under the outsourcing system nearly one year ago, have never been seen working in their respective areas, the Ludhiana Municipal Corporation (MC) has ordered the higher-ups to look into the issue. The councillors and even the contractual sanitation workers have termed them ghost employees, accusing influential people of facilitating the hirings for their relatives or acquaintances.

The contractual workers have criticised the civic body for not regularising their services and hiring outsourced staff. (HT PHOTO)

Confirming the issue, MC commissioner Ojasvi Alankar said such employees have been drawing salaries but the “councillors have complained that they never came across such workers”. He said the MC hired around 1,200 sanitation workers around one year ago. “However, councillors complain that they have never seen them. The issue was also highlighted during urban bodies minister Harjot Bains’ Ludhiana visit,” he said.

Alankar has ordered the respective zonal commissioners to take stock of the situation and get to the bottom of the issue.

Meanwhile, the contractual workers at the corporation said that they had been working for decades and seeking job regularisation, but the civic body, instead of accepting their demands, is hiring outsourced workers who have never been seen.

“The MC hired around 1,200 sweepers, beldars, gardeners and sewermen through outsourcing across the four zones of the city. Surprisingly, nobody ever met these workers who are drawing salaries,” said Vicky Sahota, president of Rashtriya Safai Karmachari Mahasangh.

Sahota said the issue was also discussed with minister Bains on August 1. “The minister had asked the commissioner to find out where the workers are,” he said. He alleged that the outsourced workers were close to politicians who facilitated the hirings. “These people are relatives and friends of powerful people. That is why everything happened so smoothly and we haven’t seen any action so far,” he said.

BJP district president and Ward 63 councillor Sunil Moudgil said 200 such workers were hired in the Ludhiana West assembly constituency. “But I have never seen them turning up for work. We have asked the corporation to come clean on this issue,” he said.

This is not the first time the civic body has faced the issue of ghost employees. In March, allegations regarding a ghost employee scam resurfaced in the civic body, with Congress councillor Bhupinder Kaur accusing officials of facilitating irregularities in the health branch and failing to act on repeated complaints.