Will learn from Karnataka on rewarding sanitation workers if voted to power: Rahul

The Congress president, who is on the sixth leg of his tour of poll-bound Karnataka, was interacting with Pourakarmikas (sanitation workers) in Bengaluru.

Congress president Rahul Gandhi  on Sunday said his party, if voted to power at the Centre, will learn from Karnataka on how to reward sanitation workers.

Gandhi, who is on the sixth leg of his tour of poll-bound Karnataka, was interacting with Pourakarmikas (sanitation workers) in Bengaluru.

Chief minister Siddaramaiah, who was present with city mayor R Sampath Raj, told Gandhi that Karnataka has abolished the sanitation contractors hiring sanitation workers and enhanced their salaries from Rs 7,500 to Rs 18,000.

When Gandhi asked the sanitation workers about their  expectations from the government in the next five years, they unanimously demanded that they should be regularised.

They, however, thanked Siddaramaiah for increasing their salaries from Rs 7,500 per month to Rs 18,000.

Hailing the chief minister, Gandhi said “Now, when we get the government in Delhi, we will learn from the Karnataka  government because the person doing the most difficult work  should be rewarded the most.”

“The problem in India is that the person doing the most difficult work is not rewarded and the person doing the easiest work is rewarded. That is what the Congress party wants to change.”

Former president of Karnataka Safai Karmachari Ayog,  Narayan, welcomed Gandhi’s statement and urged him to abolish  the contract system of hiring sanitation workers across the country.