After a month-long protest, the multitasking staff (MTS) of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) resumed their duties on November 1 following a written assurance from the civic body to address their key demands.
The workers, who tackle mosquito breeding across the Capital, had started a protest on September 29 demanding equal pay, paid leaves, and compensatory jobs for the kin of deceased employees. After calling off the strike, they stressed that the decision was made through “mutual agreement and not administrative pressure”.
“After the third meeting of the committee formed by Mayor [Raja Iqbal Singh] to address our demands, which was held on October 31, we decided to call off our protest,” said Devanand Sharma, general secretary of the Anti-Malaria Ekta Karmachari Union. “Our demands were finally acknowledged in writing. A report was submitted to the Mayor that very day assuring us that a proposal for standardising our pay will be placed in the next Standing Committee meeting,” he added.
Although the union has temporarily withdrawn its demand for regularisation, Mr. Sharma said the decision was made after discussions with the committee. “We still want to be regularised, but we understand it cannot be done immediately. It’s not feasible in the short term,” he said.
According to the letter submitted by Leader of the House Parvesh Wahi, the MCD Commissioner has been requested to write to the Chief Minister requesting approval of the salary budget within seven days.
The proposal aims to standardise MTS workers’ pay at ₹27,900 per month, replacing the current uneven structure.
The letter also mentioned that once the proposal is approved, pay standardisation could be implemented within a month. The total revised annual budget is estimated at ₹41 crore for around 4,250 MTS-PH workers.
The 10-member committee, which includes two union representatives, also agreed to consider other demands, such as paid and earned leaves, as well as compensatory jobs for the families of deceased employees, although no fixed timeline was announced.
Vidya Bharti, a 48-year-old DBC worker from the West Zone who protested for 33 days, said cautiously, “We trust our representatives and hope that within two months our pay will finally increase. It will be a big relief after years of doing the same work for less pay.”
Published – November 04, 2025 01:32 am IST
