A special council meeting of the Thiruvananthapuram Corporation to decide on the construction of a house for the mother of sanitation worker N. Joy, who died after falling into the Amayizhanjan canal, witnessed stormy scenes, with both the Opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the United Democratic Front (UDF) staging a walk out at the fag end of the two hour-long meeting.
Amid the din, the council passed the resolution expressing its willingness to the State government to construct a house for the worker’s family.
The council also passed a resolution moved by Communist Party of India(Marxist) [CPI(M)] councillor D.R. Anil to demand the Indian Railways to provide ₹1 crore to the family and a job for a family member. Mr. Anil raised this demand after the BJP councillors demanded that the State government and the Corporation should provide ₹1 crore to the worker’s family.
Form special cell
The meeting also decided to constitute a special cell of health wing officials and workers, headed by the Health Standing Committee Chairperson, to address the waste management issues in the Amayizhanjan canal, which passes through seven wards. Periodic medical camps will also be held for sanitation workers, in addition to technical training with the help of the Fire and Rescue Services department.
The worker had drowned while he was involved in cleaning up a section of the Amayizhanjan canal inside the Railway’s property in the capital earlier this week. The meeting witnessed heated debates over the agency responsible for the worker’s death. The BJP councillors blamed the State government as well as the Corporation for its failure in waste management measures, which they said, led to the worker’s death.
The UDF councillors equally blamed the Railways, the State government, and the civic body. However, the BJP councillors were put in a spot when Mayor Arya Rajendran repeatedly kept demanding them whether they would agree to a resolution demanding the Railways to provide compensation. She said that the State government had quickly announced compensation and handed it over to the family, while the Railways is yet to make any announcement.
Began sloganeering
The BJP councillors maintained that it is not a question of a smile ‘yes or no’ answer and initiated sloganeering, holding placards demanding the Mayor’s resignation. BJP councillor M.R. Gopan asked whether the Corporation has been able to complete any waste management project successfully.
Health Standing Committee Chairperson Gayathri Babu said that everyone, including the Corporation as well as the general public, has a responsibility in keeping the canals and waterbodies clean. She asked whether the Railways has put in place any waste management measures.
