Sindh legislating to protect rights of sanitary workers

Provincial govt tells SC it has allocated special fund for provision of PPE to janitorial staff

ISLAMABAD: Sindh government is providing personal protective equipment (PPE) to the sanitary workers performing their duties during the coronavirus pandemic and in this regard it has also decided to allocate a special fund in the provincial budget.

In its report submitted to the apex court in coronavirus suo motu case, the provincial government said it has ensured constant provision of the PPEs to the sanitary workers, who, it said, would be given their salaries within a week.

The Supreme Court on June 8 asked the federal government to draft legislation to tackle the contagious disease and its effects. A four-judge bench, led by Chief Justice of Pakistan Gulzar Ahmed, had also wondered how a policy could be formulated through executive orders.

On the same day, the bench had also asked authorities to ensure that sanitary workers are provided with the needed protective gear to carry out their daily work and that they are not asked to work beyond their duty.

“If they are made to do work which has the remotest possibility of their being affected by such disease or ailment which may pose a threat to their life, strong and effective steps should be taken by [authorities] for ensuring that all sorts of safety kits are mandatorily provided to sanitary staff.”

The bench had said if legislation to this effect has not been made by the federal and provincial governments, they shall ensure that such legislation “dealing with this very aspect of the matter” shall be made, which is very important and a requirement under Article 9 of the Constitution.”

According to the report submitted by the Sindh government, the number of coronavirus disease patients in the province has risen from 32,910 to 59,983 in the last two week.

“Due to effective measures, the recovery ratio of the patients has also increased from 49% to 49.6%. The death rate due to the disease is 1.5%,” the report added.

“329,433 people were tested for the virus till June 7. There are 11,680 beds available in the isolation centres and 332 beds in the intensive care units (ICUs).”

The report said 21 laboratories in Sindh were conducting 11,486 tests every day. “Smart lockdown is also imposed in areas more affected by the disease,” the report added.