NEW DELHI: Single window health camps to ensure better quality of life to sanitation workers and their family members is one of the key elements of this year’s ‘Swachhata Hi Seva’ campaign starting September 17. To honour the “everyday heroes” and to recognise their efforts, the Centre has asked district authorities across states and Union Territories (UTs) to set up preventive health checkup camps during the two-week long drive. All workers — either a direct employee, contracted, or outsourced by local bodies to carry out key ‘swachhata’ functions such as road sweeping, door to door collection of waste from households, mechanical de-silting of sewers and septic tanks — will be benefitted from the initiative, said officials.Besides Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) kits, protective gears will be provided to sanitation workers to safeguard them from occupational hazards.While briefing at the curtain raiser event of the campaign, Union Minister for Housing and Urban Affairs Manohar Lal said that in the camps, the sanitation workers would be helped in enrolling various social welfare schemes being run by the government.“Because our Swachhta Sipahis (sanitation warriors) are involved in a work that affects their wellbeing, health camps will be organised to carry out check-ups for them. If any treatment is required, it will be ensured. How can their economic status and lifestyle be improved? How can they benefit from various government schemes? This will also be ensured,” said the minister.The theme of this year’s campaign is ‘Swabhav Swachhata Sanskaar Swachhata (4S) 2024’. As part of the initiative, the Centre has also planned to clean and transform about two lakh ‘dirty and difficult’ garbage spots or sites such as tourist places and water bodies.The authorities have been asked to organise sessions to sensitise medical professionals about the roles and challenges faced by sanitation workers.
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