BJP, DMK slam Vijay for indoor meet with sanitation workers amid privatisation row
DMK spokesperson A Saravanan said Vijay was failing to understand the pulse of the people of Tamil Nadu.'People want leaders who are reachable, who see, meet and have a conversation, not someone sitting in an ivory tower, in an AC room, and issuing statements on Twitter. His excuse of saying traffic hindrance is laughable. Is he the only celebrity in Tamil Nadu? Vijay is ill-advised,' he said.In a post on X, Vijay wrote, 'While I had planned to personally meet the sanitation workers who are fighting for their just demands, I learned that they themselves wished to meet me. Considering that my visit to them might cause disruptions to traffic and the public, the sanitation workers came to the Tamil Nadu Victory Association's headquarters to meet me.'Sanitation workers have been protesting for the past few days against the privatisation of solid waste management in Zones 5 (Thiru Vi Ka Nagar) and 6 (Egmore), fearing loss of employment and demanding regularisation of jobs.The GCC has appealed to them to return to work, clarifying that all workers employed before the July 16, 2025, privatisation will now be hired by private contractor Ramkey and entitled to all benefits under labour laws.It added that since these workers were originally hired through outsourcing from the National Urban Livelihoods Mission (NULM), there will be no government jobs for them. The civic body said no worker had been denied employment, noting that 300 striking workers have already resumed duty. Ramkey is contracted to employ 3,809 workers, of which 1,770 have been hired; the remaining 2,039 posts are reserved for the protesting NULM workers.- EndsMust Watch
IN THIS STORY#Tamil Nadu
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