GUJRAT: The local government department has allowed the municipalities to recruit sanitary workers for one month under the prime minister’s initiative of Clean and Green Pakistan Index (CGPI).

The permission has been granted on directions of Chief Minister Usman Buzdar and the interim sanitary staff will join the services from Jan 1, 2020 till Jan 31, said a senior official of the local government department on Saturday.

He added the authorities in the cities included in the CGPI competition had been told to start recruitment so that the campaign could achieve the initial targets. Almost all the civic agencies in Punjab had been facing shortage of sanitary staff due to the ban on recruitment even on daily-wage or contract basis; however, the permission had been granted only for one month interim period.

Meanwhile, Gujrat Deputy Commissioner Dr Khurram Shahzad during a meeting the other day launched hiring of sanitary staff.

The DC told the meeting that Gujrat Municipal Corporation (GtMC) had been allowed to hire at least 120 sanitary workers whereas the municipal committees of the district had been permitted to hire around 100 workers, followed by 50 sanitary workers in the town committees. He said the heads of the municipalities should utilise this human resource on lifting garbage from the main arteries as well as the rehabilitation of the greenbelts and medians. He said entry and exit points of the cities should be given preference in beautification drive.

It is learnt Assistant Commissioner Muhammad Jameel has been assigned the task of rehabilitation of the greenbelts and plantation on medians of the 15km long GT Road.

The highways, forest and other departments have also been directed to assist the authorities in tree planting and sanitation drive across the district.

The drive for the restoration of the green belts in the city has been launched from the GT Road where bushes and garbage were removed from the greenbelts locating in front of the Wall of Gujrat outside of the general bus stand on Saturday.

Published in Dawn, December 22nd, 2019