KARACHI, March 4: The number of the low-paid KWSB health workers (Kundimen), who undertake the most important work of cleaning sewerage lines and gutters, is shrinking very fast and it is feared that their existence in the board would almost come to an end soon if no proper measures were taken to ameliorate their lot.

At present, the total strength of these health workers (Kundimen), including sweepers, is 1,150 which means hardly 6 or 7 of them could be deputed in each union council (UC) of the city as there are in all 178 UCs, for ensuring smooth functioning of sewerage lines, most of them in dilapidated condition, and also for checking the menace of overflowing gutters.

"How fast the number of Kundimen in the KWSB is being reduced could be gauged from the fact that there were in all 2,400 Kundimen in 1993 while at, present, their strength is only 1,150 kundimen," a senior official of the KWSB remarked.

Attributing the cause of Kundimen's declining strength to their low salaries and the most hazardous nature of their job, sources in the KWSB said that on one hand, the Kundimen, who were employed in grade 3 or 5, got a meagre salary, ranging between Rs3,500 and 5,000 and, on the other, they were not provided with the safety gadgets, such as masks, despite the fact that a number of Kundimen had already lost their lives after inhaling poisonous gasses while performing their jobs inside the gutters.

According to sources another reason for the decline in the number of these kundimen is that most of them did not want their wards to adopt this profession and encourage them to either take up the profession of tailoring or some other profession or send them abroad where they are highly paid.

"Isn't it an irony that those who risk their lives while cleaning chocked gutters and sewerage lines, having human excreta and other filthy materials, are so poorly paid, remarked an official of the KWSB.

The official said that those who performed the duties of cleaning sewers in developed countries were not only considered as the most important employees but were paid a handsome salary and performed their jobs with the assistance of mechanised equipments.

Expressing dismay over the Kundimen's poor status, they deplored that although most of political and religious leaders, often talked about dignity of labour in their speeches and sermons, but had never done anything concrete for the betterment of these unfortunate people.

"People at the helm of affairs will have to take some drastic measures for the welfare of these kundimen, or else a time will come soon when no one would like to take up the profession of Kundimen which is being performed by members of Christian community," the sources said, adding that if such a situation arises who will undertake the task of cleaning gutters and sewer lines of the city as no Muslim would be willing to perform such duties.