Mumbai: After helping BMC during Covid, Community Health Volunteers now beg on streets

Khairunnisa Khan alias Mastani sits listlessly outside a Bandra mosque waiting to receive alms her only source of income Before her retirement in 2014 Mastani now 73 was among the cityrsquos 4000 community health volunteers many of whom shone as the BMCrsquos footsoldiers in its fight against CovidBut these workers are not even paid the minimum wage forget retirement benefits After a protracted legal battle the Bombay High Court in 2017 ordered that they be treated as BMC employees but the civic body moved Supreme Court A volunteer is paid Rs 9000 a month The community health volunteers have no idea when the top court will take a decision on their future Without retirement benefits many like Mastani are begging on the streets for survivalAlso readMarathi medium educated teachers heave a sigh of relief after CMs interventionSaraswati Sapkal begs opposite the Saidham temple at Kandivli East PicAnurag AhireAs the BMCrsquos frontline workers health volunteers are involved in surveying and awareness of governmentrun health programmes like Pulse Polio TB and leprosy Despite being exposed to contagious diseases and other health risks they do not have insurance and allowancesldquoAfter much efforts the BMC agreed to raise our salary by Rs 2000 a month from June but it has not happenedrdquo said a community health volunteer midday met two retired health volunteers who beg to survivelsquoMy starting pay was Rs 200rsquoSaraswati Sapkal 68 lives at Saraswati Chawl Hanuman Nagar in Kandivli East For the past four years she has been begging in front of the Saidham temple off the Western Express Highway Her home has no power supplySapkal joined as a community health volunteer in 1994 with a monthly salary of R200 which had risen to R4000 by the time she retired in February 2019 Sapkal lost her husband in 1996 Of their four children two daughters died in their adulthood Her younger son is emotionally disturbed while the other works for an automobile company but doesnrsquot take care of his motherSapkal said ldquoIn my 25 years as a community health volunteer I visited homes in my area every day braving rain heat and winter Whatever little I was to get after retirement I havenrsquot even got itrdquoSaraswati Sakpal at her home which doesnrsquot have electricity at Akurli Kandivli West PicAnurag AhireSapkal said life is harsh after retirement ldquoSomehow I could manage things when I was working but I have no source of income now Also I donrsquot have the strength to work So I started begging outside the temple I request the government to help me and other health volunteers with some pensionrdquolsquoNever took leave in 20 yearsrsquoMastani said she got the name from civic officials who often appreciated her hard work She started in 1994 and retired in 2014 She also started with R200 a month She said she was among many who helped the BMC carry out vasectomiesldquoI never took leave in my 20 years of service worked in the social sector as well With the help of former minister Salim Zakaria I got a water pipeline installed in my areardquo Her son and his wife live separatelyldquoI live with my daughter and granddaughter in a hut but they also do not take care of me Irsquove diabetes and need food and medicine on time but I am not getting that too Sometimes I beg for my medicine and food at Bandra Masjidrdquo she saidShameful policy Union leaderAdvocate Prakash Devdas president of Mahapalika Arogya Seva Karmachari Sanghatana Mumbai said they have been fighting for the health volunteers for several years The workers got a favourable response from the labour court in 2002 prompting the BMC to approach the HCMastani says she spent 20 years as a community health volunteer but received no benefits PicSayyed Sameer AbedildquoThe Bombay High Court declared them as BMC employees but the BMC has gone to the Supreme Court only with a view to delay justice As a result those community health volunteers who are retired have no alternative but to beg The policy of BMC is shamefulrdquo said Devdas The union leader said the BMC is shying away from PF and pension benefits citing the case in the SC ldquoHundreds of the health volunteers will be retiring in two years They will also be forced to beg for their bread and butterrdquo This newspaper also spoke to a few onduty health volunteerslsquoWersquore not Asha workersrsquoKalpana Mahatre a health volunteer for 20 years said ldquoThere is a misconception among people that we are on a par with Anganwadi or Asha workers but we are notrdquo She said their job was very challenging during Covid ldquoIn the peak of the pandemic we helped shift Covid patients to hospital from their homes We were the first to touch base with the Coronavirus patientsrdquoMahatre said community health volunteers are appointed through a process similar to other BMC employees like nurses and midwives ldquoOthersrsquo jobs are regularised after a few years but we havenrsquot been luckyrdquolsquoOthers took credit forgot usrsquoManda Angorkhe who works in Dharavi said ldquoEveryone took the credit for the work we did during Covid and were honoured as lsquocorona warriorsrsquo Then they forgot usrdquo Despite working on the health front Angorkhe said they donrsquot get the facilities that BMC workers get at civicrun hospitals ldquoIf a community health volunteer is pregnant and goes to a BMC hospital she first has to pay R10 to buy the admission form But BMC workers flash their ID cards and get it for freerdquolsquoWe too have a familyrsquoSunita Sutar said they keep in touch with 650 to 2000 homes and maintain health records with regard to many diseases apart from pregnant women and children ldquoWhatever healthrelated information reaches the BMC from ground zero itrsquos generated by us Considering the responsibility we have been entrusted with we are not getting what we deserverdquo She added ldquoWe also have a family Like the others in the BMC who are entitled to facilities we should also get themrdquo Additional Municipal Commissioner Sanjay Kumar said he was busy with the Assembly session work and would talk later But there was no response at the time of going to print4000No of volunteers in the city2002When labour court ordered in favour of the volunteers