The impact of elections in Assam and West Bengal is now evident in Lucknow’s sanitation system. Hundreds of sanitation workers living in slums have returned to their native villages with their families to cast their votes.
Due to the shortage of staff in the municipal corporation, the civic body is managing arrangements through double shifts and increased workload. In some areas, extra labourers are being hired at daily wages ranging from Rs 1,000 to Rs 1,500 to lift garbage.
Most sanitation workers who have left are employed by the municipal corporation and have locked their homes before departing. This has caused a sudden shortage of workers in Lucknow, affecting waste management services.
In the Indira Nagar slum area, many huts remain locked as entire families leave to vote during elections. Residents report that garbage collection has suddenly stopped without prior information, leading to waste accumulation.
Local residents, including Simran from Aliganj, have noted that both municipal and private garbage collectors have ceased operations temporarily. Suraj Kumar shared that his collector informed him about travelling to Assam to vote and would return later, leaving residents to manage waste on their own.
Hotel owner Suraj also confirmed that garbage has piled up at his establishment with no clarity on when collection services will resume. Additional Municipal Commissioner Arvind Rao stated that a large number of sanitation workers have gone out for election-related duties in Assam, directly impacting cleanliness in the city.
Normally, around 1,430 vehicles and 3,500 workers are involved in sanitation work. Reports indicate that nearly 10,000 workers have left during the elections, affecting services in multiple areas. Earlier verification drives targeting lack of Aadhaar cards reportedly caused some workers to leave or be removed, contributing to an existing 60 to 70 per cent shortfall in manpower.
Lucknow usually collects about 2,100 metric tonnes of garbage daily, but this figure has dropped drastically, resulting in visible deterioration in city cleanliness. Mayor Sushma Kharkwal confirmed that during earlier drives, several people without Aadhaar cards disappeared, identifying them as Bangladeshis. She added that the remaining workers are from Assam and have gone to vote, causing a temporary shortage. The drives against illegal migrants will continue.
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