The Municipal Corporation of Delhi has raised the monthly salaries of around 4,000 multi-tasking staff by Rs 10,000, taking their pay from Rs 18,800 to Rs 28,800 in a decision that recognises the long-serving workforce behind the city’s public health operations.
The announcement was made on Friday at a felicitation ceremony at the MCD’s Civic Centre, attended by Delhi chief minister Rekha Gupta. Mayor Pravesh Wahi said the salary revision would add Rs 52 crore to the civic body’s annual expenditure. He also said the proposal had received the chief minister’s approval.
The employees were originally recruited as domestic breeding checkers during Delhi’s 1996-97 dengue outbreak. Their initial work involved door-to-door outreach and public health activities linked to mosquito-borne disease control. During periods outside the dengue season, they also assisted other MCD departments, including property tax operations.
Many of the workers have remained associated with the civic body for nearly 30 years. Since the MCD does not have an officially sanctioned post for domestic breeding checkers, the workers were later absorbed as multi-tasking staff after years of demands. Their absorption made them eligible for various employment benefits and established their current classification within the civic workforce.
Gupta said the staff had played an important role in protecting public health by conducting door-to-door outreach. “Recruited during the dengue outbreak in Delhi, these staff members have played a vital role in safeguarding public health by conducting door-to-door outreach. It is the govt’s responsibility to duly honour their years of struggle and contribution,” she said.
Wahi said the revised salaries had been transferred directly into the employees’ bank accounts during the event. The direct transfer links the announcement to the workers’ existing payroll arrangements rather than creating a one-time payment or honorarium.
The mayor also announced that the MCD plans to engage 2,500 additional sanitation workers from next month for a three-month period. The temporary workforce will be deployed to markets, commercial complexes and areas hosting festive celebrations, including puja ghats.
Wahi said the additional workers would be engaged to maintain cleanliness during the festive period, including Diwali, and could be deployed at different locations depending on operational requirements. The MCD’s next steps are the recruitment and deployment of the additional sanitation workers for the announced three-month period.
