Bihar: Government sets up sanitation workers panel; women and trans members included

NEW DELHI: Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar on Sunday approved the formation of the State Sanitation Workers Commission to safeguard the rights of sanitation workers and oversee their welfare, rehabilitation, empowerment, and access to government schemes.

In a social media post on X, Nitish said that the commission will consist of a chairperson, a vice-chairperson, and five members, including one woman/transgender member.


"I am delighted to announce that, to ensure the protection, welfare, rehabilitation, social upliftment, grievance redressal, and monitoring of various welfare schemes for sanitation workers in Bihar, I have directed the department to establish the Bihar State Sanitation Workers Commission. This commission will provide suggestions related to the interests of sanitation workers, advise the government on safeguarding their rights, and take appropriate action to review and implement welfare schemes for those engaged in sanitation work," Nitish said.


"The Bihar State Sanitation Workers Commission will consist of a chairperson, a vice-chairperson, and five members, including one woman/transgender member. This commission will play a significant role in integrating the deprived sections of society involved in sanitation work into the mainstream and contributing to their social and economic development," he added.

Ahead of the upcoming assembly elections, scheduled at the end of the year, Nitish has launched a flurry of social safety schemes in the state. Earlier on Saturday, the Bihar government also announced a hike in the pension of accredited journalists under the Bihar Patrakaar Samman Pension Scheme.

Additionally, the government decided to implement a domicile policy for government jobs reserved for women. Since 2016, a 35 percent reservation quota has been in place for female candidates in state government jobs. The new domicile policy, approved by the State Cabinet today, restricts this quota to women who are permanent residents of Bihar.

The Nitish-led government also announced a provision of 125 units of free electricity for domestic consumers.