Mumbai: Amid the rising cases of Covid-19 and Omicron, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) tied up with the Clean-Up Foundation to vaccinate nearly 2,000 garbage collectors in Dharavi.
Calling the initiative a "Christmas gift" for the residents of Dharavi, the Clean-up Foundation also distributed ration packets to all those getting vaccinated at the camp. This was also done to ensure maximum participation from the rag-pickers and garbage collectors in the camp. Senior BMC officials with their team of doctors and health workers were present at the occasion.
The organisation’s activities are targeted at improving and enhancing the hygiene, safety, and sanitation of garbage collectors and rag pickers who are living in appalling conditions.
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Sanjana Runwal, Founder of Clean-Up Foundation, said, “It is our endeavour to provide the sanitation workers and rag pickers with the kind of support that is not easily available to them. That’s why we are conducting this free vaccination campaign in association with MCGM.
She also said that the main aim of this initiative was to provide valuable insights as well as vaccination to safeguard the health of solid waste workers and garbage collectors.
She said that they wanted to encourage people to get vaccinated. "With the pandemic backdrop, vaccination was something highly needed for them. Based on our extensive primary research on the rag pickers, we found that even after being in the second year of the pandemic, there is a lot of misinformation, doubt, and concern about vaccines and their impact on one’s health," said Runwal.