Works Minister stresses projects on schedule

TDT | Manama

Infrastructure projects in the roads, sanitation, buildings and municipalities sectors will not stop due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) and current work is proceeding according to schedule, Minister of Works, Municipal Affairs and Urban Planning Eng. Essam bin Abdullah Khalaf stressed yesterday.

Eng. Khalaf said that contracting companies are taking precautionary and preventive measures to protect their workers in the various work sites, in line with the goals of the national campaign to combat COVID-19.

The minister directed that all instructions from the Ministry of Health and Civil Service Bureau be followed, and to emphasise the need to measure the temperature for those involved, from engineers and supervisors to the labour workers themselves.

All must also wear face masks while at the worksites and practise social-distancing, among other measures, to ensure their safety. Eng. Khalaf explained that the ministry, in coordination with cleaning companies, has also begun taking inspection procedures as well as separating workers in their housing accommodations, in addition to adopting automatic sweepers and removing waste automatically.

The ministry also sterilises markets, public facilities and streets on a regular basis. At the central market, measures that have been taken to protect workers include changing timings, reallocating sites, organising the entry and exit process in a way that prevents crowding, and adhering to the Health Ministry’s instructions in this regard. Eng. Khalaf affirmed that the municipal affairs have stopped receiving any cash payments, and that all services will be paid through machines or online.