India, May 27 -- Informal waste collectors visiting colonies will be registered and issued authorised ID cards by the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), senior officials said. More than 13,500 such waste pickers have been surveyed so far.

Under the Centre's National Action for Mechanised Sanitation Ecosystem (NAMASTE) scheme, a survey and validation drive is underway across all MCD zones, an official said. "A total of 13,505 waste workers have been surveyed and are currently being validated. The exercise is to facilitate registration, identification and inclusion of sanitation workers and waste pickers under welfare provisions," the official added.

The overall number remains much lower than the actual count of informal waste pickers,...