The Corporation has planned to recruit 715 contract sanitary workers through private agencies for the implementation of the Solid Waste Management (SWM) scheme in the city.

Vellore city produces around 200 tonnes of garbage daily, which is cleared and recycled under the Solid Waste Management Scheme. In order to implement the scheme effectively, the Corporation had conducted a study and came out with a report stating that the local body required 1,450 personnel for door-to-door collection of garbage, clearing, and transporting it to the dump yard and for recycling.

However, the local body at present had only 559 permanent workers and 460 women from self-help groups. As the contract of the SHG members ended on different days this year with the last one on Oct 2, 2013, the local body had sent a proposal to recruit sanitary workers on contract basis, to the Commissionerate of Municipal Administration (CMA) in November 2012. The CMA, in its letter to Vellore Corporation in January 2012, had given its nod to recruit 715 persons and had hand over the job to a private party.

Following this, the salary of these contract sanitary workers, as per the order of the Collector was calculated at `208 per day and the salary per annum was arrived at `7.17 crore. This comprised daily wages which was calculated at `44.61 lakh per month, employees provident fund at `5.35 lakh per month, administrative expenses of `66,924 per month, service charges of `5.51 lakh per month, LIC premium of `71,500 per month, ESI and other benefits at `2.90 lakh per month. The Corporation had proposed to meet the expenditure from its general fund, officials said.

As per the geographical location, requirements and recommendations of the Coimbatore City Municipal Corporation Act, which is being followed in Vellore, the  Corporation divided the strength of 715 workers by allotting them different zones as their work areas — 178 workers for zone 1- Tharapadavedu, 209 workers for zone 2 - Sathuvachari, 150 workers for zone 3 - Vellore and 178 workers in zone 4- Shenbakam. The Corporation has called for tenders in this connection.