The Hindu                11.05.2013

Private agency to supply 421 temporary sanitary workers

The Tiruchirapalli Corporation Council on Thursday
decided to hire a private agency to supply 421 sanitary workers for a
period of six months to tide over the shortage of sanitary workers in
the city.

The council that had deferred a decision on
the matter at its last meeting owing to opposition from the Dravida
Munnetra Kazhagam, approved the award of a contract to a private
manpower agency at an urgent meeting on Thursday.

Although
the DMK members came around to accept the proposal at Thursday’s
meeting, they appealed to the corporation to avoid such outsourcing in
future. M.Anbazhagan, former deputy mayor of the DMK, urged the
corporation officials to desist from taking up such privatisation
initiatives.

“Talk to the Local Administration
Minister to explain our situation and get the government nod for
appointment of permanent workers,” he suggested. T.Muthuselvam, DMK,
suggested direct recruitment of temporary workers by the corporation on
consolidated pay.

Mayor A.Jaya assured the members that it was only a temporary move taken up in view of the shortage of workers.

Corporation
Commissioner V.P.Thandapani said the civic body has already written to
the government seeking approval for filling up vacant posts of sanitary
workers.

Until last year, the corporation had not
been able to recruit permanent workers in view of the government order
restricting new appointments in civic bodies whose salary expenditure
was more than 49 per cent of its revenue. Now the salary expenditure has
been brought down, paving the way for recruitment. The move to hire a
private agency was just a stop-gap arrangement to tide over the
situation till the government’s go-ahead for appointment of permanent
staff was received.

Given the rapid urbanisation and
increasing population, the corporation has been facing a shortage of
sanitary workers. Five more wards were added to the city with the merger
of Tiruverumbur town panchayat, and Pappakurichi, Ellakudi, Keezha
Kalkandarkottai and Alathur village panchayats, all located in the
eastern periphery of the city. With this, the geographical spread of the
corporation will increase to 167.23 square kilometres from 146.90 sq
km. The city’s current population is 9.16 lakh.

Of
the sanctioned strength of 2,165 sanitary workers, there were more than
400 vacancies putting the civic body under much pressure in executing
sanitation works, especially in the added areas. Apart from meeting the
requirements in wards, the new sanitation workers will be deployed at
Gandhi Market, Central and Chathram bus stands, and the five new wards
in the city, corporation sources said.

The council
also gave its nod for preparing estimates for improving amenities at a
cost of Rs. 72 crore under Integrated Urban Development Mission, Tamil
Nadu Urban Road Infrastructure Development Scheme, and Infrastructure
Gap Filling Fund. The proposals will be forwarded to the government for
approval.