Chennai: Japan and Chennai corporation have something in common ageing. The civic body, which has about 23,000 permanent employees is facing the problems of ageing and productivity, admit trade union and corporation sources.
More than 50 per cent employees are close to 50 years. And lack of recruitment for the past six years coupled with privatisation has led to the adverse situation affecting the human resource index of city corporation, said S. Purushothaman, secretary, Chennai Managaratchi Anaithu Uzhiyar Sangham.
The present scenario has affected the conservancy work in city. For instance with the present 11,000 conservancy workers, the corporation can clean only 30 per cent of its total area post expansion.
The civic works are mostly awarded to contractors and there is no accountability and if there is a strike by contract workers, Chennai will stink,” he warned.
City corporation, the oldest municipal body in India started three centuries ago, has been facing the ageing problems and lack of staff for the past three years. The issue has been raised several times in the corporation council seeking new appointments, but of no use, said DMK floor leader Subash Chandra Bose.
According to official sources there are 23,538 permanent employees including 11,184 conservancy staff. For conservancy operations there is a vacancy of 1,500 posts. On a daily basis temporary workers are pressed in to service to keep the city clean, sources said.
When contacted, civic officials said that the posts of engineers and technical staff for health department were recently filled and admitted that there is no move to recruit young field staff for the corporation’s daily routine.
After the sixth pay scale revision, the operational costs of the corporation surpassed its revenue and in 2009 the subject became a policy matter and the recruitment bid was stopped. Since then there was no recruitment even as corporation was expanded three years ago, said a top official.
