The Hindu : Front Page : Procedure "not followed" in contract extension

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Sunday, Mar 04, 2007
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Procedure "not followed" in contract extension

Staff Reporter

Trade union says subject did not come up before Corporation Council

Chennai: Workers' representatives in the Chennai Corporation have said the standard procedure was not followed in extension of the contract with Onyx, the private agency that clears garbage in parts of the city.

The All India Trade Union Congress of the Chennai Corporation appealed to the State Government to not extend contract, which came to an end on February 25.

Clears 1,200 tonnes

The seven-year contract allowed private clearance of garbage in the Ice House, Kodambakkam and Adyar zones. At present, Onyx clears about 1,200 tonnes of garbage a day. Its services cost the Corporation Rs. 30 crore a year.

N. John Selvaraj, general secretary of the All India Trade Union Congress, said the Corporation Council had to approve the decision to extend the contract.

However, the subject was not even brought up before the Council, he said.

A senior Corporation official said the terms of the contract permitted extension of the project by one-fourth of the duration of the contract.

Contract temporary

Also, the extension of the contract was only temporary. Bids would be floated and the new contract awarded for privatised garbage clearance within six months, the official said.

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